Spring a time for...Basketball???
J. C. Tilton
Over the last decade AAU basketball has been growing in the SouthWest Ohio area. A number of Dayton area AAU players have gone on to play college basketball. The teams form in the Spring after the conclusion of the regular basketball season. Then they play in a series of weekend tournaments - some teams even stay together in the summer and will play until June or July. It takes dedicated players and a dedicated family to make this work. But for those who can do it, this provides a way for those players who truly enjoy basketball a way to improve their game and gives them a chance to play at the highest level.
This spring I am working with the Miami Valley Elite girls AAU Basketball team. I spoke with some of the girls before practice to get their thoughts on basketball and what they hoped to get out of of AAU.
Stacey Marsh of Madison responded that she liked basketball because of the "Physical contact. I hate volleyball because you can't make any contact - and you can be more aggressive". Toni Blanton also of Madison said that you "Get to be your individual self, you can stand out more that you can with soccer". Shannon Siders of Alter liked the speed of the game, "Movement - constant movement, more action than most other sports". Chelsea Tilton of Twin Valley South liked AAU Basketball because the girls are really into basketball. Some times girls on the school teams, just aren't as dedicated. When asked what they hoped to do with their basketball careers the majority of them stated that they wanted to go on and play college basketball. The ones that hadn't decided on playing basketball in college were interested in getting better for their school teams.
This bunch of girls are mostly freshman and sophmores. The coaches are myself - Chris Tilton and Tony Blanton. Tony works with the guards and I work with the post players. The players are: Tara Milliken and Chelsea Tilton from Twin Valley South, Allison Johnson of Preble Shawnee, Stacey Marsh and Toni Blanton of Madison, Shannon Siders from Alter, Stephanie Turner from Fairmont, and Sarah Harris of Northmont. Comments: email: Chris Tilton
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