Three of the Emporia Spartan and Junior Spartan basketball teams went undefeated and took championships this weekend at the Emporia MAYB tournament at Emporia Middle School and Emporia High School.
The 9th-10th grade Emporia Black squad went 6-0 to win its bracket, and Emporia High boys basketball coach Rick Bloomquist thought the squad dominated just as it should have, and said the performance was “very consistent for a tournament of this nature.”
“Shot selection, team effort, teamwork and rebounding were all good,” Bloomquist said.
The 7th-8th grade boys team went 5-0 to take the title.
“I saw a lot of individual improvement with each player in this division,” Bloomquist said. “Good to see the 7th graders get to play with bigger kids, and good to see our bigger 8th graders having to handle the ball more and deliver points, rebounding, and defense. ... Shared the ball real well and worked hard. Still need work on individual and team defense, but that should continue to improve with experience and more heart.”
The sixth grade boys went 4-0 for a championship; its only losses were in the 7th-8th bracket, where the Spartans competed as a fill-in team.
“Played very well. I was real impressed with the championship game,” Bloomquist said. “Very poised and had great awareness with understanding how the game is played. Great guard play; good rebounding; and fantastic teamwork. Made... free throws in pressure situations, and got key rebounds; and finished shots inside.”
In other Spartan program performances this weekend:
• The 11th-12th grade boys went 4-1 for a second-place finish.
• The 9th-10th grade Emporia Red squad finished third with a 4-1 record.
• The fifth-grade and third-grade boys teams both went 0-3 playing in the sixth-grade bracket.