8th Grade Black-Oakland Rebels-April 2-3

The team had a successful visit to Oakland on April 2nd, going 2-1 and only narrowly missing a 3-0 day. Coach Shaw said the experience of playing against such physical competition was sorely needed, and he was pleased with the effort and outcome. He pointed out that the team kept playing hard even after falling behind in game 2, which showed progress compared to some recent games. The ball movement, execution, overall effort, and determination were also much improved.


YBA 50, Nor Cal Elite 24

The Dawgs came out ready to play after the long drive to Oakland and quickly opened a big lead against the undersized Elite team. Mitchell Holt and Colin Hawkins anchored a strong defensive effort, and team rebounding was again in force with 5 players grabbing at least 4 boards each (led by Colin, Mitch, and Grady Collins). The team also moved the ball well and recorded 20 assists with Mitch setting up a lot of open shots with passes out of the post. Jackson Sterling played his usual solid all-around game. Bret Lynch and Bryce Crouch led the scoring. The team lost Nicholas Clough for the day to an ankle injury after an impressive first half.

YBA 47, Team Velocity 52

YBA played a solid first half to seize a 30-17 halftime lead, with strong team defense limiting penetration. In a loosely officiated game, however, our opponent's increasingly aggressive defense was not penalized and led to many turnovers and a 5-point deficit. The team kept fighting and cut the margin to 1 point in the final minute on baskets by Bryce and Grady, but failed on a couple of chances to tie or re-take the lead. Bryce had 19 points and 8 boards, Grady had 11 plus 4 assists, and Jared Flowers, Colin, and Jackson helped to clean the glass.

YBA 66, DBC 46

The day's finale followed a similar script as the previous game with the Dawgs leading by 11 at the half but DBC closing the gap to 3 points with about 6 minutes left. The team was finally able to make their foes pay for over-aggressive defense, though, with Grady repeatedly beating his man and dishing off for easy baskets. Bret was very active on defense with 7 steals which helped him record 15 points and 8 assists. Jared had one of his best games as a Dawg with 13 points and 4 boards, including a couple of key baskets during the deciding run. Bryce finished an impressive "and 1" play in the lane during that run and totaled 14 points. Jackson, Colin, and Mitch played strong overall games.