Talented 8th graders get seen by Gameday Weekly at CBC:
GDW Analysis:
Cullman Bearcats and Hartselle Tigers have a great rivalry when it comes to the two facing each other in basketball.
Something unusual was seen by Gameday Weekly Saturday in the Southern Youth Basketball League (SYBL) Back to School classic.
Players representing both teams were joined as a group called "Goon Elite." They were playing in the 8th grade division as the day of hoops was hotly contested.
In the air condition comfort of the Cullman Basketball Complex, Goon Elite dealt with a unit called Bay Elite. Their team featured players from Red Bay High School and across the line, coming out of the state of Mississippi.
Both opened the round robin with a hard competitive matchup. Bay Elite led 28 to 27 at halftime then had better scoring in the 2nd half by defeating Goon Elite 55 to 44.
Goon Elite answered the adversity by claiming a 54 to 45 triumph against the Regulators.
Bay Elite then faced the Regulations. A 15 to 0 run in the 2nd half turned a tight game into an 80 to 60 victory for Bay Elite.
Following a brief break, Goon Elite and Bay Elite got together for an exciting rematch.
Goon Elite started strong, but Bay Elite began to have a shooter find his stroke and overcome a deficit for a 36 to 33 edge by intermission.
The 2nd half was back and forth. It came down to the final seconds of regulation when Goon Elite had to score a three and did so. That tied the battle at 60 to 60 and sent it into a 2 minute overtime period.
Neither was able to gain advantage with it 65 to 65 and another extra period of play to be held.
Bay Elite got a three pointer to score in crunch time and win one of the best SYBL games seen by GDW this season, 68 to 65.
What was astounding for GDW, was seeing a pair of 6'7" post players who are about to enter their freshman year in high school.
For Goon Elite, the player was Brooks Loftin, who is a member of the Cullman Bearcats.
Bay Elite's standout in the post is Khalil Luster who is now at Red Bay. He transferred to the 2A school in Franklin County after playing last season at Belmont in Mississippi.
An evenly played 2nd game with these two and other good young talent for both sides with all waiting to begin their freshman year as student athletes very soon.
This ended the SYBL summer schedule. The league under the direction of Branch Whitlock and Brandon Talley, have had numerous tournaments each weekend.
The numbers were not like they have been in recent weeks, but the intensity and how well many kids played on August 3 was great for GDW to make this an assignment and to enjoy it for a period of over four hours.
Cullman Basketball Complex will be having SYBL hoops for high schools.
The plan is to have girls games to play on Sundays and the varsity to endure the floor for Tuesday and Thursday nights.
The season opener is August 18 for the girls and August 20 for the varsity.
To find out more, contact the CBC by email at cullmanbasketballcomplex@gmail.com
Photo of the Goon Elite team being taken by official Tim Hadden during the SYBL Back to School Classic Saturday at the Cullman Basketball Complex.
GDW photo by Johnny Thornton.
