March Fest had it's own Valentine's day

Tiffany Valentine has overcome so many obstacles, the latest was her having to be hospitalized after sharp pains hindering her ability to play at a recent camp. After a slight procedure, I asked her how she was doing at the March Fest event and she said just fine but the one thing I know about Tiff is she never complains

Valentine has come back with a vengeance and after watching her hanging in the air doing acrobatic moves in the paint, you would have never known she had the procedure two weeks ago and as her agility and endurance improves, you might want to keep an eye on this 6'0 sophomore as she rolls with DFW Elite Houston 2014 Miller this season

I'll catch a closer at their team week after next at the Insiders Hoopfest

March Fest 6th Grade Champions play like name

2019 is going to be a special year and I know people are probably saying this guy is always pumping up talent in Texas and they're probably right, but then again, so am I. The NTX Lights Out 2019 squad has some very talented players and their win over an equally impressive Oklahoma Select 2019 was a joy to watch because when you have players this young who understand the concept this early,most of the other stuff will usually fall into place with hard work

Several of their players stood out during the BigTyme March fest, Noelle Yancy, Kayla Demus, Jordan McClenton and Brielle Hampton were among those that initially caught my eye but throughout the game, many others let me know that they were in this for the long haul

Kailyn Lay was all over the court and despite being one of the smallest players on the court, she stayed in the mix either diving for loose balls, taking charges or whatever her team needed

Texas Stars ready to Shock after MarchFest

The 2017 team formerly known as the Texas Stars will be Cy Fair Shocking some older players in the not so distant future. You already know about the 2017 stars and if you don't remember, check out the first five from the Cy Fair Camp "Tip Sheet"

Throw in Aakilah Caldwell, yet another talented guard, along with Jade Compton and Mikayla Foy who are active and all over the place, you have a recipe for success.

Always remember you never know who's watching

I'm going to give you an example and use some analogies and hopefully you can translate it to your kids or players. A long, long time ago, there was an official making some questionable calls against my daughter and she challenged his decisions in her own way which resulted in a tech. A college coach happened to be there and said, "she's a good player but she has a bad attitude and she'll never make it", well she was around 11 or 12 and we all know how that turned out.

Over the weekend, I saw a young player get upset and was ejected from a game after her second tech and then I saw an opposing player receive a tech a few minutes later. Why? For taunting the player who had just got thrown out.

My take is this, sometimes you can have a certain passion for the game and your emotions will take over resulting into being placed in bad situations, like being thrown out which hurts not only the player but the team. To me, especially when you're young, I truly understand however everyone is not me and you want to try and make your players understand that

Houston Elite guards show more than their shoes at March Fest

Taeler Deer (Channelview) and Jaylan Robinson (North Shore) high school teams are district rivals and anytime these two step on the floor and face each other, it's strictly business. During the summer, it's also strictly business as these two bright 2014 guards are a show waiting to happen. At the March Fest, both showed the ability to shoot the long ball and score in bunches for Houston Elite White

GPR Certified Event April 5th-7th

You don't need a crystal ball to know that when I cover an event, I COVER an event.

The Houston Insiders are hosting the Insiders Hoopfest April 5th-7th and this is for EXPOSURE and being EVALUATED by Girlz Prep Report and it's right here in Houston so please be aware that if you want it for your players, come and get it.

If you a re a LOCAL team, I would advise you to attend this otherwise I'm going to use this phrase again, roll the dice. Deadline is coming up this weekend, contact information for the event is in the link below


HOOPFEST

March Fest shows Driver's race is far from over

I guess this is reminiscing week but I think this will  fit. Lou Grant told Mary Richards " Kid, you got spunk. I hate spunk." Well I'm not Lou Grant and I love watching Tana Driver operate on the court because like the hoodie says " Don;t Sweat My Swag"

Driver is usually one of the smallest players on the court which means absolutely nothing because this young lady is also one of the smartest and toughest every time she steps on he floor. How good is she? Well she's one of those players I saw at the DFW Fall Finish camp that back in 2011 that caught my eye just by watching her handle the ball along with her demeanor

The Irving Macarthur sophomore is ready for a huge summer with DFW Gold and her ability to run a team is a must see because the game starts where? At the one!

Alexandria Gulley breaks it down for me

Before I became this guy who covers Texas like a blanket, I remember seeing young players doing their thing and more times than not, I never got their names. Surprisingly Alexandria Gulley hasn't changed since I saw her four or five years ago and when I heard some mentioning her name at the DFW Elite BigTyme March Fest, I got up to go see who she was and it hit me. Gulley will be suiting up for DFW T-Jack in May and the 2015 star who committed to Baylor while she was still in middle school will make an immediate impact, trust me on this.

I told her I remembered watching her a few years ago and after explaining who I was and what I did, I asked her about all the buzz going on about her younger sister Jaylan beig a player and she assured me she was and if I got a chance I should come and watch her. I did and after baby sister did some crossovers and spin moves prior to dropping a couple of fade a-ways, I looked over at big sister observing me with that "I told you so smile." Yes she did tell me and yes baby sister surely can play

March Fest Fullcourt.com Tip Sheet coming

I picked nine for the Fullcourt.com "Tip Sheet" and I'll be doing another two for Girlz Prep report along with some mini articles to keep you going through Easter. Yes, this seventh and sixth grader made it and for good reason as both could start for many high school teams right now and I mean START, not just make the team.
Stay tuned!

Texas Nike Challenge highlights March Fest

Erica Ogwumike is becoming more and more super in her sophomore season and her back to back three pointers gave the Cy Fair Shock a little breathing room in their 67-59 victory over T-Jack

I guess the same terminology could be used for 6'4 Ashley Hearn as she is another 2015 player who stepped up big under the bright lights

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