By Dr. Paul Drew
Welcome to the fourth issue of volume five of Swish, a weekly periodical with recaps and photos of Santa Monica YMCA youth basketball games, and other pertinent info such as announcements and updates from the program.
Each week, I think about which topic that I wish to write about for the Swish. It usually is a long thought process based on current issues or trends that I see in today’s world, or perhaps, an interesting historical topic related to basketball and youth sports. Sometimes, something happens that needs to be addressed. This past week, my devoted assistant Ian Roper, had his grandmother pass away, and for this reason, I present the following topic, in honor of his grandmother, and our thoughts and prayers go to him and his family.
4 Reasons Grandchildren Need Their Grandparents
by Susan Adcox, Updated August 07, 2019
Grandparents Are an Extra Layer of Protection
Every family needs help sometimes, and grandparents can be the ones who make sure that children get the care and attention they need at stressful times. Two common occasions when grandparents step in are when a parent is ill and when a grandchild is born.
Millions of grandparents have made the larger commitment of helping to raise their grandchildren. Some are custodial grandparents who have taken over the parenting role entirely. Some provide full- or part-time child care for their grandchildren, sometimes at considerable financial cost. Other grandparents fill in the gaps when parents are incarcerated, are serving in the military or are struggling with substance abuse.
Research shows that in most cases children benefit when family members fill in the gaps in their care, especially when the alternative is going into the foster care system. A 2008 law recognizes that kinship care is usually preferable to institutional alternatives and makes it easier for grandparents to get custody of grandchildren.
When Financial Help Is Needed
Sometimes helping out a family means providing financial help, but this scenario can get tricky. No grandparent wants to see grandchildren in need. Still, a grandparent who consistently bails out a profligate adult child is contributing to the problem. So is a grandparent who encourages a standard of living that the adult child cannot provide. Grandchildren require the necessities of life and an occasional splurge, but not having everything that they would like to have can build character.
Helping Out in Smaller Ways
In most cases, grandparents are not required to make huge sacrifices or grand gestures. A grandparent may be called upon to pick up grandchildren from school, stay with them during minor illnesses or pick up items that they need. But even small acts of support can send a big message. These small acts say to the child, someone’s got your back. You’re not in this alone. When you need me, I’ll be there. That’s what it means to supply an extra layer of protection for grandchildren.
Grandparents Connect Children to Their Heritage
Sometimes the stories are told while grandparent and grandchild are curled up in bed. Sometimes they are told around a campfire or around the dining room table. Telling family stories to the grandchildren can be an important grandparent function.
Research shows that hearing stories about family members overcoming hardship can actually help children become less discouraged when they face hardships. Grandparents should also tell stories about their own lives. Whether they are informative, humorous or tragic, such stories can make grandparents more real to their grandchildren. Grandparents sometimes think that they have no interesting stories to tell, but everyone can tell stories based on these seven subjects.
More Ways to Share Family History
Storytelling is just one way that grandparents can share and preserve their family history. You don’t have to be a genealogy enthusiast — although many grandparents are. One of the best ways to share family history is through creating a keepsake journal for grandchildren. There are a number of fill-in-the-blank grandparents’ journals that make the process simple. Grandparents who would like a finished product that is more polished can check out the services offered by personal historians.
Respect Traditions
Traditions also connect grandchildren to the past. They help children feel secure, give them a sense of family identity and let them know that they are a part of something larger than the individual. It’s possible to hang on to a family tradition past the point of usefulness, but some traditions are worth preserving. And there is nothing wrong with creating new traditions to go along with the old.
Much psychological pain is related to feeling isolated, alone, adrift and unconnected. Having a sense of heritage makes children — and adults — less prone to such feelings.
Grandparents Can Be Teachers
In today’s time-poor families, many skills go untaught simply because of a lack of leisure time in which to teach them. Grandparents are logical choices to pass on some of those skills. They tend to have more free time, and often they are more patient than stressed-out parents. Because they grew up in a less mechanized time, they have skills that some parents lack. And because they are concerned about their grandchildren, they’ll be sure to teach how to do tasks safely.
Skills to Share
The classic examples of skills that grandparents can teach are sewing, gardening, small repairs, cooking and baking, but there are many others. At a very young age, grandchildren can be taught how to:
Set the table
Sew on a button
Air up bicycle tires
Fold towels
Tighten screws.
Older grandchildren can be taught more complex tasks, especially those that are in line with their particular interests. No matter what a child’s interests, however, certain practical skills are always appropriate.
Grandparents Provide Unconditional Love
Grandparents expect to love their grandchildren, for the most part. They plan to dote on them and spoil them a bit. They may not have expected the powerful and immediate bond that many grandparents feel with a newborn grandchild. They may not have been prepared for the overwhelming surge of unconditional love.
Parents are the most important source of unconditional love, but parental love can be complicated. It tends to be all bound up with hopes and expectations and ambitions for children. Sometimes parental egos get involved.
Grandparent love is a little simpler. We’ve lived long enough to know that human lives seldom go in a straight-line trajectory toward success. We all falter and fall back, and at those times we need a little extra love. A close relationship with grandparents helps grandchildren grow in confidence. It makes them feel worthy. It gives them security.
Contrary to popular opinion, grandparents don’t always spoil their grandchildren, and we don’t always think that they are perfect. Often we feel that modern children need a little less attention and a little more discipline. But none of that alters the unconditional love we feel for our grandchildren. We would fight tigers for them.
Rookies
The Bluesbreakers and the Animals took to the court for an early Sunday morning game.
For the first time this season, the Bluesbreakers fielded a full 10-player squad. The starting five of Stellan Haberli, Joaquin Jimenez, Adrian Yen, Siddhant Khanna, and Aryan Abjani looked to score early and often. The Animals had other ideas. Their 1-4 defense had the Blues on their heels for most of the first half. The second unit of Miles Smith, Zeke Sarr, Leon Liu, Efe Gocen, and Qiao Ren battled to keep the score close after the Animals jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead. Joaquin Jimenez mixed it up in the paint with the tallest of Animals to secure some rebounds for his team.
Baskets were few and far between for the Bluesbreakers until Stellan Haberli scored on a nice jumper from the right side to get on the board. After the halftime free throws, the Animals were up 7-2.
The second half was more of a defensive struggle for both teams as shots just were not falling. After trading empty possessions for several minutes, Zeke Sarr grabbed an offensive rebound and went back up with it, scoring the first basket of his young career. Miles Smith and Adrian Yen helped out with some good rebounding, and Siddhant Khanna was strong on defense. Just as momentum looked like it was starting to shift, the Animals dug in and picked up their defensive effort. After scoring 2 more baskets, the game was sealed. Final Score: Bluesbreakers 4 Animals 11. Submitted by Coach Charles Ellinwood
YARDBIRDS DON’T GET SNAPPED BY THE TURTLES — October 13th. It all started at the end of practice when one of our best players, Jake Silvera told us he knew one of the Turtles, and they were really good. Then my wife and I read the Swish that night, and it said the Turtles scored 16 points last contest! The big game fell on Picture Day, so we had a lot of time to talk about the challenges ahead, and how important it was to play good defense. YMCA Player of the Game, August Richane was our center in so many ways with 1 block, 6 steals, 6 rebounds & 8 points. Yet, it was a team effort: Rex Stone had a tone-setting block in the 1st qtr. Richard Haro had 5 steals, 2 rebounds & 2 points. Dylan Geary had 3 rebounds & 2 points. Arya Nawathe had 2 points. Oliver Harris nailed a free throw for his first ever League point thanks to a Technical Foul called on the other team. Meanwhile, Zoe Avrampoulous-Orlandous missed her turn at the free throw line, but she did get her first rebound during the game. Go, Zoe. Go each and every Yardbird. Final Score against those very snappy Turtles, 15-4. Submitted by Coach Pete Harris
The Rascals played smothering defense, holding the Zombies scoreless for the first 27 minutes of the game. Late in the first half, Owen Rudman demonstrated his trademark hustle by diving for a loose ball. Seeing Owen sprawled on the gym floor, Benji Kim ran over to lend his ailing teammate a helping hand. Gus Mitha led the aggressive Zombies defense with a key 4th quarter steal. Theo DeCordoba finally put the Zombies on the board, cutting the Rascal lead in half with 3 minutes remaining. Siva Pfanschmidt’s first basket of the year came in dramatic fashion, evening the score at 4-4 with 1 minute to go. After time expired, Zander Chin sank a game-winning free throw to complete the unlikely comeback: Zombies 5, Rascals 4. Submitted by Coach Brian Pfanschmidt
The Animals 11, Blues Breakers 4. Player of the game Zayn Al-Shawe led the Animals to their first regular season victory, in a solid 11 – 4 performance against the Blues Breakers. Al-Shawe scored 6 points, with 2 steals and a rebound. Colson Moore and Keanu Straughter helped seal the victory with late game baskets, scoring 2 points each. Moore also had a solid defensive performance with 3 steals and a rebound, and an assist on offense. Straughter was strong on the boards leading the team with 5 rebounds and also added a steal on defense. The entire team contributed to a well rounded victory. Maria Belew had 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist, and scored 1 on a free throw. Mariella Belew had 1 rebound. And Jason Gaines had a solid performance with 4 rebounds and two steals. Submitted by Jason Moore
Bantams
The Pretenders played their 3rd game this past Saturday and it was our best team effort yet! Using the stingy defense we work on in practice, we shut down The Bosses from the opening tip. On offense, our shots fell early and often as we got out to a 12-0 1st half lead. The 2nd half tightened up a bit but we hit some late baskets to pull away at the end. It was a true team effort with Player of the Game Ethan Pages scoring 6 points to go along with 6 rebounds. Victoria McNary had a great all around game with 8 points, 3 rebounds and a bunch of great defensive plays. Dylan Kravitz chipped in 6 points along with some great passing and assists. Taylor Summers had 2 points and 5 rebounds and not to be outdone, Aidan Hill scored a free throw and played excellent defense throughout the game, as did Brendan Still. Finally Ibrahim Ally did a great job bringing the ball up the court. Final Score: Pretenders win 23-9! Submitted by Coach Bill Kravitz
The Police & Runaways faced off. The Runaways brought the girl power of their all girls team. The Police did whatever they could to counter all that sass. First half ended 8 to 4 with Police leading. The 2nd half was similar with Police “catching” the Runaways 14-6. Hats off to these Runaway girls for fearlessly going toe to toe with the boys. Aside from basically all players on the Police teaming together to play tough defense, the highlights for the Police were Theo Richards with 6 steals, 4 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist for a truly great game from this guy who’s 8th birthday was this week. Tristan Hayes, also with a birthday this week turning 7, earned Player of the Game off of 7 steals, 6 points, and 3 rebounds. Brandon Israels added 4 points, 3 steals, a block, and a rebound. Jaxton Moore handled business on the boards grabbing 7 rebounds, and snagged 1 steal. Ryan Drew pulled down 3 rebounds plus one steal. Logan Cappicille took 2 steals, and had a rebound and block as well. Nick Varo had 1 steal and both he and Jackson Garrett helped play aggressive defense all game. Submitted by Coach Holden Hayes
Bosses lose to Pretenders: With our inexperienced team, our players and parents know this season will have plenty of ups and downs. After an up week the weekend before, our Bosses definitely had a down week, but we are learning from it. Facing a larger and more experienced Pretenders team, we didn’t play the tough team defense we are capable of it and gave up too many easy shots and didn’t grab enough rebounds. To their credit, the Pretenders hit many long shots and played very well. We had a good practice this week and hope that rolls over into a more competitive effort this weekend. Submitted by Coach Rick Moncher
The Revolution lost to the Beat 15-8. The Revolution played great defense throughout, but couldn’t get their shots to fall on offense, and after keeping it close in the first half the Beat dug deep to pull away in the second half. Alex Ma led the way offensively with 6 points, with Axel Trussler chipping in 2 points and a rebound and Rhys Scheflen contributing 2 assists and a rebound. Defensively Wiley Scheflen contributed 5 rebounds and a blocked shot, Benjamin Saunders had 4 rebounds a steal, Brooks Stuber had 3 rebounds and a steal, Jonathan Watson and Elliot Ma each had 3 rebounds, Alden Wong had 2 rebounds and Teddy Chang contributed great defensive intensity and a great attitude. Submitted by Coach Sarah Scheflen
Minors
The Clovers hit the floor in harmony and finished on a strong note with a 33-14 win over the Whispers. It sounds repetitive but their tenacity and scrappy defense led the way. The strong pressure resulted in many turnovers, fast break and “in the flow” opportunities. Although not everyone scored, the ball moved well, and all the players had multiple shot attempts. The coaches are impressed with the team’s commitment to both hustle and unselfishness. The Clovers had a balanced scoring affair with 20 first half-point and 33 for the game.
Player of the Game, Ryan Schuster displayed strong determination and toughness racking up 7 rebounds to go along with 4 points, 3 steals and an assist. Sampling from Sister Sledge, We are Family, the Sikora Brothers combined for 17 points, 3 Assist and 2 steals. Pretty much split down the middle. Whew. Jonathan Shu put up familiar numbers with 11 points/5 rebounds… and does so in such a subtle way.
Dominic Drew chipped in 2, a couple of boards and some solid pressure on the trap. Rayan Etemadnia had a few good looks at the hoop and was his usual all over the floor self and caused some turnovers. Rowan Booher tallied a few boards, a beautiful assist and a steal. Aidan Man “manned the post” and pulled 3 huge second half boards and even ran the point on a few plays. Henry Olivier also racked up 3 boards had a steal and came close on a few shot attempts. For the kids who didn’t score, all played vital roles on the trap and the coaches know that in due time, these shots will fall. Patrick Chiang and Leo Mooney were missed. Next up the 3-0 Impressions. Should be a battle. Submitted by Coach Jonathan Schuster
Majors
The Wonders took on the Miracles in a hard fought contest late Sunday. Both teams worked hard at moving the ball around and playing tough defense. Luca Bainbridge and Kayvon Abadi of the Miracles posed formidable inside threats for the Wonders big man Jaxson Glowacki. The Wonders countered with solid guard play from Jason Tun, Conner Sullivan and Crew Norris. Jack Froom connected on some outside shots for the Miracles while Zico Muldoon and Emerson Hill countered with mid-range shots of their own. The second half saw the ball bounce favorably the Wonders way. It was a good team effort from both sides with Emerson Hill of the Wonders walking away with well-deserved Player of the Game honors. Submitted by Coach Jeff Glowacki
Sunday, October 13, 2019 Commodores vs. Parliaments
Last Sunday’s matchup against the Parliaments proved to be our most tenuous this season so far! I think it’s safe to say that there was plenty of nail-biting going on all over the court as the two teams tied and one-upped each other over and over. Xailoh Hermosillo nailed the team’s first two with a layup and then landed a smooth 3-pointer. Julian Bao provided some strong defense grabbed a couple steals and a board and got fouled on a shot. During the second 8-minutes Evan Daghighian and Jesse Lister each added 3 points to the score board. At the end of the first two quarters, the Parliaments finished a single point ahead of the Commodores with a chance to take a strong lead as they had 8 free throws still to shoot. Joey Little managed to sink the lone FT for the P’s. The Commodores’ Eli Eng sunk his 2 free throws followed by another from Bao making it a tie at 22-22. Deep Breaths! Then things really started to shake up. River Mitchell’s numerous rebounds and put-backs brought 6 more points to his side during the third quarter and Michael Hanasab dropped a 3 and a deuce in the bag. The lone lady on the Commodores, Cecilia Casas, stepped up her defense game in the third quarter with a determined steal and a swift block. But the Comm’s still only came out 2 points ahead of the P-Funk crew when the 3rd quarter buzzer rang. Then the volume got turned up a notch. Daghighian and Lister landed the only two baskets before their crew got subbed out. Ben Lavi made a crucial block, but with too many turnovers and fouls, the Parliaments took a slight lead. After the subs, Hermosillo blocked a shot, took the stolen ball all the way down the court to land a layup and tie the game at 41-41. Then P-Funk got ahead by two. Oh No. The clock started ticking down and that’s when the Commodores really started to sing. Mitchell got a bucket and then grabbed two more with assists for each from Hermosillo and Casas, respectively. Hermosillo then went for three from deep in the corner. It didn’t go in but he added three points to the score anyway by following his shot, grabbing the rebound, nailing the layup and getting fouled on the shot. Whew. The score was 49-43 with Commodores in the lead. But hold your horses, this was no time to get Too Hot to Trot. As in most close games, the final outcome of this one was going to come down to the free throws. Hermosillo made his +1 and closed the game for the C’s. But the P’s were in the bonus in the 4th quarter and racked up five free throws and an additional three 1-and-1s and could have easily taken the game. Fortunately (strangely?) for the Commodores, the Parliaments seemed to be building a brick house (wink wink) and they managed to sink only one of their eight, leaving the final score at 50-44. The Commodores gained another victory. But it wasn’t Easy. Submitted by Wendy Hermosillo
Photography by Louis Yansen
The following are terrific action shots from the Majors game between the Parliaments and the Commodores. All photos by Louis Yansen
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 is of father and son, John and Max Baracy. John has been coaching for many seasons, and was recently the coach for the U11 Santa Monica Stars that competed in the Culver-Palms YMCA summer league. John employs a coaching style that is discipline with positive reinforcement, and has helped many of our youth players develop their skills and team play. Max is a veteran of our youth basketball program that has played many seasons at the Santa Monica YMCA, and is well liked by all his teammates and others that play in the league. It’s only a matter of time, before Max outgrows his dad, and starts teaching him a thing or two about the game. I was fortunate enough to have them answer some questions for the Swish.
DocDrew: What do you enjoy most about playing basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Max: Well, it’s very competitive and if you put in the effort you’ll be successful and win. I have many friends from school and other sports that play YMCA basketball, it’s really cool.
DocDrew: Which are your favorite memories or moments during your playing career at the Santa Monica YMCA
Max: I have two memories/moments that were great 1) when I drive to the basket, make the shot and get fouled, called “an and 1;” 2) when I made a shot at the buzzer and went over and tackled my Dad coaching on the bench!
DocDrew: Who are your favorite players and why?
Max: my top five players, in no order are: Michael Jordan, the Greek Freak (Giannis Antetokounmpo), Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant and Kawhi Leonard. I like all of these players as they are competitive, athletic and work hard to be successful, Jordan and Kobe are retired but I did get to see Kobe play and watch highlights of Michael Jordan…
DocDrew: What do you enjoy most about coaching youth basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA?
Coach John: Coaching youth basketball at the Santa Monica YMCA over the years has been a true pleasure. Most, if not all, of the children we’ve coached have stayed in the program since they played rookie basketball (5-6 years old). It’s been rewarding to watch them grow as individuals and athletes. I’ve also made some great friends through coaching and it couldn’t be a better group of parents that are involved in the program.
DocDrew: Who inspires you as a coach?
Coach John: That’s a tough question. I’d say my top three coaches are Phil Jackson, John Wooden and John Beilein. That group has done an incredible job of player development and success at the professional and college levels of basketball.
We thank John for his dedication to the youth basketball program at the YMCA, and to the city of Santa Monica. We thank Max for being an example and a leader of good sportsmanship and teamwork for all the youth players. Most importantly, Max and John show how participating together in youth sports strengthens the Father and Son bond through their support and encouragement to each other.
SCORES
SAT 10/12/19
Bantams
Cars 13, Heartbreakers 10
Bosses 9, Pretenders 23
Runaways 6, Police 14
Beat 15, Revolution 8
Minors
Whispers 14, Clovers 33
Impressions 35, Delfonics 23
Drifters 19, Coasters 31
SUN 10/13/19
Rookies
Animals 11, Bluesbreakers 4
Turtles 4, Yardbirds 16
Rascals 4, Zombies 5
Majors
Godfathers 30, Spinners 44
Temptations 45, Supremes 28
Parliaments 44, Commodores 50
Wonders 53, Miracles 24
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:
Yardbirds 3-0-0, 15 points
Bluesbreakers 2-1-0, 11 points
Zombies 2-1-0, 11 points
Turtles 1-2-0, 7 points *Turtles beat Animals head to head
Animals 1-2-0, 7 points
Rascals 0-3-0, 3 points
Bantams:
Pretenders 2-1-0, 11 points
Beat 2-0-0, 10 points
Cars 2-0-0, 10 points
Heartbreakers 1-1-1, 9 points
Revolution 1-1-1, 9 points
Bosses 1-2-0, 7 points
Police 1-2-0, 7 points
Runaways 0-3-0, 3 points
Minors:
Clovers 3-0-0, 15 points
Impressions 3-0-0, 15 points
Drifters 2-1-0, 11 points
Whispers 1-2-0, 7 points
Coasters 1-2-0, 7 points
Platters 1-1-0, 6 points
Delfonics 0-3-0, 3 points
Express 0-2-0, 2 points
Majors:
Commodores 3-0-0, 15 points
Wonders 3-0-0, 15 points
Spinners 2-1-0, 11 points
Temptations 2-1-0, 10 points (-1 for UTF)
Miracles 1-2-0, 7 points *Miracles beat Parliaments head to head
Parliaments 1-2-0, 7 points
Supremes 0-3-0, 3 points
Godfathers 0-3-0, 3 points
Upcoming schedule
All games are played in the gymnasium of the Santa Monica YMCA
R=Rookies, B=Bantams, MN=Minors, MJ=Majors
SAT 10/19/19
10:30 AM R Yardbirds vs Animals
11:40 AM R Turtles vs Rascals
12:50 PM R Bluesbreakers vs Zombies
2:00 PM MJ Commodores vs Wonders
3:10 PM MJ Godfathers vs Miracles
4:20 PM MJ Spinners vs. Temptations
5:30 PM MJ Supremes vs. Parliaments
6:40 PM OPEN
SUN 10/20/19 PICTURE DAY #2
9:30 AM B Cars and Pretenders take photos
10:30 AM B Cars vs Pretenders
10:40 AM B Revolution and Runaways take photos
11:30 AM B Group photo #1 with Cars, Pretenders, Revolution, Runaways
11:40 AM B Revolution vs Runaways
11:50 AM B Heartbreakers and Bosses take photos
12:50 PM B Heartbreakers vs Bosses
1:00 PM B Police and Beat take photos
1:50 PM B Group photo #2 with Heartbreakers, Bosses, Police, Beat
2:00 PM B Police vs Beat
2:10 PM MN Platters and Whispers take photos
3:10 PM MN Platters vs Whispers
3:20 PM MN Express and Drifters take photos
4:10 PM MN Group photo #1 with Platters, Whispers, Express, Drifters
4:20 PM MN Express vs Drifters
4:30 PM MN Clovers and Impressions take photos
5:30 PM MN Clovers vs Impressions
5:40 PM MN Coasters and Delfonics take photos
6:30 PM MN Group photo #2 with Clovers, Impressions, Coasters, Delfonics
6:40 PM MN Coasters vs Delfonics
Thank you very much,
Dr. Paul Drew, youth basketball coordinator at the Santa Monica YMCA, editor and publisher of Swish
