Hoops Sagrado vs. Pestalozzi

Once again this year Hoops Sagrado had the pleasure of playing against Pestalozzi--a private high school in Xela. We don't say pleasure because all the teams dominate when we play (although that doesn't hurt), but because the games and the activities afterwards represent the true spirit of what Hoops is all about.

Young Guns vs. Pestalozzi
Score: 44 to 23
Elvis: 3 points/1 assist/5 rebounds
Devonte: 8 points/2 assists/4 rebounds
Jerren: 1 point/2 assists/4 rebounds
Jordyn: 1 point/1 rebound
Malik: 16 points/11 rebounds
Mit'hat: 5 points/1 rebound
Tyler: 10 points/3 rebounds

Las Chicas vs. Pestalozzi
Score: 44 to 14
Alexis: 4 points/2 rebounds
Breezy: 10 points/1 assist
Carla: 2 points*/3 rebounds
Chanae: 4 points/3 rebounds
Imani: 1 rebound
Jordyn: 10 points/4 assists/1 rebound
Justine: 1 assist/4 rebounds
KK: 4 points/4 assists/3 rebounds
Tyler: 10 points/3 assists/1 rebound
*Congratulations to Carla for making her first bucket in Guatemala...wahoo!

Old Heads vs. Pestalozzi (teachers and alumni)
Score: 66 to 27 (for three quarters until Pestalozzi called no mas)Bryan: 24 points/5 assists/1 rebound
Diggs: 9 points/3 assists/1 rebound
Mit'hat: 13 points/6 assists/5 rebounds
Sam: 8 points/3 assists/8 rebounds
Shaq: 12 points/2 assits/9 rebounds

Hoops Sagrado vs. San Felipe

San Felipe is another coastal town that Hoops has started to share a nice rivalry with. Although not as hot as Reu, San Felipe stands out for its amazing chicharron. Even though all the chicharron stands were closed on this night of basketball, we made sure to make a special visit later in the trip to get some...fried pork fat... Sorry, Stat Girl got distracted.

Young Guns vs. San FelipeScore: 50 to 34
Elvis: 3 points/1 assist/6 rebounds
Devonte: 1 assist
Diggs: 13 points/7 rebounds
Jamal: 5 rebounds
Jerren: 4 points/2 assists/1 rebound
Malik: 10 points/1 assist/11 rebounds
Mit'hat: 8 points/5 assists/5 rebounds
Nate: 12 points/5 assists/1 rebound

Las Chicas vs. San Felilpe
Score: 41 to 34
Alexis: 3 rebounds
Breezy: 6 points/1 assist/4 rebounds
Carla: 2 rebounds
Chanae: 1 assit/8 rebounds
Jordyn: 9 points/4 assists/2 rebounds
Justine: 4 rebounds
Imani: 2 points/2 rebounds
KK: 8 points/5 assits/5 rebounds
Tyler: 15 points/3 assists/17 rebounds

Old Heads vs. San FelipeScore: 69 to 44
Aniekan: 4 points/4 assists/7 rebounds
Bryan: 14 points/5 assists/9 rebounds
Diggs: 6 points/2 assists/4 rebounds
Jerrod: 20 points/5 assists/4 rebounds
Mit'hat: 8 points/2 rebounds
Sam: 3 points/1 assist/3 rebounds
Shaq: 14 points/8 rebounds

Hoops Sagrado vs. Totonicopan

How else would you rather spend a Friday night than cheering on all three teams of the Hoops Sagrado Knights to victory?!?! Although there were no near fights this year, there was still some questionable reffing in Totonicopan (as there seems to be in many places where we play). The Old Heads were joined by our very good friend Hans who was so helpful with all of our basketball planning this year. We really couldn't have done it without him:

Young Guns vs. Totonicopan
Score: 57 to 54
Elvis: 7 points/1 assit/2 rebounds
Devonte: 10 points/3 assists/3 rebounds
Diggs: 5 points/1 rebound
Jamal: 7 points/ 1 rebound
Malik: 11 points/12 rebounds
Mit'hat: 11 points/3 assists/4 rebounds
Nate: 6 points/4 assists/2 rebounds

Las Chicas vs. Totonicopan (minus Jario's aunt)
Score: 46 to 35
Alexis: 2 rebounds
Breezy: 2 points/3 rebounds
Carla: 4 rebounds
Chanae: 2 points/1 rebound
Jordyn: 4 points/4 assists/1 rebound
Justine: 3 rebounds
KK: 6 points/4 assits/1 rebound
Tyler: 31 points/1 assist*/6 rebounds
* Stat Girl disputes the assist, but what does she know about basketball?!

Old Heads vs. Totonicopan
Score: 48 to 45
Bryan: 21 points/3 assists/3 rebounds
Devonte: 2 points/1 rebound
Diggs: 6 points/2 assists/2 rebounds
Hans: 1 assist/3 rebounds
Mit'hat: 3 points/3 assists/3 rebounds
Nate: 3 points/1 assist/3 rebounds
Sam: 9 points/5 assists/17 rebounds
Shaq: 4 points/8 rebounds

Hoops Sagrado vs. Palestina de los Altos

Hoops only played 2.5 games in Palestina because the sub-21 boys team for Palestina was more of a sub-12 team. The Young Guns did play a bit of an exhibition with the boys from Palestina beating them 14 to 12.

Las Chicas vs. Palestina
Score: 49 to 26
Alexis: 1 rebound
Breezy: 4 points/4 rebounds
Chanae: 4 rebounds
Imani: 4 points/2 rebounds
Jordyn: 15 points/3 assists
Justine: 5 rebounds
KK: 4 points/4 assists/3 rebounds
Tyler: 20 points/2 assists/12 rebounds

Old Heads vs. Palestina
Score: 72 to 37
Aniekan: 10 points/3 assists/2 rebounds
Bryan: 12 points/5 assists/1 rebound
Diggs: 3 points/2 assists/3 rebounds
Jerren: 2 points
Mit'hat: 3 points/1 assist/2 rebounds
Nate: 6 points/1 rebound
Sam: 5 points/3 assits/10 rebounds
Shaq: 15 points/5 rebounds
Stan: 16 points/3 assists/3 rebounds

Hoops Sagrado vs. Reu

Without a doubt the hottest spot in Guatemala, the gym at Reu served up another intense series of games with the Knights ending the evening 2 for 3.

Young Guns vs. Reu
Score: 43 to 52(Reu)
Elvis: 14 points/1 assit/1 rebound
Devonte: 12 points/4 assits
Diggs: 2 points
Jamal: 1 rebound
Jerren: 4 points/2 assists/3 rebounds
Malik: 2 points/12 rebounds
Mit'hat: 2 points/3 assits/3 rebounds
Nate: 7 points/3 assists/ 1 rebound

Las Chicas vs. Reu
Score 53-52 (overtime)
Alexis: 4 points/1 assist/3 rebounds
Breezy: 2 points/2 rebounds
Carla: 1 rebound
Chanae: 5 points/1 assist/6 rebounds
Imani: 1 rebound
Jordyn: 17 points/3 assists/1 rebound
KK: 15 points/3 assists/7 rebounds
Tyler: 10 points/3 assists/ 6 rebounds

Old Heads vs. Reu
Score: 52 to 50
Aniekan: 5 points/4 assists/6 rebounds
Bryan: 11 points/3 assists/7 rebounds
Diggs: 11 points/2 assists/3 rebounds
Mit'hat: 5 points/3 assists/5 rebounds
Sam: 8 points/2 assists/ 6 rebounds
Shaq: 3 points/8 rebounds
Stan: 9 points/2 assists/3 rebounds

Hoops Sagrado vs. D'Antoni

Visting the costal school of D'Antoni has become a Hoops Sagrado tradition and we were greated as warmly as the weather this year. We played four games against students and the teachers:

Las Chicas vs. D'Antoni (students)
Score: 22-18
Alexis: 1 assist/ 6 rebounds
Breezy: 2 points/ 1 assist/ 1 rebound
Carla: 1 rebound
Chanae: 3 rebounds
Imani: 2 rebouns
Jordyn: 6 points/ 2 assists/1 rebound
Justine: 3 rebounds
KK: 2 points/3 assists/3 rebounds
Tyler: 12 points/2 rebounds

Young Guns vs. D'Antoni (students)
Score: 37-16
Elvis: 3 points/1 assist/6 rebounds
Devonte: 10 points/3 assists/4 rebounds
Diggs: 1 rebound
Jamal: 3 rebounds
Jerren: 1 rebound
Malik: 13 points/10 rebounds
Mit'hat: 7 points/5 rebounds
Nate: 4 points/2 assists/1 rebound

Las Chicas vs. D'Antoni (teachers)
Score: 23-21
Alexis: 1 point/7 rebounds
Breezy: 4 points/1 rebound
Chanae: 2 points/2 rebounds
Imani: 3 rebounds
Jordyn: 6 points/1 assist/1 rebound
Justine: 2 rebounds
KK: 4 points/1 assist/3r ebounds
Tyler: 6 points/3 assists/8 rebounds

Old Heads vs. D'Antoni (teachers)
Score: 48 to 16
Aniekan: 6 points/1a ssist/3 rebounds
Bryan: 8 points/6 assists/2 rebounds
Diggs: 6 points/5 rebounds
Mit'hat: 3 points/2 assists
Nate: 4 points/1 rebound
Sam: 2 points/4 assists/5 rebounds
Shaq: 6 points/6 rebounds
Stan: 7 points/5 rebounds

Scores and Stats

We are woefully and shamefully behind in posting not only about the trip itself, but also about the games....Stat Girl is going to do her best to get all the game stats/ scores/highlights posted as soon as possible.

Teaching in Chuisic

(This year, as a fluent Spanish speaker, Carla decided to teach English three mornings per week in Chuisuc instead of studying Spanish with the other Hoops students. Here is an entry about her experiences.)

Teaching English in Chuisuc has been a great experience. The kids are very smart and have great attitudes.

I teach on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. (5th graders) and 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. (6th graders). The classes give me the opportunity to talk the students more than the basketball camps and get to know more about their lives.

It is unbelievable the dedication and respect they have for learning, their teachers and their peers. This makes teaching easier for me, since I have to teach about 45 students per grade.

I just started teaching with 5th graders today and so far they are great. They have learned the alphabet and numbers 1-20. I have been teaching the 6th graders for about 3 weeks. They are very fun and we have a great time together. When I'm having a bad day or something, just talking to them makes so much better. They had their firs exam on the numbers 1-100 and all A's!

I am very thankful for the opportunity because I feel as if I'm helpth them better themselves by learning another language. I know that when the teaching period ends, I will most likel shed some tears because I'm going to miss my kids and we've made a connection and when it's time to say good-bye, it will be hard.

The Return of the Red Menance

You'll have to forgive us for not posting for a while, but our access to the Internet has been sporadic at best. Even though we are now all home, we'll try to do our best to fill in the gaps from the trip and go over the past week or so, starting with the finals of the Kid's tournament.

Day two of the Kid's Tournament saw the third place and championship match-ups. In the third place games it was the girls from Xejuyup vs. the girls from Chuisuc. Both teams put up a great battle and in the end it was the chicas from Chuisuc claming third place by a score of 9 to 4. In the third place boys game, things were a bit more uneven with the Pachaj boys basically dominating the boys from Chuisuc with the final score of 15 to 6.

In the girls championship game, the Red Devils from Chirjquiac once again took the top spot for the fifth time in six years by defeating the Pachaj girls 13 to 10. Perhaps it's because their Director Lucy is a ball herself, or maybe there is something in the water in Chirijquiac, but their girls really do seem to dominate every year.

The Chirijquiac boys did not seem to fair quite as well in the championship game falling to the boys from Xejuyup 10 to 7. Still, they put on a great effort in honor of their coach Stan who had to leave them (in capable hands we might add) after two weeks of coaching.

Kid's Tournament: Day One

The two-day kid's tournament kicked off on Thursday and it was one for the record books.

The morning got starated with a parade of all the players and coaches up the winding dirt road to the village of Pachaj where the tournament is being held this year (although Chuisuc is hosting). After a handful of welcoming speeches and the pomp and circumstance of the Guatemalan national anthem, the games were ready to begin.

First up were the reigning girls' champions of Pachaj vs. last year's third place team Xejuyup. It quickly became apparent that Pachaj would once again be playing for the championship on Friday and Xejuyup in the third place game. In the end, it was Pachaj 21 and Xejuyup 5.

Next up were the boys of Chuisuc and Chirijquaic. It was a barn-burner of a game with the score deadlocked at zero at the half! Chiri was the first to break the points-scoring ice and never looked back, finally winning 5 to 1. At one point in the game referee Bryan could be heard comparing it to a soccer game...Stat Girl does not like this status.

The Christmas-themed match-ups continued in the third game with the Chuisuc girls (green) taking on the Chirijquiac girls (red). At first it looked as if the girls game between these two aldeas was going to suffere the same soccer fate as the boys game, but the red menance of old reared its head in the 2nd half and the Chiri girls won 19 to 2.

The final game of the day between Pachaj and Xejuyup boys will do down in the Hoops Sagrado record books. It was a scrappy match-up from teh get go and at the end of regulation the score was tied at 8. The first (yes, Stat Girl said first) overtime saw tempers beginning to flare both on the court and sidelines. Although referee Bryan usually lets a lot slide, when players start playing dirty and coaches start copmlaining about the reffing, he starts calling the game tighter and tighter depending on the level of complaints. Over #1 ended with the score dead-locked at 10. The second overtime was equally as intense, it not more so than the first, only wiht a different result. With less than 2 minutes to go, Xejyuup increased the score to 12-10 and although there were some scary moments in the final 90 seconds, they held on to make it the championship game against Chirijquiac.

On Friday, for the Championship:
Pachaj girls vs. Chirijquiac girls
Xejuyup boys vs. Chirijquiac boys

For Third Place:
Chuisuc girls vs. Xejuyup girls
Pachaj boys vs. Chuisuc boys

Pachaj

Chanae, Imani, Jerren, Jerrod, Jordyn, Malik

This is my [Imani] second year at Pachaj, this year Pachaj has been very interesting. The girls and boys at camp come to greet us. Even some of the teachers stay and watch the kids play. Sometimes they even give us water. It surprises me how patient the kids can be.

To get to Pachaj, we have to take a microbus to the Rotunda and then a school bus to Pachaj. We arrive at camp at 3:30 and leave at 5 p.m. There is 6 people at Pachaj. There’s Chanae, Jerrod, Jordyn, Jerren, Malik and I (Imani).

Every year the girls and boys have to be cut, we don’t like to cut anyone in the 6th grade because it will be their last chance to play if they don’t get a scholarship.

There’s a lot of 6th graders in our camp this year, about 13 so we had to cut the girls down 3 so we would just have 10. Lately we have been teaching the boys and girls how to dribble, pass and use defense.

When we get the chance we talk to the kids about there life outside of basketball. Talking to one of the girls I found out that her father lives in the United States. I found this different because parents are willing to go to the states to provide better for their family back in Guatemala.

Yesterday, the girls played against the boys we went into overtime with two on both sides. Unfortunately the boys won but today there will be a rematch hopefully this time we’ll win.

We have a tournament with other camps soon. We won the tournament last year and we to reign supreme again. In Pachaj we teach and play together as a team. Jerrod, Malik and Jerren work on the boys while Jordyn, Chanae and myself work on the girls. Chanae and Malik are here for the first time, they came with an open mind ready to experience something new and different.

Even though it’s me, Jerren and Jerrod’s second year. It’s also Jordyn’s third year we all came ready to re-experience camp at Pachaj again. Well, we gotta get ready for this tournament. Til next time. GO PACHAJ!

Chirijquiac

Diggs, Justine, KK, Nate, Stan and Shaq

As first time visitors to Guatemala, Nate, KK and I [Justine] all feel that the children at our camp are a part of our family.

Our first time to the camp was very surprising. The trip itself was unexectped, yet very welcoming. The children all welcomed us and displayed their level of respect. As the first week came to an end, we knew that we had to cut 20 girls and 16 boys so that we can have an official team.

After we made the cuts, we then realized the amount of responsibilities that they had. Many of the children had to return to work so that they could support their family.

The experience is bittersweet. Nonetheless, we all enjoy the company of the children.

Xejuyup

(Breezy, Jamal, Mit'hat, Sam and Tyler)

This summer, the pied-piper of Xejuyup has returned with a vengance...welcome back Samuel. Also returning home are Mit'hat, Breezy and Tyler along with our newest addition, Jamal.Withour squad complete, we have set out on our quest for the 'Ship.

During our first week of camp, we were graciously welcomed by our group (or kids) consisting of about 23 boys and 20 girls. We begin each day with warm-up exercises consisting of laps, stretching and pushups. Later we begin drills such as dribbling competitions, shooting, passing and defensive slides. A typical day in Xejuyup is never complete without a ball rolling down the steep mountain into the cornfields, resulting in all the boys flying down the mountain to get it. After the ball is retrieved, camp resumes with 1 on 1, 2 on 2 and finally 5 on 5 competitions at the end.

We have narrowed down the boys and girls teams to 10 memebers each. It was sad cutting kids who show so much effort, but it is great to work with smaller groups because we are now teaching advanced basketball topics like zone and man defenses and setting picks on offense. It's evident that the kids hard work has paid off in the first two weeks because their skills keep improving daily. When we first came to the camp some kids couldn't dribble and had trouble reaching the rim. It is amazing how quickly they are improving.

We are really getting close to our kids the more time we spend with them. We are amazed that the families are allowing their 4th, 5th and 6th graders to miss work in order to come to our camp. We must reiterate what an honor it is to work with them.

Chuisuc

(Beginning today, we'll be running a series of posts written by our students about their experiences in the basketball clinics. First up is Chuisuc, which is run by Alexis, Aniekan, Carla, Devonte and Elvis).

The camp: five coaches, one court, two weeks and too many kids. No really, it's only too many in relation to the ten who make up the team. However, the team is more than the ten that play in the tournament, it is everybody that comes each day. Some show up to play ball, some just play around, but it is everybody who is around that makes it fun. It's speaking Spanglish, thanking Carla for speaking Spanish, making up handshakes and yelling cuadro afuara in hopes they will box out.

Working with the kids is interesting because you have to teach them everything in ways they'll understand. Basketball serves as a bridge to the language barrier. Although, unless they have ball in their hand, the questions they ask have nothing to do with basketball. The questions they ask are about your family and school.

By the end of the second week, the focus has shifted and its more serious. The questions are like "am I going to make the team?" and "which day are the cuts?" The second week came and we made the cuts. The kids took it pretty well. There was no crying and no bitterness. The best part is the kids we select are sixth graders so the rest are younger, giving them another year to make the team.

Now with the teams made it's still fun and now they just want to win. This week coming up we are teaching them 2-3 defense and offensive moves. The girls know their positions and are learning their roles.

Basketball is bridging the gap for kids up in Chuisuc with kids in America.

If It's Raining, It Must Be San Cristobal

We are going to go a bit out of order here and talk about Saturday and Sunday before we talk about Friday. The events of Friday need a proper vetting before posting them on the blog, but please stay tuned, it will be worth the wait.

As for the weekend, we participated in the San Cristobal tournament for the 11th year and for the 11th year, the tournament was rain delayed. Seriously, no one should ever plan a wedding, a barbeque or any outdoor event for the weekend of the San Cris tournament because surely it too will be rain-delayed.

Still, despite the rain, our hosts in San Cris were as gracious as ever and this year even served us something other than hot dogs with coleslaw to show their appreciation.

Las Chicas were 50-50 in the tournament. On Saturday, despite their efforts, they lost to the host team 45 to 41. But the loss did not deter them and they rallied for an early morning game on Sunday and defeated the team from Pahula 41-30. The newest members of the team are learning hard lessons learned by last year's team. Just because someone looks like "she's 'bout 90" does not in fact mean that person cannot ball. For some reason this is always an issue with the girls team and those of us on the trip who at times might feel like we're "'bout 90" take a subtle pleasure in watching some of the more mature players on opposing teams teach Las Chicas a lesson about the experience that comes with age.

Las Chicas vs. San Cris (41 to 45)
Alexis: 1 point/3 rebounds
Breezy: 1 assist/2 rebounds
Carla: 2 rebounds
Chanae: 3 rebounds
Imani: 2 points/2 rebounds
Jordyn: 15 points/ 2 assists/ 1 rebound
Justine: 2 rebounds
KK: 3 points/ 3 assists/ 4 rebounds
Tyler: 20 points/ 7 rebounds

Las Chicas vs. Pahula (41 to 30)
Alexis: 2 points/ 6 rebounds
Breezy: 2 rebounds
Carla: 2 rebounds
Chanae: 6 rebounds
Imani: 1 rebound
Jordyn: 14 points/ 2 assists/ 1 rebound
Justine: 5 rebounds
KK: 6 points/ 3 rebounds
Tyler: 19 points/ 1 assist/ 9 rebounds

The Young Guns bounced back from Friday (more to come later) and took on the San Cristobal sub-21 team with a renewed passion. Malik was a beast on the boards and in buckets and completed a double-double with 26 points and 17 rebounds. But it wasn't a one-man show and everyone made the stat line in the 66-43 victory. Following a good night's rest and a morning off, the Young Guns prepared to play for the championship on Sunday against Totonicopan. With 3 minutes left to go in the third quarter and the Knights up by 20, the heavens opened up and it rained the way it only can in San Cris. After about an hour rain delay, the Young Guns took to the court again and looked to maintain their 20-point lead right through to the end. Of course that's when things started to meltdown and emotions were running high. Despite the inter turmoil on the team, the Young Guns were able to hold it together long enough for a 51-47 victory and be crowned junvenile champions.

Young Guns vs. San Cristobal (66 to 43)
Elvis: 2 points/ 5 assists/ 6 rebounds
Devonte: 7 points/ 2 rebounds
Diggs: 9 points/ 3 assists/3 rebounds
Jamal: 4 points/ 3 rebounds
Jerren: 4 points/ 1 assist/ 1 rebound
Malik: 26 points/ 1 assist/ 17 rebounds
Mit'hat: 8 points/ 4 assists/ 3 rebounds
Nate: 4 points/ 2 assists/ 3 rebounds

Young Guns vs. Totonicopan (51 to 47)
Elvis: 3 points/ 6 rebounds
Devonte: 9 points/ 2 assists/ 6 rebounds
Diggs: 5 points/ 3 rebounds
Jamal: 2 rebounds
Jerren: 2 points/1 assist/2 rebounds
Malik: 12 points/2 assists/13 rebounds
Mit'hat: 12 points/9 rebounds
Nate: 5 points/1 rebound

Thanks to extended rain delays on both Saturday and Sunday, the Old Heads didn't take to the court until the sun was beginning its daily creep behind the mountains. First up on the docket for the Old Heads was the host team. Despite the fact that folks on both teams are long-time friends and have shared a cerveza or two together, that didn't stop things from getting chippy and the fouls were flying pretty fast and furious. Mother Nature cooled things off with, wait for it, wait for it...rain delay and the Old Heads returned after the delay to defeat San Cris 61 to 44. What can we say about the championship game vs. Mazate (at least the portions of their team that showed up) other than what you would expect: a rain delay, bad calls, rough play and a stompin' by Hoops Sagrado. The Old Heads defeated one of their costal rivals 89 to 34 to once again be crowned champions of the San Cristobal tournament.

Old Heads vs. San Cris (61 to 44)
Aniekan: 14 points/7 assists/4 rebounds
Bryan: 6 points/2 assists/1 rebound
Diggs: 4 points/7 rebounds
Mit'hat: 3 points
Sam: 3 assists/6 rebounds
Shaq: 20 points/ 1 assist/ 11 rebounds
Stan: 14 points/3 assists/2 rebounds

Old Heads vs. Mazate (89 to 34)
Aniekan: 10 points/3 assists/6 rebounds
Bryan: 18 points/4 assists/3 rebounds
Diggs: 3 rebounds
Jerrod: 18 points/1 assist/4 rebounds
Mit'hat: 11 points/2 assists
Nate: 4 points
Sam: 6 points/5 assists/5 rebounds
Shaq: 7 points/2 assists/10 rebounds
Stan: 11 points/3 rebounds

Cunen and Chichicastenango

The weekend brought the first roadtrip of our adventure and we traveled about four hours by bus to the mountain town Cunen in Quiche state.

Surrounded by mountains and next the Catholic church in the center of the town, the outdoor court in Cunen has to have been one of the prettiest settings for a basketball game the Knights have ever had the opportunity to experience.

With the sun setting over the mountains, the Young Guns took the court first. Our readers will have to forgive Stat Girl for not having a complete report from the Young Guns game (although all the stats are correct) because we spent most of the boys game trying to fix the clock/scoreboard. Luckily for us, Cunen's very own MacGuyver was able to fix with with some first aid tape (and gum wrapper of course). The final score was Young Guns 56 and Cunen 48.

Devonte: 7 points/ 1 assist/ 4 rebounds
Elvis: 9 points/ 2 rebounds
Nate: 10 points/ 2 assists/ 5 rebounds
Jamal: 2 points/ 5 rebounds
Malik: 8 points/9 rebounds
Jerren: 2 points/ 5 assists/ 5 rebounds
Diggs: 10 points/ 4 rebounds
Mit'hat: 8 points/ 7 rebounds

The Las Chicas game (and yes, it's odd to say The Las) started with a lot of discussion about whether or not the game should be for 8 or 10 minute quarters. Cunen decided on 10 minute quarters and by the time the game ended with a 50-27 victory for Las Chicas, we suspect the Cunen team may have regretted that decision.

Tyler: 19 points/ 2 assists/ 8 rebounds
Jordyn: 15 points/ 4 assists
Alexis: 1 assist/ 6 rebounds
KK: 10 points/ 1 assist/ 1 rebound
Breezy (2 points)/ 3 assists/ 1 rebound
Chanae: 4 points/ 3 rebounds
Imani: 2 points/ 1 assist/ 9 rebounds
Carla: 1 assist/ 3 rebounds

By the time the Old Heads game rolled around the court was under the lights--okay, so half the court was under the lights, the other half, not-so-much. It was pretty obvious early on that the Knights had things under control, especially when it was 45-10 at the half. The large lead gave the Old Heads an opportunity to get creative including several crowd-pleasing dunks by Aniekan "Oh My Aching Back" Udofia. It also gave Nate an opportunity to make his debut with the Old Heads (and score a bucket). In the end, it was 89-32 in favor of the Knights.

Bryan: 6 points/ 8 assists/ 4 rebounds
Sam: 7 points/ 2 assists/ 5 rebounds
Stan: 19 points/ 2 assists/ 4 rebounds
Jerrod: 21 points/ 4 assists/ 4 rebounds
Shaq: 13 points/ 8 rebounds
Mit'hat: 3 points/ 1 assist
Diggs: 5 rebounds
Aniekan: 19 points/ 3 assists/ 7 rebounds
Nate: 2 points

After the game, everyone headed to a local restaurant--the only one in town-- for dinner by candlelight, which was courtesy of a blown transformer. Our small hotel, of which we were fortunately the only guests, took on a freshman dorm atmosphere with lots of tall tales and farting...good times.

On Sunday, half of the group went on a hike to some local caves and waterfalls. The report from the field is that it was the most beautiful and amazing thing that some of the students had ever seen.

Around mid-day we boarded the bus to Chichicastenango. We were scheduled to play three games in Chichi beginning at 8 p.m., but the consensus on the bus was that people weren't really up for three more games at that hour, so we canceled the games and most likely saved American-Guatemalan relations for at least another week. We still stopped in Chichi to visit the market and try our hands at bartering for goods, but we were home in Xela before our first game was scheduled to start and in theory for everyone to get a good night sleep before Monday classes.

Coatepeque and Champerico

After a week of classes and basketball camps, the Hoops Sagrado Knights descended from the Highlands of Quetzaltenango to the coastal town of Coatepeque for our first officials games on Friday.

Las Chicas and the Young Guns took on the boys and girls teams from the Pedro Molina high school and the Old Heads played the Coatepeque selection team--who were the league champions in 2008.

The ladies were the first up and when the scoreboard at halftime read 38-9 in favor of Las Chicas, the pressure of getting the first win in Guatemala quickly evaporated. Almost all of the ladies mad an appearance in the game and everyone who plaed made the stat line. Las Chicas 55--Pedro Molina 21.

Jordyn: 8 points/2 assists/5 rebounds
Tyler: 20 points/ 1 assist/ 13 rebounds
Alexis: 8 points/ 3 assists/ 10 rebounds
KK: 13 points/ 2 assists/ 6 rebounds
Carla: 1 rebound
Chanae: 4 points/ 1 assist/ 7 rebounds
Justine: 2 points/ 2 rebounds
Imani: 4 rebounds

Two-hundred members of the school community will be making their way to Pasadena for the Tournament of Roses Parade on January 1, 2010 and we were treated to a preview of their performance (including a special rendition of Happy Birthday for Chanae) between games. We aren't sure the Rose Parade has ever seen anything like it! Be sure to tune in and see for yourselves.

Next on the court after the brief musical interlude were the Young Guns. Although the boys didn't quite dominate in the same fashion as the ladies, they still managed to pull off a 36-29 vitory. At one point, the Young Guns proved threatening enough that when just about no one was looking but Stat Girl, a member of the selection team slipped on a Pedro Molina jersey and entered the game. Even though that may have helped keep the score closer, it was all for naught as every member of the Knights made the stat line and kept Hoops Sagrad 2-0 for the day.

Devonte: 2 points/ 2 assists/ 1 rebound
Jerren: 2 points/ 1 assist/ 4 rebounds
Nate: 8 points/ 1 assist/ 3 rebounds
Elvis: 5 points/ 6 rebounds
Malik: 10 points/ 7 rebounds
Mit'hat: 6 points/ 1 assist/ 6 rebounds
Diggs; 3 points/4 rebounds
Jamal: 3 rebounds

For the final game of the morning--okay, it's Guatemala so the final game of the afternoon--the Old Heads took on the league-winning selection team. It seemed as if blow-out was in the works at half-time with the Knights up by 16, but the Coatepeque team went on a 12-0 run in the 3rd quarter to make things interesting. With less than a minute to go the Knights were only up by 3, but fortunately kept the ball and thanks to a last-minute 3 by Diggs (with an assist from Bryan) to earn him the Dario Paul Poor Sportsmanship Award, the Knighs prevailed 54-48.

Bryan: 8 points/ 2 assists/ 2 rebounds
Aniekan: 4 points/ 2 assists/ 3 rebounds
Jerrod: 19 points/ 3 assists/ 4 rebounds
Stan: 7 points/ 1 assist/ 5 rebounds
Sam: 4 points/ 1 assist/ 8 rebounds
Shaq: 4 points/ 8 rebounds
Diggs: 6 points/ 2 assists/ 4 rebounds
Mit'hat: 2 points/ 1 assist/ 1 rebound

The best way to celebrate the Knights firs three victories was of course a trip to the beach. So after a lunch--which included a sampling of cow utters--provided by our host, we headed to Champerico to dip our toes in the ocean and watch the sunset over the Pacific.

Early Morning Practice

It's 6 a.m. in Guatemala...do you know where your children are?

If they are on the Hoops Sagrado trip they are all currently walking about a mile to some local basketball courts for early morning practice. Time will tell how this turns out, but we suspect an early night for everyone tonight.

More soon....

We Have Arrived

We have finally arrived in Guatemala and more to the point we have finally arrived in Xela! Only three days in and it's been a lot of firsts already...first plane ride, first time in a foreign country, first meal out of a cart...and it's been pretty exciting because everyone has survived, even the meals out of the carts! Every year in Guatemala its a different experience because the people on the trip are different. First impressions so far have been that folks seem really open to trying new things and really respectful of each other and the program. There's a lot more to write, especially tomorrow after the first full day of classes and camps, but we just wanted to take a moment to let you all know that we're here, we're safe and so far, we're having a great time (oh and learning too!).

And We're Off....

The bags are packed (hopefully) and the passports have all arrived (finally...and don't get us started on that one) and Hoops Sagrado 2009 is set to take off (literally) on Saturday July 11. But before we get to Guatemala, let us introduce you to this year's team:

Alexis--rising junior at Bishop McNamara High School, first time Hoops participant. Alexis doesn't think there is a better way to learn than "hands on," and is looking forward to working with the children in Cantel.

Aniekan--graduate, School of Hard Knocks, seven-time Hoops participant. Made sure to load up on Zoloft prescription before heading out....the year of no technicals. Aniekan will be painting a mural in Pachaj this year.

Breezy--graduate, Winona State, two-time Hoops participant and getting things started right this year by being diagnosed with tonsillitis the day before the trip.

Bryan--graduate, Howard University, 11-time Hoops participant, fearless leader, father, husband, BFF, oh and the best ANC Commissioner in D.C. according to the City Paper. He's got a new iPod and new shoes this year...Xela, you've been warned....

Carla--rising senior at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in D.C. and first-times Hoops participant. Carla is a native of Ecuador and excited to learn about a new culture and work on her Spanish.

Chanae--rising junior at Thurgood Marshall Academy and first-time Hoops participant. Chanae is looking forward to the adventure that the trip will be and becoming a more well-rounded person.

Deon--Diggs, as we like to call him, is a graduate of Hyde Public Charter School, student at Johnson & Wales in Miami and four-time Hoops participant. We're looking forward to having Diggs' steadying hand on the trip.

Devonte--rising junior at Suitland High School, first time Hoops participant and brother of Deon. Devonte is looking forward to sharing is love (and skills) of basketball with the children in Guatemala.

Elvis--rising junior at Wilson Sr. High School, first-time Hoops participant and brother of Mit'hat. Besides looking forward to having his skills on the basketball court, we're also wondering whether he'll show up with a mohawk or not.

Imani--rising junior at Montgomery Blair High school and two-time Hoops participant. Imani was on her basketball team at school this year, so we're looking forward to seeing her more on the court this summer.

Jamal--attended Wilson Senior High School and is a first-time Hoops participant. With about 10 minutes to go till the office closed, Jamal finally got his passport on Friday and now we're glad to have his infectious laughter on the trip.

Jerren--attended Bell Multicultural High School and is a two-time Hoops participant. After taking a year off from Guatemala, Jerren is back with us this year. The cart vendors in the market have been forewarned to stock-up!

Jerrod--graduate of the School of Hard Knocks and two-time Hoops participant. Having purchased all the salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash and hot sauce that he can carry, Jerrod is ready for a second year in Guatemala.

Jordyn--rising junior at Paul VI and three-time Hoops participant. It's going to mean a bit less time on Facebook, but we know that Jordyn is really looking forward to coming back to Guate this year...now if we could just get the Momma to come...

Justine--rising senior at Thurgood Marshall Academy and first-time Hoops participant. Justine is looking forward to seeing a way of life outside of Southeast D.C.

Kaybria--rising sophomore at Paul VI and first-time Hoops participant. Kaybria (aka KK)is looking forward to improving her Spanish and enhancing her leadership abilities.

Malik--is a rising junior at Wilson High School and first-time Hoops participant. Now that his passport has finally arrived, we're very excited to have Malik with us. We suspect he'll learn the bus routes in Xela before anyone else.

Mindy--graduate West Virginia University and six-time Hoops participant. Stat Girl has a new notebook and spent the spring co-ed league season working on her stat-taking abilities.

Mit'hat--graduate of Luke Seymour High School and four-time Hoops participant. Mit'hat is back with us for one last time before adulthood sets in and we are looking forward to his goat herding skills and three-point shot.

Nate--attended Wilson High School and is a first-time Hoops participant. Nate lives in Adams Morgan and has never traveled before so he's looking forward to a new experience.

Sam, graduate Wilson High School and UMass. DCPS math teacher, six-time Hoops participant. After taking a year off, Sam is back and ready for a Super Chivos game...He'll be teaching English in the mornings and of course coaching at Xejuyup.

Shaq--graduate of Maya Angelou Public Charter School and three and a half-time Hoops participant. Shaq is back with us this year after having to leave early and we're glad he join us...and Stat Girl swears she didn't shrink the uniforms.

Stan--graduate Wilson High School and Michigan State. Stan currently works for a large public charity and will only be with us for three weeks this year, but we're glad for that time and Bryan is glad his rolls are safe for at least part of the trip.

Tyler--is a rising junior at Elizabeth Seaton, two-time Hoops participant and will celebrate her sweet 16th with us this year in Guatemala.... This is going to call for something more than Albamarl. At least it will save her parents a few weeks of car insurance!

Cue the Queen

Didn't mean to keep folks in suspense, it's just been one of those weeks, but without further delay here is the final report from the Balance Gym Co-Ed Spring League:

The Hoops Sagrado Knights (8-0 regular season) Co-ed League season came to a dramatic conclusion as the Knights held on to beat Full Court Press (7-1 regular seasons) 82 to 76.

Things were tense from the very beginning and threatened to boil over at several points, but fortunately, there were no technicals, even for the bench.

Despite the final score, this was probably not the Knights' best game simply because there was a battle for each ball and just some dirty plays and bad calls.

Everyone contributed in some way though, whether with points, stats or emotional support and it was the Knights who got to cut down the nets at the end of the game.

Championship Game Stats*
Bryan: 5 points/4 assists/ 1 half assist/ 2 rebounds
Dario: 20 points/ 3 assists/ 15 rebounds/ 4 steals-blocks
Stan: 7 points/ 1 half assist/ 4 rebounds/ 1 steal-block
Aniekan: 6 points/ 2 assists/ 7 rebounds/ 1 steal-block
Jerrod: 34 points/ 5 rebounds/ 3 steals-blocks
Jordyn: 10 points
Tyler: 1 rebound

Thanks for reading. Stay tuned for posts from Guatemala which will start in just about week (whew!). Stat Girl has a brand new notebook and is ready to go....VAMOS!

*Stat girl apologizes that she was a bit distracted at moments during the game so while all the points are there, everyone probably had more assists, rebounds and steals-blocks than what are listed.

If David Stern played in the NBA

Where does Stat Girl start about today's playoff game against Flight of the Airballs?

Does she start with the fact that game started 20 minutes late because the other team was waiting on their girl? Does she start with the fact that #2 and #20 for the opposing team were total jerks(there is a better word to describe them, but this is a family publication). Or does she start with the one common denominator in both of the previous issues?

You see, the guy who organizes the league plays for Flight of the Airballs (he's #2) and it's amazing how different the rules are (and the calls are) when the Commish is playing in the game. (BTW Commish, if you want to borrow Stat Girl's pen, a please and thank you would have sufficed).

But the Knights went into the gaming knowing that in some respects the odds were against them and needless to say, the game was close and pretty darn intense.

Although the Knights lead throughout most of the game, in the second half Flight of the Airballs went on a 12-0 run and got the game to within one point.

As Bryan described it, playing against the Commish's team is like playing every team in Guatemala. We are never going to get the calls and you just need to keep your head about you. And kudos really to all of our players who understood that they weren't going to get many calls.

Cooler heads prevailed and although a couple of folks got in foul trouble, no one fouled out and no one threw any punches (although a rush order of Zoloft before the championship game may be in order).

Ultimately the Knights were able to pull of their closest margin of victory all season by beating Flight of the Airballs 63 to 53.

Playoff Game #2 Stats:
Bryan: 9 points/ 6 assists/ 1 half assist/ 3 rebounds/ 2 steals
Sam: 4 assists/ 1 half assist/ 6 rebounds/ 2 steals
Jerrod: 26 points/ 2 assists/ 2 half assists/ 4 rebounds/ 5 steals
Aniekan: 10 points/ 2 half assists/ 1 rebound
Dario: 14 points/ 2 assists/ 15 rebounds/ 1 steal
Jordyn: 2 points/ 1 rebound
Tyler: 2 points/ 1 assist/ 1 steal
Shaq: 3 rebounds

The championship game is on Saturday at 12 p.m. vs. Full Court Press. Hoops beat Full Court Press 73-58 in the third week of the league. But don't let the final score fool you. Hoops (8-0 regular season) were down to Full Court (7-1 regular season) the entire game until they finally tied it up with 9 minutes left to go and went ahead with 7:28 to go in the game.

Playoffs?! Who said anything about playoffs?!

It was like deja vu all over again this week for the Knights as they once again took on the SAIS Ballers in the first round of the playoffs.

The Knights went up immediately and never really looked back. Although some of our previous games with the SAIS Ballers had been quite physical, this was a more civilized affair. Now don't get Stat Girl wrong, this wasn't a love-fest by any stretch of the means, but folks were definitely on much better behavior on both sides.

Bryan got things off on the right foot in the second half by having a Rick Berry moment with a nice two-handed finger roll for two points that sort of had everyone on both teams shaking their heads.

There was a bit of rough going at the beginning of the second half, but everyone quickly pulled it together and the momentum was on to try and score 100....

It was a true team effort today with everyone making the stat line in each category. And although the Knights didn't quite make it to triple digits but they came close.

The final score was 93-51.

Playoff Game #1 Stats
Bryan: 10 points/ 11 assists/ 4 half assists/4 rebounds
Jordyn: 24 points/ 4 assists/ 1 rebound
Sam: 4 points/ 5 assists/ 4 half assists/ 12 rebounds
Dario: 17 points/ 2 assists/ 15 rebounds
Jerrod: 27 points/ 6 assists/ 1 half assist/ 3 rebounds
Anikean: 8 points/ 1 half assit/ 4 rebounds

Playoff game two is Sunday at 11:30 a.m. Not sure who we will play, but from the looks of things it will be Flight of the Airballs who we beat in week 7 by a score of 78 to 56. They looked tough though in what we saw of their playoff game, so laces tied and fingers crossed.

Undefeated

Week eight of the Balance Co-Ed League--the last week of regular season play--saw a rematch of the Knights vs. the SAIS Ballers. The Knights beat the Ballers 60-46 in a very chippy game in the second week of the league.

With our fearless leader off celebrating his high school reunion, the Knights really needed to step up against the SAIS Ballers, who despite their losing record (0 and 7) play tough ball (some might consider it a bit dirty).

Things immediately got off on the right foot (besides the fact that everyone was actually early for the game) when Dario got the tip that went right to Jordyn which she took down court for the first bucket of the game.

Perhaps it was in honor of emotional rock Bryan, or maybe everyone just shared a couple of Zoloft in the parking lot before the game, but the Knights were on their best behaviour throughout the entire 40 minutes. It never ceases to amaze Stat Girl that the meanest, dirtiest player for the SAIS Ballers is a teacher!!! Fortunately Hoops is able to counter-balance that bad impression of teachers by having Sam Levy on the team.

All-in-all it was a great outing by the Knights and everyone stepped up to help the Knights remain undefeated with a 73 to 51 victory.

A special shout-out to Jeff Owens who joined us for the last regular season game of the year as a warm up for Guatemala. He is also the recepient of this week's Dario Paul Poor Sportsmanship Award by allowing the clock to run down till its final seconds and shooting a two.

This Week's Stats:
Aniekan: 12 points/ 5 rebounds
Jerrod: 20 points/ 6 assists/ 2 rebounds
Sam: 2 points/ 6 assists/ 2 rebounds
Stan: 4 points/ 1 assist/ 1 rebound
Dario: 7 points/ 3 assists/ 12 rebounds
Jordyn: 9 points/ 3 1/2 assists/ 3 rebounds
Mehalic: 2 points/ 1-1/2 assist/ 5 rebounds
Bell: 9 points/ 1 assist/ 3 rebounds
Shaq: 4 points/ 10 rebounds
Jeff O.: 4 points

The playoffs are Saturday and Sunday, but we don't know yet what time and who we will play, so please be sure to check back.

Also, please keep Keith Gatling and his family in your prayers this week.

A win-win situation

The Hoops Sagrado Knights played two games this weekend and made sure they remained undefeated by the time Monday morning rolled around:

Saturday's Game:

Saturday saw the Knights take on Stacey's Team who are much better than what their record and the final score would indicate. Once again, the pace was frenetic but that wasn't necessarily reflected in the scoring as the half-time score was only 36 to 24.

Although he did his own fair share of talking, Jerrod proved that with each passing game he is working on maintaining his composure in the face of adversity and instead of getting a technical, he showed his opponent the what-for by scoring against him.

On Saturday the Knights were joined by Hoops alumn George Samuel Mehalic as well as frequent Guatemala visitor Jeff Bell...

Hoops 81
Stacey's Team 57

Saturday's Game
Bryan: 15 points*/ 8 assists/ 1 rebound
Dario: 14 points/ 2.5 assists/ 16 rebounds
Jordyn: 5 points/ 3.5 assists
Aniekan: 8 points/ 2 assists
Jerrod: 9 points/ .5 assist/ 1 rebound
Sam Mehalic: 4 points/ 8 assists
Jeff Bell: 12 points/ 4 assists/ 4 rebounds
Tyler: 10 points/ 3 rebounds
Stan: 6 points/ 4 assists/ 3 rebounds

*This week's Dario Paul bad sportsmanship award goes to Bryan who let the clock run down, and talked smack to Stacey, who was guarding him, only to pull up as time was running out and shoot a three....

Sunday's Game:

On Sunday, the first-place Knights took on the fourth-place Flight of the Airballs...

All but one player on the squad made the state sheet in all three columns with at least a half an assist, two points and a rebound.

Defensively Hoops had a great game with Dario having at least four steals (Stat Girl is still working on that) and probably twice as many blocks.

Tyler and Jordyn both continue to make valuable contributions to the team effort and prove that no matter how rough and tumble some of the opposing players may be, that they can hang in there with the "boys" with no troubles.

Hoops Sagrado 78
Flight of the Airballs 56

Sunday's Game
Bryan: 11 points/ 9.5 assists/ 1 rebound
Tyler: 4 points/ 2 assists/ 1 rebound
Sam: 7 points/ 2 assists/ 2 rebounds
Sam Mehalic: 2 points/ 3 rebounds
Stan: 17 points/ 4 assists/ 2 rebounds
Jerrod: 7 points/ 3.5 assists/ 2 rebounds
Aniekan: 8 points/ 1.5 assists/ 4 rebounds
Dario: 13 points/ 4 assists/ 9 rebounds
Jordyn: 9 points/ .5 assists/ 1 rebound

As we move into the final week of league play before the playoffs begin and as our trip to Guatemala looms, questions still remain about the cohesiveness of the team. Some players still seem to think that basketball is an individual sport and not a team effort. Let's hope this week, that the team spirit that is Hoops Sagrado comes through.

Coming up next week is the final week of regular season play and rematch of the much disliked SAIS Ballers....Game time is 2 p.m. for anyone who a) is playing and b) wants to come and cheer the Knights on to an undefeated season.

Technically Speaking...

Another week, another victory for the Hoops Sagrado Knights with a 66 to 46 win over Make It Rain.

Despite the completely frenetic play of the Hoops players, the game got off to quite a slow start with the first bucket not coming till at least 3 minutes into the game. With a half-time score of 32-26, this looked like it could one of the lowest scoring games yet.

Bryan was on fire from the 3-point line with all of his 21 points coming as 3's. And Sam is showing that he's growing into a leadership role, by giving Bryan a run for his money as assist leader.

In one of the more bizarre moments in league play with a mere 6 seconds to go and Hoops comfortably up by 17 points, Dario was casually bringing the ball up court, killing time. Other players had started shaking hands as if the game were over, but with time running out, Dario pulled up and shot a 3 to put Hoops up by 20....hmmmmmm

And Stat Girl actually made the stats this week...early in the second half, Dario made a great run up the court almost, but not quite out of bounds...problem is the ref--who didn't even see the run, called Dario out-of-bounds...Let's just say Stat Girl had a few choice words for the ref and he immediately called a tech on the bench...jerk.

But Stat Girl digresses, so without further delay, here is the stat line from week five's victory against Make It Rain

This week's Stats:
Bryan: 21 points/9 assists/4 rebounds/1 steal
Jordyn: 4 points/1 assist/2 rebounds/ 1 steal
Tyler: 4 points/1 assist/ 1 steal
Anikean: 10 points/1.5 assists/5 rebounds
Dario: 9* points/16 rebounds/5 steals
Stan: 12 points/7 assists/3 rebounds/1 steal
Shaq: 6 rebounds
Sam: 6 points/8.5 assists/6 rebounds

The schedule for the remainder of the season is as follows (always subject to change of course):
Saturday, June 6 at 11:30 a.m. vs. Stacey's Team
Sunday, June 7 at 12:45 p.m. vs. Flight of the Airballs
Sunday, June 14 at 2 p.m. vs. SAIS Ballers
Saturday and Sunday June 20 & 21 Playoffs
Sunday June 28, 12 p.m. Championship game (Insha'Allah)

*Some have argued that Dario shouldn't be awarded that last three for what some might consider un-sportsmanlike conduct...but since the league scored the points, so too will we.

Boys vs. Girls

This weekend served up two excellent opportunities to show that the girls can hold their own with the boys.

Although one had a more historical significance, the other, the Knights co-ed league game, was equally as entertaining.

With a huge game from Tyler, the only chica available to play this weekend, the Knights remain unbeaten with an 81-48 victory over Adam Morrison's 'Stache.

The game started off a bit questionably when Tyler was running late and it looked like Stat Girl was going to have to borrow a pair of sneakers from someone and get out on the court. Thankfully for all those involved, Allison, from Stacey's Team was able to don a Hoops jersey and join the game till Tyler was able to get there. Allison was a great asset for the three minutes she played and made the statline with two assists. (Thank you so much Allison!).

Perhaps it was the weather, maybe everyone got their Zoloft prescriptions refilled, but cooler heads prevailed this week and the Knights were about the best behaved I've ever seen. Not once that I can recall did anyone lose their minds over a call.

Stat Girl would like to give a special shout-out to Spencer Turner who got his own assist this weekend for helping out with the stats when Stat Girl had to deal with a quick emergency at the beginning of the second half.

There were plenty of steals (Jerrod with at least four), some fancy footwork and everyone got on the stat-sheet...all-in-all a great game.

This Weeks Stats
Bryan: 14 points/8.5 assists/4 rebounds
Stan: 8 points/2 assists/1 rebound
Tyler: 15 points/2.5 assists
Sam: 3 points/3.5 assists/4 rebounds
Dario: 17 points/3 assists/8 rebounds
Shaq: 10 points/1 assist/5 rebounds
Jerrod: 7 points/5 assists/2 rebounds
Anikean: 6 points/2 assists/4 rebounds
Allison: 2 assists

We're off this weekend for Memorial Day, but have two games the following weekend on Saturday May 30 and Sunday, May 31...I would list the times here, but as we all know, the league has a mind of its own and they would probably just get changed.

Day isn't the only word you can use after Mother...

After some starts, stops and confusion, the Hoops Sagrado Knights were back on the court this Sunday in the Balance co-ed league against newcomers Full Court Press.

Despite the fact that for the first time this season the Knights had a full squad including 7 hombres and 2 chicas, it probably was not the Knigts best performance.

But as they have proved time and time again, it's the final score that matters and the Knights are now 3-0 with a 73-58 victory.

The Knights went down early and stayed that way until 9.12 to go in the second half when they finally tied it up. With 7.28 to go in the game, they went up and never looked back.

Three weeks in, it's pretty obvious that the bad calls are par for the course and that the Balance co-ed league has it's own Joey Crawford (this is not a compliment). This week, Aniekan was the recipient of his liberal use of the technical (okay, so Aniekan deserved the tech, but did not deserve the foul call that precipitated the tech).

The fouling this week was a team effort with everyone but Bryan getting their name in the book for at least one (and sometimes four) fouls. Again, some deserved and several obviously not.

Despite some ridiculous elbowing by the other team, Las Chicas Jordyn and Tyler held their own and once again proved the Knights proud not only with their heart, but also their skills.

We were joined this week by Stan and he immediately made a huge difference scoring 14points, 4 assists and 2 rebounds. It's good to have him with us on Sundays.

The Knights always have the most vocal cheering squad and today they were lead by Momma Crocket and Bryan's grandfather Frank Hayes. They were a great addition to the bench.

Here is this weeks stat line:

Bryan: 4 points/8 assists/1 rebound (no fouls)
Stan: 14 points/ 4 assists/2 rebounds (4 fouls)
Sam: 4 points/ 2.5 assists/5 rebounds (2 fouls)
Dario: 9 points/1 assist/22 rebounds (2 fouls)
Jerrod: 14 points/ 1 assist/ 4 rebounds (3 fouls)
Shaq: 8 points/8 rebounds (3 fouls)
Aniekan: 8 points/2 rebounds (4 fouls)
Jordyn: 10 points/2 rebounds (2 fouls)
Tyler: 2 points/1 assist/1 rebound (1 foul)

Stat girl is working on steals and should have those added to the stat line next week.

Next up: Adam Morrison's Stache at 12:45 on Sunday, May 17.

Schedule Changes

The Knights league schedule has changed...

May 3--no game

May 10--2 p.m. vs. Full Court Press

May 17--12:45 p.m. vs. Adam Morrison's Stache

Memorial Day Weekend, no games

May 30--3:15 vs. Stacey's Team

May 31--3:15 vs. Make It Rain

June 7--12:45 vs. Flight of the Airballs

June 14--2 p.m. vs. SAIS Ballers

Does the "i" in team go between the e and the a?

At times during Sunday's Hoops game vs. the SAIS Ballers, it felt a bit like the Knights were playing a selection team made up of every obnoxious player they have ever encountered in Guatemala. The dirty plays began almost from the tip of the ball and the trash talking soon followed.

Now one would think that after experiencing this kind of 'play' in Guatemala year-after-year, cooler heads would prevail. Instead of letting the bad plays and bad calls go ignored, a few members of the Knights lost their heads and had to be reminded, on more than one occasion, that this is a team effort.

One player who had the team spirit from the beginning was Jordyn (and Stat Girl's not just sayin this in some sort of chick solidarity either).Even after a day spent tackling the grass and hedges at Casa Crockett, Jordyn (the only girl on the roster this week) had to play the full 40 minutes, but she did a bang-up job and absolutely didn't shy away from some of the rough and tumble play and came up with two 3's and 14 points total...probably a bruise on her hip too after trying to save a ball late in the game.

In the end, despite his frustrations with his team, Bryan was able to rally the troops, calm them down (or more to the point, shut them up) and in the end, dirty plays, questionable calls, and trash talk aside, the Knights prevailed 60 to 46 to remain undefeated in the league.



The Stats
Bryan: 10 points/4.5 assists/7 rebounds
Jordyn: 14 points/3 assists/1 rebound
Jerrod: 16 points/3 assists/1 rebound
Sam: 3 points/6 assists/ 11 rebounds
Aniekan: 5 points/10 rebounds
Dario: 12 points/1 assist/6 rebounds


Next up: Sunday, May 3 at 4:30 p.m. vs. Make It Rain

Hoops Sagrado's Co-Ed League Schedule

Sunday, April 26, 3:15 p.m. vs. SAIS Ballers

Sunday, May 3, 4:30 p.m. vs. Make It Rain

Sunday, May 10, 2 p.m. vs. Flight of the Airballs (call your mother before the game).

Sunday, May 17, 2 p.m. vs. SAIS Ballers

No games Memorial Day Weekend

Saturday, May 30, 12:45 p.m. vs. Stacey's Team

Sunday, May 31, 2 p.m. vs. Adam Morrison's Stache

Saturday, June 6, 2:15 p.m. vs. Stacey's Team

Let the games begin!

Like the Phoenix, the Hoops Sagrado Knights rose from the ashes of the off-season on Sunday to win the first game of the spring season of the Balance Co-ed League 92-48.

The Knights pretty quickly jumped out to a 10 point lead and the game was never any closer. Even though the glory days of a 3-team, 100+ point victory in Jacaltenango are merely memories now, the Knights played as if that was just yesterday.

In addition to being leading scorer, Jerrod had some great take aways, and old-school Knight Dario was a beast under the nets. As you would expect, our fearless leader Bryan was also the assist leader. Stat Girl is going to keep her promise of recording half assists for everytime Bryan makes a great pass, but then the player in the receiving end fails to make the basket.

Proving that questionable calls truly are international, Aniekan got into foul trouble fairly early in the first half, but the Zoloft kicked in around half-time and he was able to play the second half with relative calm.

Special kudos go to Tyler who as the only girl on Sunday's roster had to stay on the court for the full 40 minutes. Not only did she handle the time on the court well, but she also held her own amongst the guys and other women on the court.

As the stats below show, it was a solid effort by everyone and it was great to have the Knights back out on the court together as a team.

Sunday Stats:

Bryan: 15 points/ 9 assists/ 2 rebounds
Tyler: 9 points/ 2 assists/ 7 rebounds
Dario: 13 points/ 2 assists/ 12 rebounds
Jerrod: 26 points/4 assists/ 8 rebounds
Aniekan: 10 points/3 assists/ 3 rebounds
Shaq: 11 points/5 rebounds
Sam: 7 points/ 3 assists/ 4rebounds

Games are held at Balance Gym at 2200 California Street, NW.

Next game is Sunday, April 26 at 3:15 p.m. See you at the gym!

Hoops Sagrado 2009

Time is awasting people....Bryan is looking for 10 "non-knuckleheads" who are interested in going to Guatemala this summer.