The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

While most players are in individual camps during the summer, local high school basketball in the school system will get an early headstart on the action as one local club hosts an international tournament.

The Bahamas Blue Marlins Sports Club is all set to host the 2nd Annual Bahamas vs USA Basketball Explosion July 31 to August 3 at Loyola Hall and the DW Davis Gymnasium.

Some of the best high school teams across the nation will defend their home territory against visiting teams from the US.

Twenty four teams in total will take to the floor - 12 US teams (eight boys and four girls) and 12 Bahamian teams, including both under 18 national teams.

Harrison Moxey, chairman and organiser of the event, said he hopes the event can grow to become a staple in the local basketball community, giving local players an opportunity to compete at an elevated level against international competition.

“We are just in our second year but we can see the potential of what we are doing here and we hope for it to continue to expand. For a lot of very talented kids who may not get a chance to travel and play and compete against some of these US teams it provides quite an opportunity for them to improve over the summer and to test their game against unfamiliar competition,” he said.

“Through networking over the years and building up the rapport with coaches around the US. It was something that was needed and can become beneficial for players looking to use this time to get better and create more opportunities for themselves.”

The No Bull Ballers captured the boys‘ title in 2011, while a visiting team from the US took the girls‘ division.

“We sent out invites to all the major schools in both the government and private sector and the feedback has been positive so we expect to be able to host a highly competitive event next week,” he said. “We were unable to get the Kendal Isaacs Gym to run games simultaneously so we have scheduled to play games at Loyola and at the DW Davis Gymnasium, but with two venues we should still be able to host the teams to a good tournament while providing a positive experience for our local players.”

In addition to the tournament, there will also be a series of training sessions for guards and low post players.

Training sessions begin at 10am while tournament games begin at 12:30pm.

Children aged 12 and over can participate in the training sessions at a cost and should bring their personal basketballs and speed-skipping ropes.

Trainers for the event will include Alan Stein of www.strongerteam.com (personal trainer for NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant), Rik Seymour of www.hoopcityaau.org (12-year collegiate coach, trainer and president of Hoop City AAU), and Mark Adams (17-year collegiate coach).