Two Virginia Teams Still Alive At AAU Nationals
July 30th, 2007 Posted in AAU Basketball, UncategorizedThe sun set Sunday for 45 teams, including favorite Boo Williams 17U, at the AAU 17U Boys Basketball National Championship Tournament, and Monday’s sunrise brings a busy day for the 32 teams still competing for the national crown.
(For full coverage of the tournament, visit LocalReplay.com’s tournament page.)
Today’s third-round games begin at 10 a.m. and conclude at 2:30 p.m. The day’s early games will set the Sweet Sixteen field, and those teams will be whittled down to a final eight in afternoon and evening games.
The Suffolk Blazers begin Monday with the toughest battle of their season, a 2:30 p.m. matchup with the D-1 Greyhounds, the defending national champions, albeit with a new cast this season. The Greyhounds feature sharp-shooting 6-5 guard William Buford, a rising senior at Toledo Libby in Ohio. Buford is joined by 7-0 center Kenny Frease, a rising senior at Massilon-Perry. The Greyhounds knocked off Boo Williams Summer League on Sunday night. Boo Williams features two likely McDonald’s All-Americans, including Ed Davis, who has committed to play for North Carolina in 2008.
The Suffolk Blazers earned their way into the round of 32 by defeating the Connecticut Basketball Club 84-80 Sunday afternoon. While Suffolk played only once on Sunday, the Greyhounds will be playing their third game in 24 hours when the two meet today. The winner moves to the fourth round and plays at 8:30 p.m. against the winner of the Westchester Hawks-Rising Stars JG Blue game.
G.E.S.U.S. Ball is Virginia’s other remaining tournament team. GESUS won 71-59 against Florida’s Gold Coast 16U squad to earn a spot in Monday’s bracket. William Weaver, a 6-4 rising senior from Bethel High, led the way with 16 points. Warwick High rising senior Darius Conley added 13 points.
GESUS faces Full Package at 10 a.m., with the winner moving on to a 4 p.m. against the winner of the MBR-Jackson Panthers contest.
