Youth Basketball

Do you have a little LeBron in the making? Or, for you older parents, a Baby Bird? Bad puns aside, registration is open now for the winter YMCA youth basketball league and not only are they looking for players but for coaches and officials as well.

The Outdoor Summer Classic will be played August 9th and 10th at the Butte Family YMCA at 2975 Washoe and is open to kids entering pre-kindergarten to 8th grade. The tournament will be grouped into age divisions and groupings will be dependent upon the number of entries. Interested teams are to be of the same grade, although younger players will be allowed to play on older teams. Just not the other way around. Teams can consist of boys and girls from the same grade level. Teams are guaranteed at least three games each and the games will be played to either 15 points or 20 minutes, whatever comes first. Each court will have an official monitor and a set of tournament rules will be given to each team upon registration. Teams will be limited to 4 players per team, every player will receive a tournament t-shirt and awards will be given out to the winners of each division.

The Boyle family has been organizing Little Kids Basketball in Butte on winter Saturdays at the KC for 30 years. And it's future looks bright indeed.

For fans of basketball, this event is a keeper! Coming up this Saturday, November 5, the Butte Elks Lodge will host their district's Youth Hoop Shoot Contest at the Maroon Activity Center. Participants ages 8 to 13 have signed up and are set to display their basketball skills on the MAC court, with the girl's division beginning at 10 a.m. and the boy's division at 11:30 a.m. The competition is laid out distinctly, with each player allowed 25 free throws, split into two rounds. In addition, the contest rules are specific in that each player is only allowed to bounce the ball four times between shoots. The technicalities of the event are crucial in helping young athletes better understand the many techniques and aspects of basketball.