3rd? Yep…you
read right. CAVS 13U---the mighty squad that has won this tourney multiple years lost ONE game out of four
& wound up finishing 3rd for 2012.
Don’t ask. I am about
to tell you.
How’s this for irony? CAVS 13U battled BOTH the 13U and the 14U All-City West teams in a shootout over Mother’s Day Weekend
and defeated them both.
All-City West returned the favor this past Memorial Day
weekend and beat CAVS 13U by two points. TWO POINTS, darnit! CAVS 13U was then catapulted into the 3rd
place bracket, while All-City West went on to win the Championship vs. the
Elite Shooting Stars in the Reno AAU Jam-On-It Tourney.
U gotta be kiddin’ me.
Seriously? I have to be
honest. All-City West hustled ALL weekend long like they were hungry. I can’t
lie. They deserved the championship. There are those who disagree (simply because they know what CAVS 13U can really do) but it is what it is. I can't take away what really went down. CAVS 13U could have taken it all, but PLAIN
AND SIMPLE, they didn’t hustle as hard in the All-City West game as they should
have. Some say that CAVS 13U would have responded differently if their main coach, Coach D was there (he was coaching our 8U squad). While it is true that the head coach brings the energy and inspiration out of CAVS 13U (and every other player) like no other, the will to win is the will to win.
Either you are gonna BRING YOUR "A" game, or you are not---no matter WHO is there or not there!
So....
First things first.
CAVS 13U began on Saturday with a victory against the Enterprise Junior Hornets, 75-34.
You already know that on Sunday, CAVS 13U met up with All-City West (and even maintained a lead, but lost it through mistakes) and lost 56-58.
With no other choice but to play for 3rd Place (doggonnit!!!) CAVS 13U faced off with the Grizzlies, at 9:20pm that night, at the Grand Sierra Hotel (yeah...I guess that late game was the premiere punishment for losing).
You want to know something, though?
CAVS 13U played the BEST they'd played ALL WEEKEND at this game. Coach D was back in effect and the boys were hyped and BALLIN' OUT!!! It turned out to be quite fun to watch. Despite the Grizzlies not exactly being the easiest team to beat, the CAVS boys landed the victory, 56-42.
Luckily, Monday's originally-scheduled 4:00pm game was rescheduled to 10:40am and CAVS 13U battled the Yellow Jackets (also not a pushover team) garnering the 3rd Place Title, 65-61.
Meh.
It sickens us, really. CAVS 13U is a LOT better than what they played, actually. It feels strange, but it is an eye-opener. In this life, you MUST give everything competitive 100%, or what is the point in doing it? GO HARD OR GO HOME!!!! Shouts out and much love to All-City West for taking home the championship, because they truly deserved it. We don't hate; we congratulate....when true credit is due.
However....(and you KNOW there had to be a "however") this coming weekend, June 2nd-3rd, 2012, at our very own SOLD-OUT CAVS Summer Classic Tourney, the CAVS 13U boyz and All-City West will most definitely face off once again.
THAT, my friends, is going to be the game of the century.
You can take that and deposit it.
