Youth basketball players drive for success and development in early part of the season
Jessie Lopes Jr. shoots at the start of the game. Photos by Bobby Grady
Maya Mendes drives to the basket.
Jessie Lopes Jr. makes a swing pass.
Walter Crumbley drives past his defender.
Jioni Edwards waits for his defender to fly by.
Amari Pires pushes through contact.
Brody Cannon shoots a fade away.
Dana Silvia shoots a three-pointer.
Jessie Lopes Jr. shoots at the start of the game. Photos by Bobby Grady
Maya Mendes drives to the basket.
Jessie Lopes Jr. makes a swing pass.
Walter Crumbley drives past his defender.
Jioni Edwards waits for his defender to fly by.
Amari Pires pushes through contact.
Brody Cannon shoots a fade away.
Dana Silvia shoots a three-pointer.
Youth basketball season is underway in Wareham with teams not only focused on success in the short term, but also focused on developing the next generation of Wareham High School Vikings.
Two Teams from the Wareham Tigers, one of the town’s youth sports organizations, took to the basketball court Sunday, Jan. 4 where both teams improved their already winning records in the early part of the season.
The first game of the day saw the Tigers’ third and fourth grade team defeat the Old Rochester Bulldogs 35 to 27 and head coach Kyla Silvia said the team is already showing improvements from last year.
“We couldn’t even reach the rim last year but we’re such a different team this year,” said Silvia.
One of the biggest changes she’s noticed in the kids is not only their technical ability on the court but the kids are playing with more confidence as well.
“Number four is probably our smallest guy but he had a great game,” she said. “Last year he could barely touch the rim but now he has much more confidence and everyone is playing as a team.”
So far this season, the team has two wins and one loss and a lot of focus is on playing fast-paced basketball, much like Silvia did during her time playing basketball at the high school.
Throughout the rest of the year, Silvia said she wants to continue to see everyone on the team step-up and continue to grow.
“It’s not always going to be the same guy that’s going to give you the best game every game,” she said. “I’m just looking for guys to step-up like number four did for us today.”
Following the third and fourth graders was the Tigers’ sixth grade team who defeated Attleboro 35 to 23 and coach Tony Pires said the kids, who are entering their fourth year playing together, are off to a good start.
“Not only are they meshing together as a team, but they’re growing individually and as they grow individually, they’re learning how to bring it all together,” Pires said.
In pre-season practices, Pires said he saw just how strong the team chemistry has become, which bodes well for their on-court performance.
“One of our players had to do 10 push-ups and on the sixth he started giving up but one of the other players said ‘I got you’ then everyone got down and they all finished the push-ups together — I can’t even ask for more,” he said.
Moving forward Pires said one of his biggest focuses will be on discipline and preparing the kids to maintain the high standard of basketball at the high school.
“They have to stay hungry at the next level because there’s going to be 10 other players that are just as good so understanding that is something we’re pushing this year,” he said. “In two years it’s going to be completely different and it’s going to be a lot harder.”
Moving forward this season, Pires said he hopes to continue to develop the players’ abilities and win the championship.
“We’ve done a lot of work on skill but now we’re talking discipline, character and setting a standard and holding a high expectation. Doing those small things will carry us the rest of the season,” he said.
