Varsity Blue-March 19th-20th

Game one we played great as a team. Our defense broke the game open. We had some great Post play and Guard play.

Game Two was more of a challenge. The guys were a little flat at first and the other team had a little more fight in them than the first team. In the second half Dustin Coons starting carrying us, getting rebounds at both ends of the court. He starting scoring tough buckets on the inside. He was our anchor which lead us to a victory.

Game three looked great again. There was great team effort, defense leading to some stops and the fast break layups allowed us the win. We won our first team tournament championship.

JV Dawgs-March 19th-20th

In our first tournament as a team we did well, allvariablesconsidered. We played at Hardwood Palace and played 3 games in 4 hours. We finished 1-2 with a decisive win over the Jesuit black team, and losses to 2 good teams in the Davis Wildcats and the All-Star Predators. We were led this weekend by the following players; Cole J. with 36 points for the tournament including 19 in the win over Jesuit. Cole & David R. led the way in assists with 8 each. Matt H. had 20 rebounds including 9 offensive rebs. Lawrence G.had 7 steals.Everyone played and contributed and we showed flashes of what we can become.


Coaches Thoughts

I look forward to getting to work with the team as we havethe makings of a good team that can really, really do well in the system I run. When we have run our system for even just a few weeks we will see the improvement show in our results. Be ready to work every minute we're together as Dawgs this season. I plan on doing the same!

Fall seven times, stand up eight. ~Japanese Proverb

8th Grade Black-March19th-20th

8th Dawgs Black vs. True Grit March 19, 2011

The boys came ready to play this time. First quarter saw Brett, bringing the energy, while Nick contributed with shooting and passing. Jackson, Colin, and Brett slowed down the Grit offense with steals and forced turnovers. Overall first quarter was notable for good hustle and some good D, with the Dawgs ahead at the end of the quarter.

Second quarter saw Bryce, Grady, and Brett bringing the hustle again along with three pointers from Nick and Grady. Jared moved the ball well and scored too, which helped to end the half with the Dawgs up 23 to 20.

Third quarter saw steals and good D from Jackson as well as more hustle by Bryce. Mitch played strong inside with good rebounding and some baskets scored from inside the paint. The team also did well beating the Grit’s press third quarter, which ended with the Dawgs up 33 to 29.

The fourth quarter started strong with Mitch continuing to play well inside and more hustle from Brett and Bryce. Unfortunately, poor passing and ball handling coupled with too much one-on-one play doomed the Dawgs. Final score Grit 42, Dawgs 41.

8th Dawgs Black vs Predators Black
The second game of the day started pretty good.The team played well until the Predators started their transition game.The team struggle on offense. 9/34 shooting.As a team we will have to learn to work hard on the defensive end off the floor,continue to rebound and stay positive when our shots don’t fall. Final score:Predators 37 Dawgs 19.

Dawgs Black vs ETH March 20, 2011
For an early game, the boys were awake and ready to play. The good hustle play we saw in the first game on Saturday returned, lead by Bryce, Jared, and Brett. Jared also stood out in the effort category. Good team defense including steals by Grady, Bryce and Jared along with free-throw shooting by Brett gave the Dawgs the first quarter lead.

Second quarter saw Colin perform as a rebounder and scorer. Mitch was strong on defense, and Nick contributed with a steal and good hustle play despite very sore knees. We had good passing from Jackson and a 3 pointer from Brett to give the Dawgs the lead at the half—29 to 20.

Third quarter both Mitch and Colin rebounded well, while Jackson brought the hustle. There was good overall team defense, as well as good free-throw shooting from Jackson. End of 3rd the Dawgs were up 41 to 27.

The fourth quarter saw good team ball movement and execution on offense. Grady did well from the line and great team defense including steals from Jared, Jackson, and Bryce. The team had a lead and held throughout the game this time with the final score

Dawgs 51, ETH 27
Best Defense:Jared,Byrce
Best Attitude:Nichols
Best Hustle: Team
Offensive Player:Colin.

8th Grade Blue-March 19th-20th

Aaahhhh, how sweet it is to be a part of the "Tournament Champion YBA Dawgs 8th-Blue" team!


We were crowned the champions because we believed in each other and we played as a TEAM! Vance is the ultimate team player. He is our utility guy that is always ready no matter when he's called upon. Vinny, also, eagerly awaits his time to shine. He brings a high-powered spark into the game on both offense and defense a we've called upon him to lock down an opponent's go to guy. Our 4/5 positions has done a 360° turnaround from just our last season. Amran never shy away from defending any player and is always looking for that big block shot. He can go strong to the basket or hit the 3. Josh has become a true inside threat for us. He's beginning to understand how we want him to be an inside bully. Josh, too, has racked up numerous blocked shots. Gunner does a great job boxing out his man. You can always count on him for hustle. He has shown great improvement controlling the ball. With his speed and quickness, Tanner is always a problem for the opposing team. Tanner is confident with his offensive skills and can hold his own on defense. Malcolm (MJ), unbelievably, has only played in 2 tournaments with us but is fitting in like he's been here since day 1. MJ has a knack for setting up the steal. When he takes 1 power dribble to the side, his jumper is lights out. Madd Maxx is very high wired that plays the game with passion. He's my on-the-court general. He is a leader in the games and in practice. Although he is an offensive threat, Max never denies himself the challenge of taking on the opposing top player. Daniel has improved all facets of his game. His dedication and hard work is paying off. He is, by far, our best 3 point shooter after hitting 5 (4 in the books, but that's another story) against the Predators in our championship game. Daniel is, too, becoming a vocal leader. His "help defense" is probably the best on the team. Dribbling in traffic is an area he can most improve but showing his will to better his all-around game he also plays back up point guard. Thanks coach Randy for all of your assistance.

Great job team! Now we see what working hard and playing together can bring you. Teams will now bring their "A" game against you so you must continue to work hard in your development! See you at practice

The YBA Dawgs Blue 8th did very well in their last tournament. Our 1st game against the EDH Trojans was our toughest match up of the tourney. We played great for 3 quarters. During a time out in the 4th quarter Coach Pickett told his team to work the ball around til we get a good shot. Well, we never got a good shot after that. Our next score came with less than 2 minutes to go on a 3 pointer from Tanner. Although it was a battle to the end, we loss to the eventual tournament champions. In game 2 versus Cal Reign, we bounced back with a running attack that was not to be denied. Max showed his leadership during fastbreaks and running the offense. With Tanner not in the line up, Daniel and, newcomer, MJ (Malcolm) picked up the slack on offense rainning numerous 3's. Of course my hustlers, Vance and Amran, were all over the court doing whatever it takes for us to control the game, diving after balls, blocking shots, rebounding, steals, or just solid defense. Yes, we rained on the Cal Reign's parade while handing them their 2nd loss of the tourney. My 2 bigs had a solid game against Cal, but in game 3 against Folsom Force they turned their game up a couple more notches being dominant in the paint on both offense and defense. Vinny also stepped it up in this game with his intensity and poise while running a little bit of pointguard. With a 27 point lead and less than 30 seconds left in the game, we called a crucial timeout to help seal this victory. We let our 1st tournament championship slip away from us but we continue to improve as a team and individually. Go Dawgs!

7th Grade Blue-March 19th-20th

YBA Dawgs Blue 7th grade team went 1-2 last weekend, beating the Carson Valley Cougars, losing to the Red Raiders and the All Star Predators in a rematch of a championship win earlier this month. The Carson Valley team was pesky and kept the game close till the fourth quarter. Logan Echeverria made some more beautiful left handed shots, and has announced he will attend UCLA and major in ambidextorial studies. Jack Kearns hit a 3 and then a quick layup in the 4th quarter to finally open the gap and eventual win by 15 points.


The Red Raiders stifling defense, exceptional ringer players, and accurate shooting was too much for the Dawgs and they ended our 7 game win streak/undefeated March. The Dawgs played tough till the very end, maximizing coach Brad's hockey line substitution strategy. Dom Pericin had some incredible fast break plays. Alex Isola showed some great spin moves in the key. Kyle Turner smartest play of the season: volleyballing a missed FT with 0.3 on the clock. The ref said "clever - and it woulda counted!" Cole Kelly evangelized right up in the face of these PAL opponents.

The Sunday game vs the Predators was close throughout and ended in a one-point loss. The game was even closer than it sounds. The Dawgs matched up against this athletic team very well, showing great improvement over the past couple months. Over the weekend, Alex Patton showed some strong moves under the basket. Nick Cherry showed some excellent defense and ball handling skills. Offense award to Alex Patton. Defense award to Cole Kelly. Hustle award to Logan Echeverria. Scorekeeping award to Ryan Gee of the Whitney Wildcats all-male competitive cheer team.

6th Grade Black-March 19th-20th

Playing in the mid-level 7th grade division, there were a lot of unknowns for the 6th grade DAWGS Black team. Unknown teams, unknown players...


The first game saw the DAWGS play an even game with a 916 Select team up until the 3rd quarter. With a quick press, and some timely shots, the DAWGS pulled away in the 4th quarter with a 17-4 run and ended up winning the game by a 20 point margin. The entire team hustled, and stayed sharp throughout the game.

First game ran behind (due to starting late) offsite, so the DAWGS had to hustle over to their "home court" at Hardwood Palace and went right into their second game against a E-Time Hoops team from Antelope. Feeling the effects of a back-to-back game, the DAWGS were slow. The game was close the entire way - but the DAWGS couldn't overcome a 25-foot heave at the buzzer that found the backboard and went in. In the end, execution was the key, and the DAWGS did not execute. They did well, and on another day, the DAWGS win this one.

Sunday's game was against a very well coached Del Oro Eagles team. The DAWGS came out intimidated and soft, and the score showed. By halftime the DAWGS found themselves down at one point by as many as 16 points. They came together, and played tough team defense. Darren Nelson became the "Incredible Hulk" on the boards and dominated the second half in the paint. Joshua Ohara hit a 24 foot 3-pointer to bring the DAWGS within three, and soon after, Jashon Lewis hit a 3-pointer to tie the game. That was the momentum swing the DAWGS needed, and they held on to win the game. ALL players (JKim Porras - quick baskets and great defense, Alex Martinex - Great boxing out and rebounding, Ethan Wainwright - strong inside and great drives to the basket, and newcomer Conor Jeffery - great ball control, and strong on "D") contributed to what I (the coach) believe was their best win in a LONG time. They earned it and deserved it!!

6th Grade Blue-March 19th-20th

6th grade blue played much better as a team in this weekends tournament. We won 2 and lost 1. The first game we started with a full court trap that put us up and we pretty much kept the lead to win by a few. Our guards were passing well and hitting some key outside shots.


The second game we faced a very strong and tall Long Beach team. With our trap we were able to keep the score with in a bucket by the end of the half. We started to play into their game in the second half by trying to out fast break them. We were not able to finish and keep their bigs from scoring and lost by 15. Even though we lost the boys played as good as we have seen to date and feel we could have hung with that team if we slowed it down.

The third game was against the Predators B team and we have never played them. We have been waiting for this match up since the beginning of the season. The boys played their hearts out with great defense and great ball movement. We won by 9 and should have won by more but we managed the clock to make sure we would win. It was a great tournament for the boys with great competition and they did well as a team. Coach Lars and I both feel we are seeing huge improvement in each player and more so as a team.

5th Grade-March 19th-20th

4th Grade-March 19th-20th

After blowing out the teams last week in a HWP (the worst by 61 points), our boys went into this weekend with their confidence level high. It was hard to contain our Dawgs' desire for strong contenders after last week and I looked forward to our first challenge.......the T.B.F. Long Beach.


T.B.F Long Beach really did travel 7 hours from Long Beach....and it seemed just to play the Dawgs! I knew nothing about this team, but Long Beach proved to be a strong contender that we really enjoyed playing. Long Beach met my Dawgs need for a strong challenge both offensively and defensively. Long Beach had a tenacious defense and relentless offense that my boys handled very well by responding with the same tenacious defense and offense.........right back at you kind of game! This game was close and very suspenseful from the beginning to the end. Our Dawgs continued to give a strong effort both offensively and defensively that Long Beach did not seem to expect from the Northern California team that they traveled so far to play. The challenge that both teams gave each other earned respect from player to player while they were on the court. If Long Beach pressed hard and caused a turnover, our Dawgs pressed hard and caused a turnover. If Long Beach worked hard for a good shot and was successful, our Dawgs did the same.....and, our Dawgs did an outstanding job as a team. I couldn't ask for a better play from our Dawgs. Although both teams were matched evenly, our Dawgs were down 3 points toward the end of the game forcing us to foul to stop the clock. Long Beach met the challenge well and made their free throws causing the Dawgs to lose 43-35. I can't wait for the next time......

Our second game was against Carson Valley. Our Dawgs press was just too much for Carson causing a 25 point lead early in the 1st period. Eventually, I challenged our Dawgs by asking them to not press and pass the ball 5 times before shooting. Our Dawgs met that challenge easily. The next challenge, our Dawgs were not able to dribble after passing the half court and had to pass only to get a shot only in the paint. Our Dawgs did an excellent job passing, moving to get open, and taking good shots in the paint. We defeated Carson 56-7.

Our third and last game, we played a much faster 916 Select team. A team that matched well with our boys.......fast a furious. Our Dawgs did a great job in most areas, but lacked a little concentration in their passing during this game. Due to our turnovers, this game seemed to be a little closer than I anticipated. In the last few seconds of the game, our Dawgs were up by 6 points, but the quick team threw up a last second shot a few feet behind the 3 point line and "busted" it making the game closer than what it actually was. The final score was 39-36, Dawgs.

Coach Martinez