In addition to their opponents across the court, players at Hoops in the Sun had to contend with even more Sunday – oppressive heat that climbed dangerously close to 100 degrees. Games were decided as much by whose players were fresh in the fourth quarter rather than who put the better squad out there.
There was only one thing the players out there could do to combat the scorching temperatures: keep the fluids flowing. The Mountain Dew cooler behind the scorer’s table was frequented during almost every stoppage of play.
“You just gotta stay hydrated,” said Bingo’s All-Stars forward Mike Glover, who said it was the hottest day of the year so far. “That’s the No. 1 thing – just stay hydrated.”
Sean Bell All-Stars point guard Cliff Clinkscales agreed. But he has another way besides water and Gatorade to fight off the sweltering weather.
“Mind over matter – that’s it,” said Clinkscales, who played at DePaul and has been in the NBA Development League for two years. “It’s just a mind thing. It takes you back to college when we were doing conditioning.”
Recent Rice HS graduate Kadeem Jack isn’t in college yet, so he doesn’t have that experience to draw from. The 6-foot-8 forward looked uncomfortable at times – at halftime he sat down with his jersey over his face.
“It’s in adjustment, because you know I play [indoors] a lot,” he said. “It’s an adjustment playing with older dudes and the heat and all that.”
The team benches, as always, were covered by tents to give players a break at the end of every quarter and when they weren’t in the game. The heat was also a foe for coaches, who had to figure out a plan to keep their players’ legs healthy throughout games.
“Basically I try to pace them and sub them in and out, get as much water as possible,” longtime streetball coach Bingo Cole said. “Because playing out here in the sun is crazy.”
Surrob donations: The services Thursday for legendary streetball photographer and artist Robert (Surrob) Negron, who died two weeks ago of heart-related issues, in The Bronx were a great success. But his family, notably Willie Howie All-Stars coach Willie Negron, is still looking for money for a proper burial.
On Sunday, Hoops in the Sun held a raffle to raise funds and any donations can be sent by money order to William Negron at 724 East 231st Street, Bronx, NY 10466.
Team 914 87, Sean Bell All-Stars 75: Aaron Williams and Will Cadiz each had 20 points, Kirk Williams had 15 points and former Providence star Geoff McDermott added 12 for Team 914, which has emerged as the best team this season on the circuit. Cameron Tyler and Quincy St. Hallire each had 16 points and La Jones added 15 for Sean Ball.
Bingo’s All-Stars 107, R2K 93: Mike Glover had 19 points, Al Sheppard had 20 points and Miguel Milien had 14 points to lead Bingo’s All-Stars. Nick Murphy had 30 points and Omari Lawrence added 12 for R2K.
BSC All-Stars 103, Hoop Street 97: Ramon Clemente had 24 points, Mike Epps had 20 points, Giovanni McLean had 15 points and Troy Marcus added 10 for BCS. Jeff Early blew up for 36 points and Marvin Billups had 23 points to lead Hoop Street.
Rosedale Blazers 106, Warriors 4 Christ 91: Former Campus Magnet star Harron (H2O) Hargraves scored a game-high 30 points Saturday for the unbeaten Rosedale Blazers, who pulled away in the fourth. Herbie Allen, who played at Bishop Loughlin, scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter. Iona College star and Queens native Scott Machado added 25 points and Akeem Johnson had 13. Likeem Johnson led W4C with 23 points and Anthony Pimble had 20. Former Iona College star Steve Burtt Jr. scored 10.
Bedford Y 87, Young Ones 81: Jerome Richardson tallied 23 points and Bronx native Brawley Chisholm had all 18 of his points in the second half to give Bedford Y its first win of the summer. Kevin Josey, who played at Curtis, added 14 points. Devon Collier led the Young Ones by scoring 14 of his 17 points in the second half and Glenn Carr also had 17. Jabari Hines added 15 points.
