MASAE Champions of the Hoops Dreams Invitational!

Posted by Coach Vinny on Jan 22, 2012 in News, Tournament | 0 comments

MVP: Jamaal Brooks (not pictured here) / Kevin Redmond

Mythical Five:
G. Bobby Simpson (PBM)
G. Kevin Bui (M. Juveniles)
G. Aaron Calixte (M. Juveniles)
G. Marcus (FOB City)
G. Soap Toan (PBM)

All Second Team
G. Pek Mith (PBM)
G. Oak Nguyen (PBM)
G. Harold Mortel (Flips)
G. Bipin Tamang (Crackout)
G. David (Lowell)

All Defensive Team
C. James Huang (Knights)
G. Pat Redmond (MASAE)
F. Sonny Phan (M. Juveniles)
F. Sony (Lowell)
F. Ben Wong (Crackout)

Final Four: MASAE Elite, MASAE Juveniles, Fob City, and PBM NY Top Gunz

PBM with a fresh new look (Nice Bullets throwbacks btw) was still the same old dominant team. Their first game against the young Juveniles was a free for all as both teams were shooting recklessly (yet hitting) like an old western, no John Wayne. But in the end, their offensive rebounding and overall size wore down the Juveniles. PBM breezed through the preliminary games and early playoffs until they ran into an overachieving FOB City squad. A tight game with more ups and downs than BP fuel prices, PBM was pushed to the brink of elimination until a few key turnovers from FOB City essentially sealed their fate. PBM squeezed by FOB City in a down to the wire victory.
Marcus had a total of 31 points. Oak had 21.

Pummeling through pool play and the early playoff rounds, MASAE Elite looked as if the new year invigorated the team. Every game was a statement game. Their younger brothers, the Juveniles, beat a bruising Lowell squad then dropping to the powerhouse PBM team in an exciting showcase of firepower. After defeating the Knights team in the quarter finals, the young MASAE team were placed in a rematch of last year’s championship game against the older generation. The MASAE Elite team had no intentions of keeping this game close. From the start, the Elite team ran the floor and the score up. Jamaal Brooks was merciless, cooking up 42 points to reiterate who the franchise player is in the club. But Aaron Calixte gave us more than enough proof that he is the future. Driving and finishing at impossible angles, it would prove to be a commendable effort as he dropped 28 points. In the end the MASAE Elite team took the contest in a 104-67 victory.

The theme for the championship game was “catch me of you can” as MASAE came out running and gunning for an impressive start. Co-MVP Kevin Redmond was knocking down treys and running the floor like a madman. Slowly but surely the PBM team started clawing back with great shooting from Soap Toan and Bobby Simpson. PBM chipped away at a 15 point lead in a matter of minutes with their high octane offense. Jamaal Brooks in an unusually quiet game, compensated by dominating the boards for MASAE. As the game concluded, Bobby Simpson scored a flurry of buckets to draw his team at one point within 3 points. But a pair of Kevin Redmond free throws down the stretch closed the window of opportunity for a comeback. MASAE defeats their NE rivals, PBM Top Gunz, to capture the 4th annual Hoop Dreams Invitational!

Thank you for all the teams that came out this past weekend to support a good cause! We will be donating a pair of sneakers to one of our youth members. Please visit the site frequently for more events and news!

Next tournament: July 21-22, 2012 Purple Summer Showcase