By Dr. Paul Drew

Welcome to the third issue of volume one of Swish, a weekly periodical with recaps and photos of Santa Monica YMCA youth basketball games, and other pertinent info such as standings, schedules, announcements, and updates from the program.

Positive reinforcement

When I first started coaching youth basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA, I asked a client of mine, who was a former NBA coach, if he had any advice on how to best approach young kids when coaching. He told me of a non-profit organization that he was a member of the National Advisory Board, called the Positive Coaching Alliance.

With this advice from the “Zenmaster”, I went to positivecoach.org and received my certification as a “Double Goal Coach” which is a coach that strives to win but has a second, more important goal of using sports to teach life lessons. There are courses for parents and competitors to also learn to use a positive approach when working with young athletes.

I can personally say that it has made me a better coach in helping my kids achieve success, getting better results with my patients, and made me a better dad.

The following is from the Positive Coaching Alliance website:

WHY POSITIVE IS POWERFUL
A positive approach gets the most from youth and high school athletes, which is what coaches, parents and the athletes themselves want. Staying positive also helps youth get the most out of sports.
Encouraging athletes with positive reinforcement helps them hear and heed the necessary corrections. With that winning combination of truthful, specific praise and constructive criticism, athletic performance improves and so do the chances that kids stick with sports longer and learn all the valuable life lessons inherently available through organized competition.
Academic research and real-world scoreboard results from millions of coaches, parents and athletes that PCA has trained and educated prove what the pro and college coaches on PCA’s National Advisory Board already know: Positive is powerful.

Rookies

Bella Kariger and Vitalina Moncher hit multiple buckets to lead our Bulldogs over the Tigers 14-7. Aiden Harvey and Noah Levy hit a bucket each in the second half to help us maintain our modest lead. Luca Samson and Brendan Still helped with their improved defense this week. We have been working on our defense in practice and it showed with our aggressive play. We need to pass more and move more, but we should be a formidable opponent each week if our defense continues to improve. Submitted by Coach Rick Moncher

Bantams

The Bengals played an amazing all around game of good quality passing and aggressive man to man defense, in their victory over the Steelers. Kai Mavasse had a full stat sheet with two baskets, steals, rebounds, blocks, and an assist. Asher Zaczepinski was ever aggressive in creating steals, and had a bucket from a nice long assist pass by Dominic Drew who also had a nice swish shot on a pull up jumper from the outside of the lane. Camden Goetz, in his first appearance of the season, made two field goals. Gavin O’Brien contributed with a crafty two handed hook shot from the left side of the basket. Most importantly, “Player of the Game” Julian Weinerman got the Bengals on the board with a nice swish shot from the right side, and gave a sign to the heavens in honor of of his close family friend Michael, a father figure to him, who passed away earlier this week. I’m sure that he is looking down with a big smile! Submitted by Coach Paul Drew

The Broncos faced a tough opponent this week but continued their win streak to 3-0. All team members had a part in the win. Notably, Dagmawi Ayele played tough with several points and rebounds. James Cook, Parker Keslow, Alex Ghiassi, Owen Roberts and Lucas Kim were impressive both offensively and defensively. Submitted by Coach Kerri Keslow.

The Bantam Rams played a hard fought battle against the Titans on Sunday. The game was deadlocked at 4-4 until the Titans hit a buzzer beater to go up by two at the end of the first half. In the second half, the tough defense continued, but the Titans emerged victorious with a final score of 14-8. Noah Hagooli-Bolanos and Jarvis Wakefield each had two points, Gavin Bao paced the Rams with four points. Submitted by Coach Peter Brown

Delilah Holsey scored her first basket of the season as the Bantam Bucs picked up their first win of the season on Sunday evening. After suffering a heartbreaking loss seven days earlier, the league’s only all-girls squad came out of the gate looking like champions. The Packers had no answer for the stifling orange zone defense which held their opponent to just one bucket in the first half. Amelia Morovich-Hess received Player of The Game honors, but the Bucs couldn’t have picked up the “W” without great defensive play from Marina Schickler, Isabella Van Bilderbeek and Annika Cook who all dropped important buckets as well. Victoria McNary stepped up big in the absence of point guard Monika Diaz while Josie Casas was an absolute beast on both offense and defense, despite playing with an injured finger. Submitted by Coach Sean Daly.

Minors

The Bills and the Chiefs went scoreless until Hunter Esposito hit a layup shot to end the 1st quarter 2-0.
However, the Chiefs played solid defense from the quick by moving Jayden Thompson who had 5 steals. Arjun McIntosh continued his great play by getting the Chiefs on the board and hitting 5/5 on the free-throw line at halftime.
During the second half, the chiefs pulled away. Alex Brick had 6 points and 11 rebounds, Asa Stiehm tossed in 2, and Joseph Katz continues his impressive start by adding 4. Arjun was high scorer with 13, in Chiefs 25-13 win over the Bills. The Bills had solid hustle from Tavio and Weston hit 3 running shots for 6 points. Written by Leul Belay

For Vikings fans, the defensive slugfest in the first half vs. the Eagles on Sunday must have stood in stark contrast to the high-flying season opener. Despite many good looks, the Vikings racked up too many “in and out” shots to count. The Eagles sank a couple shots and a couple free throws during round 1 and led 6-0. In round 2, while the Vikings shooting struggles continued, the Eagles got things going en route to an 18-2 victory. But rest assured, the Vikings never threw in the towel. Jack Phelan led his team’s efforts with ferocious activity on the boards and defense (he forced a bunch of jump balls), and he hit the team’s lone basket. Leo Mooney drew several “oohs” and “aahs” from the onlookers with his sick interior passes and led the way in potential assists (for all the advanced analytics fans out there). Submitted by Coach Shannon Booher

The Bills fell to the Chiefs 13-25 on Sunday. Both teams played tough defense early as the score remained low during the first half. The Bills forced several turnovers but had trouble converting on fast breaks. They also committed a lot of shooting fouls, which the Chiefs made them pay for. The Chiefs blew the game open in the third quarter and never looked back. Alex Brick had several buckets and also set a couple key screens that led to easy layups for the Chiefs. Leading scoring for the Bills were Hunter Esposito-Doi and Weston Keslow with 5 and 4 points respectively. Emilia Wachtel scored her first basket on a dish from Hunter, and Tavio Esposito-Portillo had a fast-break layup. Eddie Stein and Jacob Escontrias both played strong defense for the Bills, with Jacob forcing several jump balls, but the Chiefs ultimately prevailed with superior ball movement and shooting. Submitted by Coach Jonathan Wray

The Minor League Eagles faced off against the Vikings on Sunday in what, on the Eagles side of things, played out as a tale of two games. The first half was sloppy and selfish with emotions running hot and frustrations boiling over. The team was lucky to have a four-point lead at the half on account of some aggressive defenses and the fact that the Viking were down their star point guard Dean Phelan. Had Phelan been in the game, things would almost certainly have played out differently. However, in the second half the Eagles started to gel with Oliver Ghiassi opening up the offense with his brick wall worthy picks, Daara Shafipour attacking the basket, and Aayan Lakhani efficiently distributing the basketball. Ultimately the game proved to be a solid win, but more than that, it illustrated that the Eagles are far more formidable when they work as a unit, not a gaggle of guys seeking individual glory. Let’s hope that lesson sticks moving forward… Team work, boys. Team work. Submitted by Coach Michael Jones-Morales

Majors

Our Packers came into this game with a good feeling after some excellent practice time during the week. Although we didn’t play as well as hoped in the first half, we still had some leads and were just a few good plays away from gaining full momentum. Unfortunately, those good plays didn’t happen, as we missed everything. Some were bad shots that we need to correct, but most were good shots that just would not fall, so I can’t complain about that

All 9 boys came, but with all being under 5-feet tall and going against a Raven’s team with some much bigger kids (including 6-foot Gaspar), we knew we had to play hard and play smart. We made mistakes in all areas, but nothing that we can’t clean up in the coming weeks. Quite frankly, none of our boys really shined this weekend in a disappointing loss. Dom Kajota and Sam Rubin lead us in scoring, but all 9 boys need to work harder, work together, and remember the plays we work on in order to get back in the win column next week. Submitted by Coach Rick Moncher

The Major League Raiders only had 4 players show up for game time so they were playing for pride from the start. After Michael Hanasab volunteered to play another game, we were under way. The Rams had a solid first half, but the Raiders just wouldn’t go away. The second half saw the Rams maintain their lead of 6 points or so, until the Raiders started moving the ball and making the extra pass. Xailoh Hermosillo, and Aviel Haroonian were key contributors on both ends of the floor. The last two minutes saw the Raiders take a quick one point lead on the strong work of Dominic Boccella on defense with key rebounds, and the all around relentless effort of Shiva McIntosh. Then, with 6 seconds on the clock and down by 2, the Raiders took their final timeout to draw up the game winning play. Boccella inbounded the pass to McIntosh who used his speed to avoid the double team and find Anthony Sugars for the Game Winning 3-pointer! But it was all for not, as the Rams finished the game hitting x of x on their free throws. Submitted by Coach Scot McIntosh

This week’s Profile:

Each week, Swish has a profile of a coach or player who inspires all of us involved in Santa Monica YMCA basketball.

This week’s profile is of Bantam Coach: Sean Daly

Sean Daly: The Bucs are just the 5th all-girls team to compete in league play at the Santa Monica YMCA. I have been advocating for more opportunities for girls in this league since my oldest daughter, Ande, joined back in 2013. At first, there was some resistance to the idea of a girls-only squad. Would they really be able to compete with the boys? Eventually, former league director Peter Arbogast took a chance on the idea and my second girls squad, The Orange Pack, went undefeated and won the Bantam League championship in Fall 2016.
The current Bucs team took just a few quick weeks to work out the kinks and picked their first “W” last weekend.

DocDrew: “What’s your favorite part about coaching an all-girls team?”
Sean: “Girls and boys tend to interact and socialize quite differently at this age. The girls I have coached have less competitive with each other and more willing to work together as a true team. They also embrace the social aspect of the team experience more which creates a really fun environment both on and off the court. I love watching new friendships develop and am particularly proud that I got to coach the only two girls to ever be named league MVP at the Santa Monica YMCA.”

DocDrew: “In your opinion, what percentage of girls would you like to see in the YMCA basketball league?”
Sean: “Ideally, I would love to see a girls-only division at some point, even if it is just for one season each year. In the meantime, it would be great if we could figure out a way to get girls to make up at least 20 percent of the league — enough to field one competitive girls-only team in each division.”

DocDrew: “What makes your experience of coaching YMCA basketball different than coaching in other sports or locations?”
Sean: “This is the only place I have coached or would want to coach.”

DocDrew: “What would you like to see for the future of Santa Monica YMCA basketball?”
Sean: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Besides adding more girls, my only hope is that we can all work together to maintain the amazing program that Peter and his team worked so hard to build.”

Sean is not just an inspiration and motivation for other girls, he also inspires all youth basketball players at the YMCA. Sean has given his all to the program for many years, and we are truly fortunate to have him coaching and motivating our youth through positive reinforcement and helping them to achieve success. Thank you Sean!

Scores

Saturday October 13th

Rookies:

Swans 9, Cats 5

Bulldogs 14, Tigers 7

Bantams:

Jets 8, Steelers 10

Minors:

Seahawks 20, Giants 18

Majors:

Broncos 33, Panthers 26

Rams 30, Raiders 28

Packers 25, Ravens 32

Dolphins 30, Colts 31

Sunday, October 14th

Rookies:

No games scheduled

Bantams:

Bengals 18, Steelers 6

Titans 14, Rams 8

Bucs 10, Packers 7

Jets 10, Broncos 20

Minors:

Bills 13, Chiefs 25

Eagles 18, Vikings 2

Falcons 20, Seahawks 39

Bears 30, Giants 33

Majors:

No games scheduled

Standings

Teams are awarded 5 points for a win, 3 points for a tie, 1 point for a loss, 0 points for a forfeit. Tournament games have greater point value. Teams are listed in their place in the standings with W-L-T and team points

Rookies:

Crows 2-1-0, 11 points

Bulldogs 2-0-0, 10 points

Swans 1-2-0, 7 points

Cats 1-1-0, 6 points

Tigers 1-1-0, 6 points

Hawks 0-2-0, 2 points

Bantams:

Titans 3-1-0, 16 points

Broncos 3-0-0, 15 points

Bengals 2-1-0, 11 points

Packers 1-1-1, 9 points

Rams 1-1-1, 9 points

Buccaneers 1-3-0, 8 points

Steelers 1-2-0, 7 points

Jets 0-3-0, 3 points

Minors:

Chiefs 3-0-0, 15 points

Eagles 2-1-0, 11 points

Giants 2-1-0, 11 points

Seahawks 2-1-0, 11 points

Bills 1-1-0 6 points

Vikings 1-1-0, 6 points

Bears 0-3-0, 3 points

Falcons 0-3-0, 3 points

Majors:

Colts 2-0-0, 10 points

Rams 2-0-0, 10 points

Broncos 1-1-0, 6 points

Dolphins 1-1-0, 6 points

Packers 1-1-0, 6 points

Ravens 1-1-0, 6 points

Panthers 0-2-0, 2 points

Raiders 0-2-0, 2 points

Upcoming Schedule

All games are played in the gymnasium of the Santa Monica YMCA

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2018
WINTER LEAGUE PRE-REGISTRATION OPENS FOR FALL LEAGUE FAMILIES TODAY

MAJOR LEAGUE
10:30 AM BRONCOS VS RAVENS
11:40 AM PANTHERS VS RAIDERS
12:50 PM DOLPHINS VS RAMS

MINOR LEAGUE
2:00 PM VIKINGS VS BILLS

ROOKIE LEAGUE
3:10 PM BULLDOGS VS HAWKS
4:20 PM TIGERS VS CATS

BANTAM LEAGUE
5:30 PM TITANS VS BENGALS
6:40 PM BUCS VS STEELERS

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2018****PICTURE DAY #2****

BANTAM LEAGUE.

10:30 AM JETS VS PACKERS—THIS IS NOT PICTURE DAY FOR THESE TEAMS

ROOKIE LEAGUE
10:30 AM CROWS AND BULLDOGS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
11:40 AM CROWS VS BULLDOGS GAME
11:40 AM TIGERS AND SWANS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
12:45 PM ALL 6 MINOR LEAGUE TEAMS TAKE LARGE GROUP PHOTO
12:50 PM TIGERS VS SWANS GAMES
12:50 PM CATS AND HAWKS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
2:00 PM CATS VS HAWKS GAME

MAJOR LEAGUE
2:00 PM DOLPHINS AND BRONCOS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
3:10 PM DOLPHINS VS BRONCOS GAME
3:10 PM PANTHERS AND RAMS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
4:15 PM DOLPHINS, BRONCOS, PANTHERS, RAMS TAKE LARGE GROUP PHOTO
4:20 PM PANTHERS VS RAMS GAME
4:20 PM RAIDERS AND PACKERS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
5:30 PM RAIDERS VS PACKERS GAME
5:30 PM RAVENS AND COLTS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PICTURES
6:35 PM RAIDERS, PACKERS, RAVENS, COLTS TAKE LARGE GROUP PHOTO
6:40 PM RAVENS VS COLTS GAME

ALL DIVISIONS
6:40 PM – ALL MAKE UP TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS IF YOU MISSED YOURS

Condolences

It is sad news to report that the mother of one of our most beloved YMCA basketball players, has recently passed away from her battle with cancer. Tamara Montague was a terrific mother who cared deeply for her son Jenson and daughter Catalina. I had the privilege of coaching Jenson for the Summer U7 Santa Monica Stars, and he was a big part of our championship team. We all loved Jenson, his sister Catalina, his father Scott, and we all loved Tamara. Let’s keep them in our prayers.

Also, sad to report the loss of Michael Whitehouse, who passed away last week, as a result of injuries from a motorcycle crash. Michael was an assistant coach in the Bantam division, and was the father figure for Bantam player Julian Weinerman. Michael was essentially Julian’s father, and got Julian involved in basketball. He will be greatly missed by all of us at the Santa Monica YMCA.

Thank you very much,

Dr. Paul Drew, Editor and Publisher of Swish