"The Gym"

"The Gym" is a colloquialism commonly used by basketball players referencing the place where skills are developed and experience is gained.  After a poor performance, an aspiring ball player is put on notice by a respected coach or a more established player with a direct statement such as, "you need to get in the gym."  There is no single gym.  "The gym" can be the driveway with a hoop, the local park where players gather to play half court or full court games, the YMCA or recreation department facility where court time is earned by winning pick up games, the gymnasium or outdoor court that is used sparingly enough to allow the most dedicated player to practice his individual skills without the interference of others, the college basketball court where the most skilled players gather to test themselves against the best competition during the off season, or the school facility where formal practices and games are conducted.  This section of the blog examines the various competitive basketball events in the greater Augusta, Georgia, area:  the formal high school and college games, the spring and summer AAU events, the high school summer leagues and team camps, the competitive pick up games, and the individual workouts.

There is little debate about where "the gyms" are in Augusta, GA, this week (July 11, 2011):  The Peach Jam, a Nike sponsored AAU tournament featuring 40 of the most talented high school AAU teams in the country, and the Peach State Invitational, a tournament that in the past 5 years has gone from a field of 16 teams to one of more than 150 teams.

In this section's first post, we feature two teams in action this week.  The CIA Bounce will battle The Family in its first game of the 2011 Peach Jam Tuesday at 11:30 A.M. at Riverview Park in North Augusta.  The Bounce is a 16 and Under team from Ontario, Canada.  The Defenders Select, a team featuring three local players - Michael Scott, a rising sophomore at Aquinas High School; Matt Miller, a rising junior with the homeschool Augusta Eagles; and Austin Stokes, a rising sophomore at Westminster Schools - will compete in the 16 and Under division of the Peach State Invitational.  The Defenders' first game is Tuesday at 1 P.M. versus the South Carolina Raptors at Greenbrier High School.  See the video below for highlights of our two featured teams.