Tucson Sporting Chance U9 Champs - July '08

What an exciting weekend in Tucson.....
The boys went on the road for their final tourney of the season. They had a 3 day tourney at the UofA and played their hearts out. Everyone showed up with their game day face on and ready to play!
Our first game was against Team Magic. What a way to start off a tourney...to play the team we just can't shake! But we finally got the monkey off our back and beat them with ease. The score was close, but the game really was not. We carried the lead and the upperhand the whole game and finished with a victory. Our boys were not totally "ON" and possibly could have shut them out. It was a good warm up game to a great weekend.Saturday morning we played Team AZ Bryant, played tough, put another victory under our belt...and one WIN closer to the playoffs. Our boys are getting better and better and gaining more and more confidence with each game.

We came back Saturday afternoon to play Tucson Magic and totally shut them out by 36 points. They were a tough little team that played their hearts out, but we were definitely the better team. It's good to play some of these game too...to keep building their confidence and work on their skills!

Our final pool game Sunday morning for a place into the championship game was against Team AZ Amp...our rivals! We are always head to head with Amp's team, and it's always a tough game. But we came out on top, winning by 2 points. We actually carried the upperhand most of the game and were up by 6 in the last few minutes. With both teams in freethrow territory, going to the line with each foul, we played it safe those last few seconds, which brought them up 2 baskets in the last 30 seconds of the game. Yet another victory under our belt, and a place in the championship game...with of course Amp again.

The final game started slow, with our whole team dragging their feet. We were very sluggish, but kept the spread to only 5 (4-9) after the first half. However, we showed up to play in the second half, taking the lead with an 8 point start...now up 12-9 within minutes. The rest of the game was very intense with a very close score. Up, tie game, down, tie game, back up again...

The last 10 minutes of the game was crazy intense! It was absolutely phenominal how tough they played, and how great our fans were. It felt like a High School State Championship game. Other teams and fans started lingering over to watch us...THE U9 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. So much intensity in the air.

The last 20 seconds we go up by 1. Amp comes down, stalls a few, then sinks a 3 with 8 seconds left to go. Powerhouse takes it back down, and with 2 seconds left, sinks a 3 from the NBA 3 point line. The crowd goes wild! I wish I had a picture of our fans coming off the bench and onto the floor. Other teams and fans from other teams were even jumping in the air with excitement from the game! We finish the game 37-36, with another 1st place trophy!

These boys bond like nothing else. They get along so well off the court as well as on. I can see them still together in 10 years...just rocking AZ and anyone who dares enter. Caleb really enjoys hanging with them, and they are really good kids. And that is so important to have good quality friends in your life as you grow up. And I'm proud to call these families our friends.

My kids had a blast the whole weekend, swimming at the hotel every night, watching movies with the boys next door, eating out, playing with friends...it was a nice, bonding weekend. The little ones were also good cheerleaders during the games...they loved to cheer the boys on.

We even caught Jacob letting UofA know we feel about them...since we are ASU fans...

Now, back to bball...Caleb played his heart out this weekend. His defense was phenominal. Nobody could drive the lane when he was in. His offense was great too, averaging about 10 points per game. We are so proud of him and his passion towards the sports he plays. One thing I will always remember...and share with him when he gets older...is he NEVER COMPLAINS. It doesn't matter how many days per week, how many hours per day, how intense it is, how much running he has to do...he shows up to play/practice/work hard with a positive attitude and ready to go. He absolutely loves sports and always has a good attitude no matter what he's doing. This is hard to do at age 9, especially with everything else going on...school, church, scouts, piano...and I'm very proud of him. Caleb, YOU ROCK!!!! I love you!