Dyl

With anything in life, if you can honestly look at yourself and say you tried your absolute best, chalk it up as a win. Keep grinding and improve everyday.

I think we’ve lost the plot on youth basketball. It’s probably happening in other sports too, but basketball is the world I know. Growing up, basketball was the neighborhood game. All you needed was a ball and a hoop. It was simple, accessible, and we’d play for hours without thinking twice about it. I’d call myself a pretty good high school player. I started on a solid team and loved competing. AAU wasn’t really part of the equation back then. I played in a few tournaments with friends, but everyone understood what it was. If you were elite, you played for Indiana Elite or Spiece. If you weren’t, you just kept hooping where you were. There wasn’t this pressure that you had to be in it. Now it feels like the entire model has flipped. Kids from kindergarten through high school are paying thousands just to be on a team. And if you want to play, there’s always a team ready for you because there’s money to be made. But it doesn’t stop there. Parents are paying $60/head every weekend just to watch. Some places are charging for parking. Tournaments are partnering with hotels and requiring teams to stay there just to participate. Then you show up and games are running an hour behind, officials are barely engaged, and someone’s parent is losing their mind over playing time. Somewhere along the way, the focus shifted. This isn’t about saying AAU is all bad. There are real positives. Kids get exposed to different competition, build friendships, and experience things they wouldn’t otherwise. But it’s hard to ignore what it’s becoming. For a lot of kids, this isn’t building a love for the game. It’s turning it into a transaction. A schedule. A bill. And that’s the part that feels off. It would just be nice if the kids were back at the center of it all.

"MAYE, FOR THE WIN!" 💥 On this day in 2017, Luke Maye's CLUTCH last-second shot over Kentucky sent @UNC_Basketball to the #MFinalFour 🔥 #MarchMadness

“To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” —C.S. Lewis

District Champions: Huge congrats to Fisher Catholic. Hadli Gillum hits 8 3-pointers, scores 30 points to lead Irish to 51-20 win over FCA. ⁦@girls_fisher⁩ ⁦@HadliG25⁩

Here's how the Division I tournament looked 20 years ago in Central Ohio Every game at the Fairgrounds. Basketball all day, every day Oh the way things used to be

Caleb Wilson vs “The Big 3” BYU (Dybantsa): 22 pts, 10 rebs, 9/16 FG Kansas (Peterson): 24 pts, 7 rebs, 4 asts, 4 stls, 9/11 FG Duke (Boozer): 23 pts, 4 rebs, 2 asts, 2 stls, 8/12 FG It’s “The Big 4”.

THIS RIVALRY DOES NOT DISAPPOINT ‼️ SETH TRIMBLE GAME-WINNER FOR NORTH CAROLINA 🔥

These 2 minutes from @DannyParkins about sports, grief, his brother, father & nephew, and what Bears-Packers represented for him & what sports can mean for us all are absolutely worth your time. Poignant & beautifully done.

About tonight:

KINGS OF THE NORTH FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2018 🐻⬇️

It may have taken a little longer than we hoped after his introductory press conference but credit to Ryan Poles and company. He built a hell of a team and Ben Johnson is the best. NFC North Champs.

We're IN 🐻⬇️

Public service announcement: The Chicago Bears are back

Final: Irish ☘️: 56 Aces ♠️: 49 @twil2323 @CoachAJJames

Game Day! Irish ☘️ 🆚 Aces ♠️ 📌 Location: Amanda Clearcreek High School 📌 JV Tip-Off: 6 PM 📌 Varsity Tip-Off: 7:30 PM 📣 Come out and support the team!

GOOD. BETTER. BEST.

Ill never apologize for being 8-3

Mick Cronin on rebounding: "Rebounding is 100% effort... You’re either too cool for it, too soft, or you're too lazy. God forbid you’re all three." 😂

Consistency

A special night in the Smith Center.