Team Melo’s Magnificent Championship Run Comes Just Short – Still Brings Home Hardware to the DMV

"....I saw something special from this group this weekend and that was that they didn’t want to let each other down" Said Coach Francis

BY: CONTRIBUTING ONSITE REPORTER

COLUMBUS, OHIO – The 2020 Team Melo / Terror Squad had a riveting weekend competing in the NYBL National Championship – showing why they have long been considered one of the top teams in the nation.

Arriving to Ohio the talented bunch had claimed the title in every single tournament or league that they entered in the 2014/2015 season, except for one which was lost on a last second buzzer beater.  Confident and poised the group realized this would be one of its biggest challenges on the season.

Prior to game one the players made a commitment to play each possession and every game for each other, to go beyond the framework of team and to operate as a family.  The results were devastating to the competition as they opened play with a dominating performance in the round of 28 to advance to the Sweet 16.

In the Sweet 16, Melo was pitted against Canada Drive who upset the favorite Team Felton by double figures in the previous round.  The Canadian upstarts came in on a high but any hope of victory was quickly put to rest as Team Melo continued to click on all cylinders in route to a 23-point drubbing.   

In each of the first two games Melo looked to be peaking at the right time; after a 72-5 start to the season this is saying a lot about the focus and determination of the team.  A team who through the first two games boasted 6 to 7 players in doubles figures in each of the contest.  With a roster of many of the nation’s top players – playing in this manner made them exceptionally hard to contain let along stop.

 As the evening’s Elite 8 game drew closer; the intensity could be felt in the air as Team IZOD/Sports U prepared to face Team Melo with a chance to advance to the final four on the line.  IZOD jumped out to a 17-12 lead behind the shooting of Qudiar Manari and Richie Greavis; but Melo weathered the storm taking a 4-point lead into the half.  After the half the lead ranged from 6 to 10 for Melo as they controlled the pace of the game until IZOD made one last at the start of the 4^th to cut the lead to 3-points 44-41.  Melo’s clutch gene kicked in leading to a 6-0 run and ultimately control of the game as they waltzed into the Final 4 behind their 58-47 victory over IZOD.

Waiting for the Melo squad in the Final 4 was the defending NYBL Champion and national top 5 team West Coast Stars led by top ranked 6’8 Jason Harris.  In what could possibly be labeled as the game of the weekend the two Goliaths battled from tip to buzzer.  Melo put on a shooting display throughout the game that allowed them to answer any run put on by WCAC going 8-14 from 3-point range and shooting 16-21 from the charity stripe.  Again everyone contributed to the win both offensively and defensively where Melo used a collapsing defense to keep Harris off balance.   

Down the stretch Melo maintained a 3 to 5 point lead with WCA cutting the lead to 64-61 with 16.6 remaining on the clock. Melo who looked to be attempting to foul intentionally to avoid the 3-point attempt caused a turnover with under a second remaining in the game, went to the line knocked down a FT and the rest was academic – putting Melo into the long awaited Championship game against their fellow NIKE brothers from the west coast; the reigning AAU National Champions Oakland Soldiers.

Team Melo receives instruction in route to 2nd place finish in Columbus, OH

In the Championship game it opened with each team throwing round houses with mini-runs of their own ending the first quarter tied 17-17.  The slugfest continued as each possession was contested and the players became testy with each other.  Soldiers looked to be in trouble as both superstars Kyree Walker and Shemar Marrow battled foul trouble.  Melo who entered the bonus early in the 2^nd quarter wasn’t able to take full advantage and enter the half down 33-30.  

Coming out of half Melo knocked down a 3-pointer from the leftwing to tie it up 33-33; but immediately went ice cold and sustained a 9-0 run putting them down 42-33 a deficit they were not able to recovery from as they entered the 4^th down 12.  The Solders spread the floor and knocked down their FT’s to secure the win – leaving the DMV’s own Terror Squad who represented the area and Team Melo to fullest finishing second in the most competitive league in the country.

Melo’s Headman, Coach Francis stated; “the team showed confidence and believed in each other all weekend long – they trusted me and were coachable, when this group plays and operates like that there's never been a moment where I’ve doubted them. I saw something special from this group this weekend and that was that they didn’t want to let each other down; it wasn’t about points, minutes, highlights - nothing.. it was about winning at the end of the day we played perfect basketball for 18.5 of 20 quarters, I couldn’t be any prouder of these young men.

Melo’s NYBL Championship Runner-Up Roster

Jordan Toles
Cameron Byers
AJ Hoggard
Tyler Brelsford
Montez McNeil
Jeremy Roach
Ryan Conway
Jenkins Dormu
Justin Graham* (injured) 
Corey Barns* (injured)

Team Glory 2021 A Model Of Consistency

The strength of the DMV has been apparent in recent years with the Team Glory Elite 2021/5th grade team coached by Mike Harmon.  Having appeared in the last two national championships at the 3rd and 4th grade levels - winning the 3rd grade championship and coming in as national runner up in 4th grade – Team Glory Elite was poised to avenge last year’s loss and bring home the national championship.

Glory used two- and three-a-day practices to prepare for their trip to Coco Beach, FL.  In addition to running a very intricate offense, many of the team’s players engaged in daily workouts and skill sessions to improve their individual games.

After an impressive season that included multiple tournament titles Glory stepped into the national tournament as clear favorites; having beat every top team in the country that they faced to that point.  As pool play began Glory continued its dominating style of play defeating all three opponents by astronomical numbers – Flight Ballers 65-24, Philly United 56-24, and top flight program George Hill Rising Stars 63-28.

Due to prior performance at the national level combined with their performance in pool play Team Glory Elite received a bye into the Sweet 16.  Awaiting them there was a large Hoop4Health squad seeking an upset, Glory quickly put any hope of an upset away controlling the game from the onset and coasting to a 65-35 victory and a spot in the Elite 8.

In the Elite 8, YBR Elite who defeated Glory earlier in the year looked to do so again – a much bigger team they attempted to use size and athleticism to offset the patterned offensive and disrupt the jump shooting guards while keeping them out of the paint.  Every expectation was that this would be the toughest game of the tournament for Glory; technically it was as they only won by 15, 55-40. The victory moved them to the Final 4 and one game away from redemption in the national championship game.

The next challenge included two 6’0 big men from the North Texas Elite Tarheels.  In a back in forth battle Texas controlled the paint while Glory struggled from the perimeter.  The shots that fell previously did not fall in this affair.  When Glory’s leader and leading scorer Zion Harmon picked up his 4th foul late in the 3rd quarter; the flow of the game changed as his aggressiveness on both ends was limited.  Down late Harmon found the range on a shot with seconds remaining in the game to tie it at 38 apiece.  The Tarheels moved the ball to half-court, called time-out, and drew up what turned out to be the winning play.  Not your textbook look at the basket, rather a catch in the middle of the paint and a no look shot that could have easily been called a jump ball before the release; it bounced and careened into the basket as time expired.  Harmon led all scorers with 32 of the teams 38 points, in the 40-38 loss.

The loss knocked them out of national title contention; but with an opportunity still to place as one of the best teams in the country, Glory regrouped mentally.  They then stepped on the floor as a unified bunch in the 3rd/4th place game versus one of their most heated rival Team Teague from Indiana.  Glory held on for another double digit victory 56-44 to finish as the #3 team on the nation.

To be one of the best in the country it requires team work; Team Glory Elite used the contributions of many to finish 3rd.  Elijah Hawkins often mesmerized the crowd with his ball handling skills and passing, while leading and running the team.  A pure point guard Hawkins scoring burst and outside shooting really changed a lot of games opening the floor for him and his teammates. Hawkins prior big stage national experience kept him calm in crucial moments and added immense value.  Noah Charles was a multi-category contributor for the squad and scored from all 3 levels, while sharing ball handling duties.  He was exceptional from beyond the 3-point strip and ran the floor well showing the ability to finish, often against bigger opponents.  Jake Koverman played the frontcourt and was responsible for handling the other bigs Glory faced.  A tough task, Koverman acted as the glue guy taking care of the dirty work on the offensive and defensive glass.  Stepping out and knocking down the mid-range shot on the pick and pop sets kept the defense honest and drew some of the size away from the basket.  Timely scoring and high IQ basketball defined Koverman during the week and allowed the team to have a presence in the interior.  As expected Zion Harmon played big in the tournaments biggest moments, showed tremendous leadership and prolific scoring – each time out the team and defense were designed and geared to focus on and stop him.  Nevertheless it was to no avail as the nation’s #1 player in the age group, proved over and over again why he is considered as such.

There can only be one winner at a national championship, but the consistency this group, organization, and coach has shown has been nothing short of remarkable.  They are a proud group and a group that the DMV should as well be proud of.