(Also, click here for
other sports offered by the AAU for young boys and girls)
The St. Louis Majestics 12-under boys basketball team
won its regional final last month. The victory gave the
team some revenge for its last defeat and a berth in the
AAU national tournament in July.
Last month, the Majestics defeated the St. Louis Gateway
team, 48-44, in the 12-under regional finals at the St.
Louis Sports Center in south St. Louis County.
Coach George Merritt has been coaching youth basketball
for 15 years, including the last three years with the Majestics.
Thus, he's taken that team to nationals two of three years.
Last year, his 11-under team finished 7th in the nationals.
They were in a bracket that included about 100 teams in
the same age grouping.
This year's 12-under team has a lot of new players who
weren't with last year's tournament team.
"Right now, we're probably not as good a team as the one
last year. But, this team has lots of potential for improvement
if we can get a few things fixed," he said.
The Majestics went into the regional final game having
lost to the Gateway team two weeks before.
Led by point guard George Merritt Jr. and shooting guard
Zach Glotto, the Majestics raced off to an 18-10 at the
end of the first quarter.
Both teams employed a full-court zone press on defense.
That caused some turnovers, but both teams knew how to adapt
since they had played each other earlier.
They also were quick to double-team anyone getting a pass.
About the only baskets from close in were off rebounds or
if a guard could get into the lane on a dribble.
The teams faced each other four times during the year.
The Majestics won the first two and then stumbled just before
the season-ending tournaments began. But, in the end, the
Majestics prevailed to earn the nationals berth.
The Majestics' lead was down to four points, 48-44, with
two minutes left in the game.
Both teams fouled as the time ran down but neither could
make the free shots.
Gateway got the ball with 7½ seconds left. But, Majectics
used its foul-to-give with 2 seconds left and the Gateway
couldn't get close enough for another try.
Zach Glotto was recruited to the Majestics this year because
of his long-range shooting ability. He lived in Kansas last
year but moved to St. Louis in time to be recruited to play
for the Majestics.
Zach hit four 3-pointers to make a big difference in the
outcome. He had played in a different national tournament
last year with his Kansas team.
This year's AAU nationals will be played in July.
So, the Majestics have some time to work on improvements.
One of the things that's likely to get some serious attention
will be free throwing. That could be a serious problem when
they get into the tournament.
The Majestics missed a number of free throws in the 4th
quarter that could have clinched the game.
Zach and Cameron Scales both started playing when they
were five and George started a year later, at six.
Cameron joined the Majestics a year ago so he will play
in the nationals in both years with the team. Cameron is
a backup at both the point and shooting guard position.
Of course, all three want to continue playing basketball
through college.
Cameron said he'd like to be an NBA player but knows he'll
need a Plan B when it comes to a career. He said he'd like
to own his own restaurant.
But, for now, the three and the other players on the Majestics
team are pleased to have qualified for another national
tournament. And they're also have to finished their head-to-head
games with the Gateway team with a winning record.
The AAU teams play more games than teams representing
high schools. In fact, the Majestics played more than most
college teams.
Coach Merritt said, after the regional AAU finals, his
team had a 32-4 record.
In the national tournament last year, the Majestics played
12 games against other 12-under teams. That's a lot of basketball.
Other AAU sports
opportunities offered by the AAU
The Ozark AAU organization offers a lot of other
sports opportunities for young boys and girls in this
area. They include:
Baseball, gymnastics, jump rope, swimming, track
& field, volleyball, golf, jujitsu, karate, soccer,
taekwondo, trampoline & tumbling, weightlifting and
wrestling.
For more details, visit www.eteamz.com/aauozark.
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