Mother Teresa vs Pickering Friday October 29

Very valid points "Tart11" and let's hope that a Friday night showdown between two of the top teams in Toronto get's the ball rolling. I remember playing in these types of games when I was a Bantam and Junior at Oakwood. My first year we played Runnymede in a tripleheader on a Friday evening. Bantams at 4, Juniors at 6 and Seniors at 8. The gym was packed midway through the Junior game and the atmosphere was wild. I remember not being able to sleep the night before due to all the excitement. I was just happy to be a part of it. The memory of being a part of this event will always put a big smile on my face.
It sounds like yesterdays event was a big success and I want to give credit to both programs for playing the game and hosting it. I would rather pay $5 to watch kids who play with heart and pride then sit at home and read about it. Unfortunately due to work, I couldn't go and I know I missed something special.
The season started with a very big Junior tournament by one of the greatest coaches in Toronto Basketball History in Bob Maydo. In November, Henry Carr get's the Senior tournament season going with a great collection of teams. It is time we find a way to make it special. This also should include the girls. Grossman didn't even have a pre-season report on the girls and has not put out a top ten list. Personally, I do not care because Hooptown has opened a forum to highlight all of these young men and women. Even though the media coverage is dropping, we can make this sport evne more special and sucessfull.Coaches, who I respect are on here and it is a chance to learn about some up and coming teams.
Great job yesterday and let's hope this continues.

Coach Bobb
Winston Churchill CI Basketball

Couldn't agree more with you Coach Bobb! This webpage has really opened up a great forum for basketball in the GTA. That game brought back memories for me too about how games used to be in the T-Dot! Its coming around full circle! I brought my sons out to feel the whole ambience of a packed gym and it was a great experience for them!

When I fell in love with this game as a student at Runnymede, the Runnymede-George Harvey league games were always played at night. We would play a game at their place and a game at our place and pack both gyms...needless to say, it was a great atmoshphere!

I remember when I played in Sudbury with Eli Pasqalli and Reni Delcetti (Both played for Canada's Olymipc team) we had Friday night games and the students used to line up for Junior games at 6:30 they would be there at 5:30 just to get a bleacher seat, now thewy play at 2:30 on a week day.......so sad

I think safety is an issue and that is why league games are played early. Although many people just want to have fun and watch a good game, there are those who always look for trouble. The violence in our communities and cities have grown since the last 20-50 years. And unfortunately, basketball games have become a victim in my opinion.

Nevertheless, it's always great to see a little crowd and intense games whether they are played early noon or late evening.

I agree that safety concerns have a lot to do with these types of games not happening. I just hope that this starts a trend of night games and the trouble can be avoided. The admission fee is not that much at all but when it all adds up, it makes the team a good amount of money. As mentioned before, the money goes where it should and that is back to the team and players. This is one of many ways that a school can make some money for the program without having to get the kids to pay for it.
I am very happy to hear the positive feedback regarding the games. BTW, what was the scores?

Coach Bobb
Winston Churchill CI Basketball

WOW! Nice start to the season for MT seniors.

Both teams looked pretty good....except for the poor free throw shooting and some erratic guard play with the turnovers...that was definitely preseason mode! Pickering was missing two players in their starting backcourt due to their commitment to volleyball, however, their tenth graders played well....particularly Kaza and Mykhail Macintosh. Mykhail is a beast and looks like one of the best players in the GTA period. Pickering impressed me with their depth and their intensity from beginning to end. They may not be as talented as years past but they'll come out and play hard for 32 minutes.

MT was impressive with their workman like effort...nothing fancy... just 32 minutes of constant defensive pressure and intensity. If you have a bad two minute stint against MT you may be tied and then find yourself down 12....if your down 12 and play poorly for two minutes, then you are suddenly down 25 just like that. You score on them and they answer within seconds by quickly inbounding the ball and scoring in transition. Teams better be ready to run and soak up pressure for the entire game...a couple of lapses and it is an easy 25 point plus deficit for them.

It will be interesting to see these two teams match up against Henry Carr, Eastern, Oakwood, Martingrove etc....it was a good opening game for these two top teams. Despite their massive losses in overall talent, they'll be no considerable drop off for either team.

why r u guys chargin for ppl 2 see the game as if lebron is playin or sumtin lol

Hey CP3,

You need to see Mikhail play this year...he does have a little Lebron in him...he's worth the price of admission. He's attacks the rim whenever he gets a chance...he's big and strong...can bang inside or shoot outside...and is trying to dunk everything and on everybody...alley oops or in traffic!

I also think night games are a great idea as it allows working parents to attend. Maybe more parents will equate to less security issues, who know's?

Also, a 2 to 5 dollar entry fee is very reasonable for spectators. The AAU tournaments usually have a spectator enrty fee which helps them to run their programs.

Just a little correction on the spelling of a name - for future reference. It is MiKyle McIntosh.

When u say Mikhail are u refering to the Gr10 from Pickering?

Yeah! I spelled the name incorrectly....didn't know how to spell it so I gave it a Russian kind of spelling I guess...ya Mikyle in GR. 10...his older brother Mick who came back from Florida last year has graduated and is no longer at Pickering.