Orlando Comets

(KB - 09/23/05) OK, so the Blue team took a lot of heat for their 2005 AAU season performance. Many fans and onlookers noted their talent gradient and labeled the team as "underachievers". The team obviously had the talent to win in the 15U division, but lacked a certain killer instinct that differentiates the great teams from the good ones.

By the time AAU states rolled around in May, reality seemed to have set in with the Blue team's coaching staff. At the time, the Red team was steamrolling undefeated thru the 16 division everywhere in the country. The Blue team was alternately cruising on Fridays and nose-diving on Sundays. No amount of tinkering seemed able to fix the Sunday swoons.

After deliberating for weeks, the Blue team's braintrust decided to forego plans to attend AAU D1 16U Nationals in favor of attending AAU D2 15U Nationals. This decision raised some eyebrows. However it was felt at the time that the team needed a confidence boost, something to show the girls what was possible.

The girls responded by winning the D2 National championship.

Playing as the local favorite, the Blue team blasted thru pool play undefeated and unchallenged. In their first pool game, the Blue team took down the Madison, Wisconsin Spartans, 64-47. Asia Wilson and Laquita Curry led a determined effort as the Blue team got off to a rolicking start. Later that same day the Blue team waxed the Potomac Valley Vogues, 67-44. Brittany Waters led the team in scoring in this game.

On Friday, the Blue team bounced the Connecticut Storm 67-40. On Saturday, the Blue team crunched the Durham Lady Hoopsters, 73-55 and followed that win with by whitewashing the Dayton Lady Hoopsters, 67-30.

All of these wins were +13 superiority wins. The Blue team won their pool easily and looked forward to bracket play.

They faced South Jersey GBC in their first bracket game. On a Sunday. Showing little or no ill effects from the prior games, the Blue team opened bracket play with a 78-35 win. The following day they beat South Carolina 67-36.

The tournament was beginning to look like a cakewalk for our heroes in blue.

But not so fast. The Blue team's quarterfinal game pitted them against local nemesis, Next Level. The Blue team had battled Next Level consistently throughout the AAU season and always seemed to come out on top. Barely. The Blue team credited Next Level's brash full court man-to-man defense with sapping their strength for later games. In essence, Blue team insiders blamed Next Level for a number of Sunday meltdowns during the season.

And the Next Level was ready. Composed largely of ex-Miracle b. 1990 players, Next Level had their own agenda with the Blue team. They blamed the Blue team for keeping them away from any number of championship games.

As in the past, the game was a slobberknocker. The two teams went toe to toe. Momentum shifted like Sahara sands. With five minutes to play the Blue team unleashed their full court press and took a four point lead, then started holding the ball for the duration of the shot clock. Next Level coach James Thomas told his girls not to foul until a minute remained on the clock. The Blue team stepped up to the line and knocked down their shots. They walked away with a 57-50 win.


Now the question was: How much energy would the Blue team have left to seal the deal?

Plenty.

The Comets faced the Wisconsin Spartans in a pool play rematch. They won again, 55-44.

In the championship game, the Blue team faced the Mid-Atlantic Penn Mavericks and won 61-48. The Blue team had their lone championship of the 2005 season in the most important game of that season.