For the third year in a row, the Remix Classic brought an explosive combination of competition, sportsmanship and entertainment. This was the first year the 8th and 9th graders got to showcase their talents and the Hoops 101 team coached by Shawn Johnson took the game decidedly. The two teams were formed based on the best players from the different club basketball teams. Coach Johnson said the players had only practiced together for a few weeks prior to playing. He was really proud of the team for the heart they showed. “[The players] definitely [showed] effort,” Coach Johnson said. “Even though we don’t make a lot of shots, or we don’t get a lot of steals, we always get our hands on a lot of balls, so the effort is always their.” Although he saw effort from the team as a whole he felt that number 10 Jared Davis stood out above the rest. “He played extremely hard,” Coach Johnson said, “defensively offensively, hit some big shots and got some key steals, he just plays with a lot of energy.”
The three-point competition won by Austin Cloes of Virgin Valley High School was a great show of “downtown” accuracy. Witnessing players shoot three after three in a heads up competition was exciting to watch but the slam dunk competition stole the show. The dunk competition won by Jeremy Alexander of Canyon Springs High School was a flavorful mix of behind the back, alley-oops, jumping over heads, sky flying dunks that kept the crowd on their feet. The boys were soaring.
Next came the all-star game which was began lack-luster to say the least. No fault of the players, it was simply because it followed such an explosive slam dunk competition. The first half of the game was a blow out with the “Seniors” coached by Ira Wattenbuerg silencing the “Juniors” coached by Calvin “Tito” Hudson Jr. with a lopsided score. The second half, however, was a different story. The Juniors came thundering back with a shot by Darrington Banks to steal the game in the last few seconds for a Juniors 94-92 victory. There was some fancy foot action and great ball handling skills, but like most all-star games, not much defense was played, but they gave the fans what they came for, some entertainment.
The biggest winners however were the scholarship recipients. This was the reason for the whole event, to award hard-working students with money to help further their education. This year’s scholarship recipients were:
Gerresha Flake
Tonya Luna
Gabrieala Mitchell
Hideki Moore
Vilma Nunez
Marco Olivares
Patrick Patton
Shabrale Rodriguez
Christopher Thomas
Be sure to come out next year to continue the support of the youth in this community. The Remix Classic is a great way to give recognition to student-athletes who are doing positive things. Check back for interviews and player profiles from some of Las Vegas’ own.
Mikaela Louve
Here is the video link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fORRVSykcDE ~
