7 key takeaways from Rockford-area Thanksgiving basketball tournaments

A busy week of Thanksgiving basketball tournaments ended Saturday, with Auburn playing its third out-of-state team in four games in its Fred VanVleet Classic named for its greatest player. And with Boylan’s tournament ending by naming the most famous gym in the NIC-10 after the league’s all-time winningest coach.

Here are some key takeaways from area season-opening tournaments:

Fred’s tournament is a hit

The out-of-state teams lived up to their hype in the FVV Classic at Auburn, with Memphis Douglass (4-0), Choctaw, Oklahoma (2-0) and Legacy of Spring, Texas (2-0) combining to go 8-0. And all 12 teams have told Auburn coach Bryan Ott — who put together this tourney to replace the old 205 Tip-Off Classic — that they want to come back.

“Nothing is official until contracts are assigned, but that’s what it sounds like,” Ott said of teams all returning. “It’s what we wanted. I would have been very disappointed if someone had decided, ‘This isn’t for us.’ I think we have the right teams and we have room for more, because originally there were six more games on the schedule, but I would be happy if it was exactly the same field next year.”

More: Lutheran vs. Boylan is Rockford private school basketball royalty showdown

Boylan names gym after Steve Goers

Boylan dedicated its newly refurbished main gym floor as “Steve Goers Court” before the tourney’s final game Saturday night. Goers was 752-206 at Boylan. Counting his previous stints at Oswego, LaSalle-Peru and Harvard, Geors ranks third all-time in state history with 881 wins. Goers thanks everyone, from Boylan leaders to assistant coaches to players to the thousands of kids who attended his Fightin’ Titan youth basketball camp for 31 years.

“A lot of important people in my life supported me and supported our program to accomplish some pretty successful seasons,” Goers said. “It wouldn’t have been possible without the leadership of our administration. If you don’t have leadership at the top, it’s…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/7-key-takeaways-rockford-area-090758278.html

Author : Rockford Register Star

Publish date : 2023-11-27 09:07:58

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