By Dr. Paul Drew
Welcome to the fifth issue of volume two 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.
Registration for the Spring season of youth basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA is now open online at http://welcome.ymcasm.org/
Black History Month
In honor of Black History Month, the Swish will have a series of articles dedicated to the history of African Americans in basketball and honoring the pioneers that led to diversity and inclusivity of the game, helping to make it the sport that we all very much enjoy today. The following is from https://www.blackfives.org/ I strongly encourage everyone to visit their website and support their foundation.
Ora Mae Washington and the Tribune Girls
Black women’s basketball pioneer Ora Mae Washington was born on January 23, in 1898. Washington was perhaps the greatest female athlete of all time, black or white. To help celebrate, let’s focus on a basketball team she led—the Philadelphia Tribune Girls, an all-black team that played during the 1930s and 1940s.
Philadelphia Tribune Girls
The Tribune Girls of Philadelphia, 1938. Standing (l. to. r): Marie Leach, Lavinia Moore, Myrtle Wilson, Ora Washington, Rose Wilson, Florence Campbell. Kneeling: Gladys Walker, Virginia Woods.
There are few teams in any sport, any place, that dominated so completely and for so long. The Tribune Girls won eleven straight Women’s Colored Basketball World’s Championships. The Tribune Girls were formed in 1930 with players from the Philadelphia Quick Steppers and the Germantown Hornets, two exceptional local all-black female basketball teams. The Quick Steppers featured Inez Patterson, a phenomenal sports star who also managed and coached the team.
The Hornets’ lineup included two amazing athletes who were already nationally renowned as tennis players, Ora Washington and Lula Ballard. Both teams played at the Young Women’s Christian Association (Y.W.C.A.) Colored Branch in Germantown, a racially diverse suburban community in the northern section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Patterson, a record-setting Temple University athlete who was an All-Collegiate selection in many sports including basketball, was the Quick Steppers’ most talented player. A West Philadelphia native and the team’s captain, Patterson had led the Quick Steppers to a 15-1 record and the Eastern Colored Women’s Basketball Championship title during the previous season, in 1929.
More than a great athlete, Patterson, who also managed the team, was far ahead of her time as a black female sports promoter and entrepreneur. In 1930 she approached the powerful Philadelphia Tribune, a leading Negro newspaper, to propose a team sponsorship arrangement between the paper and the Quick Steppers. Patterson went to Otto Briggs, the newspaper’s circulation manager. He was also a part owner of the publication, and the husband of the president of the paper. The Tribune newspaper sponsored and promoted her basketball team, bringing free advertising, exposure, and financial stability to her club during a time of great uncertainty at the start of the Great Depression.
In return, Patterson renamed her team, which increased the paper’s popularity as well as its local and national circulation. Thus, the Tribune Girls were born. Nicknamed the “newsgirls,” the Tribune women played most of their home games in the Wissahickon Boys Club gym in Germantown.
With the backing of the Philadelphia Tribune as her calling card, Patterson easily persuaded Ora Washington and Lula Ballard, the stars of the Germantown Hornets, to join the newly named Tribune Girls team. The acquisition of these two players paved the way for the Tribunes to dominate black women’s basketball for nearly two decades to come. Washington was a national headliner. She had just won her third of seven straight American Tennis Association women’s singles titles.
With these stars, the Tribune Girls reigned immediately. Their trademark was “snappy playing and sharp shooting.” By the end of December, Ora Washington was already being hailed as “the best Colored player in the world.” Despite a growing list of independent female African American basketball teams, the Tribune Girls had no rivals. So they looked to black colleges for competition.
During the Depression Era, while most black colleges were discontinuing their women’s basketball programs in favor of “refinement and respectability,” Bennett College for Women, a historically black school in Greensboro, North Carolina, did the opposite.
Bennett enthusiastically focused on basketball, recruiting top players nationwide to become the best African American women’s collegiate team – and perhaps the best overall black female squad – in the country, by the mid-1930s. Between 1933 and 1937, the Bennett girls lost only one college game. Naturally, people wanted to know which team was better. A showdown between the Tribune Girls and the Bennett College Five was scheduled in 1934 — a weeklong 3-game series in Greensboro to decide the national black women’s basketball championship.
One can imagine the atmosphere. For their first game the Tribune Girls showed up in new red and white uniforms with script “Tribune” lettering sewn onto sleeveless tops, and matching socks. At halftime they changed into fresh purple and gold outfits. Maybe their hot looks set the tone, because the Tribunes swept the series. The newsgirls’ scoring in the series was well balanced, while the team’s shooting was described as “almost supernatural.” “They just had it all together,” Bennett player Ruth Glover explained in a modern day interview. “They could dribble and keep the ball and make fast moves in to the basket which you couldn’t stop.”
Ora Washington was intense. “I didn’t believe in long warm-ups; I’d rather play from scratch and warm up as I went along,” she once told a reporter. “She wasn’t a huge person, or very tall,” recalled Glover. “But she was fast.” Washington was the core of the lineup. “The team was built up around her,” said Glover. The Tribunes-Bennett series of 1934 was a landmark in building interest and enthusiasm for black women’s collegiate and interscholastic sports programs.
By 1936 the Tribunes had achieved “a string of victories that have overshadowed anything done by any other bunch of girls in either race.” During the 1937-38 season the team reportedly traveled over 5,000 miles to fill their schedule, which included a tour of Southern states.
But in the summer of 1941, as the newsgirls were set to start their 12th season, a shakeup at the Philadelphia Tribune newspaper headquarters caused the departure of Otto Briggs. Then in December, America’s entry into World War II stalled the momentum of all major sports, particularly women’s basketball.
Without Briggs, the Tribune Girls soon fell apart and disbanded. Briggs, an ailing World War I veteran, died in 1943. Following the war, support of women’s participation in sports never quite reestablished itself and neither did the Tribune Girls basketball team.
However, by then, many of the barriers to African American female involvement in sports had already begun to collapse thanks to the pioneering efforts of Ora Washington and Tribune Girls.
Ora Washington was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.
Rookies
Rays over Orioles: Since these teams practice together and have practice games at the end of each practice, the strengths and weaknesses for each team were well known to all involved. This game figured to be decided by how well each team’s two main ‘stars’ did against each other. The stars did shine, as all but 2 points in this game were scored by Aaron Dyner and Vitalina Moncher (10 each) from our Rays and Tristan Holden and Jackson Harper of the Orioles in our very solid 22-17 win. Our Luca Samson had the only other bucket in the game and Rosalina Storstein had some nice assists. Although the stats show just a few Rays playing the big roles, it was our very strong team defense that kept us undefeated this weekend. Submitted by Coach Rick Moncher
Orioles vs Rays: It was a hard fought game for Orioles. Rays came out swinging and kept the pressure on all game with lots of buckets from Vitalina Moncher & Aaron Dyner along with their team’s characteristic tough defense.
For Orioles, Jackson Harper, back in the lineup was a strong force with 4 steals, 5 rebounds and 9 points (including a 3 pointer!). Tristan Hayes was quite active also with 9 rebounds and 8 points. Cruz Hecklin & Eloise Siegler pulled down a rebound each with Eloise also snagging a steal. The other Orioles players held their own on defense to the best of their ability but in the end it just wasn’t enough as the Rays took it 22-17. Submitted by Coach Holden Hayes
BLUE JAYS CLAW TILL THE BITTER END BLIGHTED BY BOSTONIAN RED SOX — February 9th. As us Los Angelenos have grown uneasily accustomed to in recent times, certainly whenever facing a Boston-area team whether you’re a Dodger or a Ram, sometimes breaks don’t go your way. Similarly, at this weekend’s YMCA tilt, after a brutal first half in which the unique instance occurred of withstanding so many fouls, the Blue Jays moved to a 1-and-1 free throw shooting situation, Scarlett Harris nailed both her free throws (some have said she’s already eclipsed her dad in this specific skill set) to bring the Blue within 2 of the Red going into the 4th. Top scorer, Sylvie Levitt (6 Points! 4 rebounds! 2 steals!) was prepared to deliver the team’s first seasonal win, sadly she was socked out for precious minutes with a skinned knee. That was enough for the Red Sox to further their empirical rule. Final score: 18-8. Submitted by Coach Pete Harris and Breda Carroll
Bantams
Our Brewers took on a determined Cubs team on Sunday morning and it was another down to the wire roller coaster game for us. Down three players, our undermanned squad showed a lot of heart and teamwork in jumping out to an early 11-0 halftime lead. Sebastian Jukanovic led the way, while making a strong case for 1st Team Bantam honors by scoring 8 pts, grabbing 4 rebounds and getting 2 steals in the 1st half alone. In the 2nd half the Cubs fought back and by the 4th quarter it was a one possession game. Just when things were getting tight, Alan Larkin scored two key baskets followed by a a clutch shot from Dylan Kravitz to give us some breathing room. In the end we held on with a 19-14 win. Player of the Game Jukanovich led the way with 12 points, 9 rebounds and 5 steals. Key play also came from Vaughn Elliot who had 12 rebounds, 4 steals and a big free throw, Kravitz who totaled 9 rebounds along with his two points, and Julian Reed who had 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Submitted by Coach Bill Kravitz
The Padres has another great game with good spirits and high energy all around. Defense won the day and every player helped to to keep the other team off balance. The Padres rebounded well – helping to keep the ball in our hands. James Cook, Parker Keslow and Teddy Chang were impressive on offense and defense with many blocks and steals. Jake Kazerani, Ethan Pages, Leo Garcia, Kingston Andes and Sampson Robinson played strong defense. Submitted by Coach Kerri Keslow
2/3/2019
Giants 10 – Cardinals 25
The Giants came back late in the game against a strong Cardinals team, losing a tough battle 25-10 to the Cardinals. The game started with hard defense on both sides, and the Cardinals took off running as the game progressed. The game was 9-1 at the half, and the Cardinals were able to score in the last quarter and bring the game closer.
James Petrovich shined with 4 points, 4 boards, 1 steal, and 1 blocked shot. Jacopo Stabilini also scored 2 points, came in with 6 strong rebounds and 1 block in the Giants fight against the Cardinals. Vihaan Nawathe scored 2 points and added 1 point with a free-throw and Abby Ma also scored 1 point with a free throw. Nawathe also had 2 rebounds and a steal. The Giants gave a great defensive effort with Sadie Stiehm racking up 2 boards; Ma with 2 rebounds; Harlan Mansfield with 2 rebounds and 2 steals; Jaxton Moore with 1 rebound and a blocked shot; Jack Salaski with 1 rebound and a blocked shot; and Owen Benham with 2 rebounds. Submitted by Jason Moore. **DocDrew accidentally omitted this summary last issue, my apologies!
GIANTS 6 – PADRES 16
The Giants fought hard against a determined Padres offense and solid defense. James Petrovich scored 4 points, also picking up 6 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Harlan Mansfield also contributed 2 points and a solid defensive performance with 3 boards and 1 steal.
The rest of the Giants fought hard in a valiant, tough battle, especially on the rebounds – Vihaan Nawathe grabbed 2 boards, Jaxton Moore with 2, Sam Hastings with 1 board, and Owen Benham snagging a solid 5 rebounds. Jack Skalaski also had a strong defensive performance with 1 board, 2 blocked shots, and 1 steal. The Giants will return strong next weekend! Submitted by Jason Moore. * Coach’s Note: Special thanks to Tim Mansfield for substitute coaching this game alongside Assistant Coach, Xailoh Hermosillo.
Cubs vs Brewers Sunday, February 10 , awesome teamwork for Cubs, awesome passing and great communication, unfortunately, lost 19:12 to Brewers! Veronica Machala named the player of the game for the Cubs. Submitted by Izabella Jakuc
You make the call: The Cubs Veronica Machala has the ball, and what call does the referee make based on the above picture? Answer: Her foot is on the line, other team gets the ball out of bounds.
Minors
Mets weekend review: The Mets came out of the weekend undefeated with 2 buzzer-beaters in 2 games to ensure victory over the basketball busy weekend.
In game 1 against a tough Rangers team, the Mets showed their depth with every player that suited up scoring at least one bucket. In the end, the Rangers held the lead by 1 with 8 seconds to go until Jack Phelan from the Mets stole the ball on the other end of the court and went coast to coast and finished the game with a pump-fake clearing the defender to give him a clear look at a 10 foot jump-shot which he drained to bring home the win. Submitted by Coach Brian Phelan
In game 2 the Mets took on a very athletic White-Sox team. This was a back and forth shoot-out with both teams showing that every player on the floor brought some skill to the court. This time the Mets held a 2 point lead with 8 seconds to go… but the White-Sox had a sharp shooter with free-throws to come and the Mets knew it. They needed a safety bucket bad. That’s when Jace O’Brien stepped up after a time out and executed a fantastic dribble around a screen for a contested 10 foot jump-shot that he drained to lock in the second win of the weekend for the Mighty Mets.
Ben Felson had a couple of memorable baskets. Leo Mooney’s passing and defense continues to drop the jaws of onlookers. Kahlo Lemond played shut down defense and drained a couple of big baskets. Atobek Nasimov was a force with his rebounding. Jack Nash has found his game and showed how good he can play under the basket with his put-back shots. Roberto Sierra was a spectacular all-around performer with points and rebounds. Submitted by Coach Brian Phelan
Majors
The A’s had a well rounded 30-14 victory against the Rangers on Sunday evening as everyone got in the score book. Dean Phalen (6 pts, 5 reb, 2 steals) and Julian Bao (7 pts, 4 rebs, 4 steals) had their best games of the year so far. Sebastian Ramirez was his usual self (4 pts, 9 reb, 3 assists, 4 steals) and Jonathan Lin contributed in multiple ways, including a key basket in the 3rd quarter to calm a Rangers scoring run. Submitted by Coach Brent Stoll
Angels over Royals. Our Angels put together a very solid effort on offense and defense this week and were rewarded with a 41-18 victory. Although our full-court press had occasional problems with trapping and letting players get by too easily, it was mostly effective and sometimes suffocating to the Royals. Between the forced errors from our defense and some charitable giveaways by the Royals, this game never seemed in doubt after the first period.
All 9 Angels in attendance played well on both ends of the court. Lorenzo Stabilini and Amir Jahromi were very strong in the paint for us. Sam Rubin lead us offensively and had a great all-around game. Dom Kajota and Timosha Moncher used their speed and tenacity on defense to bother the Royals all day. Sebastian Fouquette and Sheamus Daniels had their best games of the season. Jesse Lister and Taylor Chen played very well in our press to create opportunities for their teammates. We are improving each week and we hope to continue that trend into the second half of the season. Submitted by Coach Rick Moncher
This Week’s Profile
Each week, Swish has a profile of a coach, player, or someone in the program who inspires all of us involved in Santa Monica YMCA basketball.
This week’s profile features the McLaurin family of father Tony, and son Noah. Noah has been involved with Santa Monica YMCA basketball for several years, and started off his first season with a bang, displaying skills and abilities that were far beyond his age. As former Santa Monica YMCA youth basketball director Pete Arbogast once said: “He’s the most amazing and unselfish player at his age that I have ever seen come through this program!”
Noah has a love for the game that is unmatched by any other player in our league, and always does his best to help his teammates improve their skills and team play, obviously something that he inherited from his amazing parents.
Patriarch Tony has been a huge help to our basketball program by coaching and assisting other coaches. He always installs positive reinforcement to all the kids that he coaches, and doesn’t coach based on criticism, but instead on achievements and goals attained.
DocDrew: What do you enjoy most about the youth basketball program at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Coach Tony: What I enjoy most is the emotional, mental, and physical safe environment in which the players have the opportunity to develop not only their basketball skills, but also being able to encourage the youth with positive reinforcement that will carry over into their personal lives.
DocDrew: What would you like to see in the future for youth basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Coach Tony: Well, I’ve coached youth sports for 20 years, and I can honestly say that the Santa Monica YMCA basketball program is in the top echelon of
youth sports programs. My family has been a part of this wonderful program for a couple years and we look forward to many more.
DocDrew: What advice would you give young athletes?
Coach Tony: I am a firm believer that everyone has a talent and I encourage young athletes to believe in themselves, and trust that if they put in the work(practice), it will pay off. Do not be too hard on yourself,
you may not be able to do what the next person does as well as they do; however, you have something special that you can do just as well or better. Let’s find your strength and focus on that.
DocDrew: What do you like most about playing basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Noah: What I like most about playing basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA, is it helps me learn more about basketball.
DocDrew: Which are your favorite moments or memories in your basketball career at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Noah: My favorite memory is the time one of my teammates that never shot the ball made his first basket, a free throw to win the game. That was cool.
DocDrew: Who is your favorite player and why?
Noah: My favorite player is Steph Curry, I like him because he is a good leader and a great shooter.
We can’t thank Tony and Noah enough for always having a team approach and wanting everyone around them to succeed. They emphasize that when we work as a team, we can all accomplish our goals and succeed in life.
Scores:
Saturday, February 9th
Rookies
Yankees 16, Twins 8
Orioles 17, Rays 22
Red Sox 20, Blue Jays 8
Bantams
Giants 6, Padres 16
Minors
Marlins 31, Braves 28
Phillies 28, Nationals 22
Tigers 30, White Sox 26
Mets 24, Rangers 21
Majors
No games scheduled
Sunday, February 10th
Rookies
No games scheduled
Bantams
Brewers 19, Cubs 14
Minors
Mets 31, White Sox 29
Rangers 17, Phillies 31
Marlins 26, Tigers 14
Nationals 39, Braves 25
Majors
Mariners 38, Astros 46
Royals 18, Angels 41
Rangers 14, Athletics 30
Tuesday, February 12th
Majors
Athletics 23, Astros 35
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:
Rays 4-0-0, 20 points
Red Sox 3-1-0, 16 points
Orioles 2-2-0, 12 points
Yankees 2-2-0, 12 points
Twins 1-3-0, 8 points
Blue Jays 0-4-0, 4 points
Bantams:
Brewers 4-1-0, 21 points
Padres 3-1-1, 19 points
Rockies 3-2-0, 17 points
Cardinals 3-2-0, 17 points
Dodgers 2-1-1, 14 points
Diamondbacks 2-3-0, 13 points
Pirates 2-3-0, 13 points
Reds 2-2-0, 12 points
Giants 1-4-0, 9 points
Cubs 1-4-0, 9 points
Minors:
Phillies 5-2-0, 27 points
Marlins 4-2-0, 22 points
Nationals 4-2-0, 21 points *one loss by forfeit
Mets 3-3-0, 17 points *one loss by forfeit
White Sox 2-4-0, 14 points
Rangers 2-4-0, 13 points *one loss by forfeit, Rangers beat Tigers head to head
Tigers 2-4-0, 13 points *one loss by forfeit
Braves 0-5-0, 5 points
Majors:
Astros 5-0-0, 25 points
Angels 3-1-0, 16 points
Royals 2-2-0 12 points
Athletics 2-2-0, 12 points
Mariners 1-3-0, 8 points
Rangers 0-5-0, 5 points
Upcoming schedule
All games are played in the gymnasium of the Santa Monica YMCA
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2019
BANTAM LEAGUE
10:30 AM DODGERS VS CARDINALS
11:40 AM PADRES VS PIRATES
12:50 PM ROCKIES VS DIAMONDBACKS
2:00 PM BREWERS VS GIANTS
3:10 PM REDS VS CUBS
MAJOR LEAGUE
5:30 PM ROYALS VS ATHLETICS
6:40 PM MARINERS VS ANGELS
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2019****PICTURE DAY #2****
ROOKIE LEAGUE
9:30 AM YANKEES AND ORIOLES TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
10:30 AM YANKEES VS ORIOLES GAME
10:30 AM RED SOX AND TWINS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
11:30 AM ALL ROOKIE TEAMS TAKE LARGE 6 TEAM GROUP PHOTO
11:40 AM RED SOX VS TWINS GAME
11:40 AM BLUE JAYS AND RAYS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
12:50 PM BLUE JAYS VS RAYS
BANTAM LEAGUE
12:50 PM DODGERS AND BREWERS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
2:00 PM DODGERS VS BREWERS GAME
2:00 PM REDS AND CARDINALS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
3:00 PM DODGERS, BREWERS, REDS AND CARDINALS TAKE 4 TEAM GROUP PIC
3:10 PM REDS VS CARDINALS GAME
3:10 PM CUBS AND PIRATES TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
4:20 PM CUBS VS PIRATES GAME
5:30 PM GIANTS AND DIAMONDBACKS TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
5:20 PM CUBS., PIRATES, GIANTS, DIAMONDBACKS, PADRES AND ROCKIES
TAKE LARGE 6 TEAM GROUP PICTURE
5:30 PM GIANTS VS DIAMONDBACKS GAME
5:30 PM PADRES AND ROCKIES TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS
ALL DIVISIONS
6:00 PM ALL MAKEUP INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS FOR ANY WHO MISSED THEIRS
BANTAM LEAGUE
6:40 PM PADRES VS ROCKIES GAME
Thank you very much,
Dr. Paul Drew, assistant youth basketball coordinator at the Santa Monica YMCA, editor and publisher of Swish
