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Show ! Jr. 'hoopsters' start first-ever, fall b-ball season : , ' X . y" - - I , fV . : U I "' ""-J i,; " " ' ' I7 ; : ' 'm'yy(.y ''" i J&- 4, ''---'v a , - V-WiJ 4Jjr X ; -V'"' -yy-y : t yy -y- 'i 'i -- ' t ,''' f- '"- ' ' ' ' '4'"- " " 1 I ' , i . : t j' - ;;;;; By G.BRETT HART BOUNTIFUL-Almost 900 elementary-aged athletes began Jr Jazz basketball competition Tuesday Tues-day in the first-ever split basketball season sponsored by the Bountiful Recreation Center. In the past, the Jr. Jazz season began in January and ended in Mar- I ch. Now, elementary-aged athletes have the opportunity to play through the fall and winter months by splitting the months into two separate seasons. The fall program alone boasts 850 athletes and 104 I different teams. i i Play, which began Tuesday, will j last until December. During the month of November, elementary and junior high athletes will be given the opportunity to register for play during the winter season, i Junior high-aged athletes still i play January through March. Elementary kids who play during the fall are given a $5 discount on ! their winter registration. Registration normally costs $30 for junior high athletes while elementary-aged athletes normally pay $25. Those who re-register pay $20. According to program director John Miller, the recreation center needed to split the season because of the lack of playing space available and the number of elementary kids involved in the program. "Last year we had almost 1,300 kids playing simultaneously between the elementary-aged kids and the junior high kids. There just wasn't enough space for them," said Miller. "This year we decided to try something different. We're hoping that at least 50 percent of the kids who play during the fall register for the winter season; however, if they all re-register we'll be in the situation situa-tion we were in last year. "This program is geared to make sure that every kid has a good time and plays at least half of the game. Teams only have one practice a week and one game; we want to make sure that the Jr. Jazz program doesn't interfere with school," explained ex-plained Miller. "There are no records kept, and there aren't any playoffs. It's purely recreational. We just want to teach kids the basics of basketball. ' 'Another benefit of the split season is the fact that teams will be smaller. In the past, teams have had an average of 10 players. Now teams will average about eight members. This means the kids will have more playing time. "Overall, response to the change has been positive. We've only had a few complaints mainly because of possible conflicts with soccer. But everyone should be able to fit it into their schedules. "There are still a few things we'll have to work out. We're not sure whether or not we'll allow teams that play together in the fall and winter seasons. It would give them an unfair advantage over the newly formed teams in the winter leagues; however, it would solve the dilemma of finding new coaches for the teams." Rules for elementary competition differ slightly from the big leagues. For third and fourth grade teams, there is no three-second lane violation. viola-tion. In the fifth and sixth grade divisions, there is a five-second lane ruling. Teams are only allowed to play a man-on-man defense; each player must play at least half a game. Teams are chosen at random by computer according to the athlete's school. The Jr. Jazz program also features a basketball clinic put on by one of the Utah Jazz players. Each Jr. Jazz player gets free admission ad-mission to a Utah Jazz game. Not only does Bountiful s program pro-gram host a large number of athletes, it features almost 200 volunteer vol-unteer coaches. "They really help out. We appreciate them and couldn't run the program without their help," said Miller. Games are played at Mueller Park, South Davis and Bountiful junior ju-nior high schools and at the Armory and Bountiful High School on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. w Holbrook Elementary's Dusty Gardner (No. 2) passes to teammate Justin Thompson while Adelaide's Jeff Palmer tries to break up the play in both team's first, Jr. Jazz game Wednesday. Though Hannah was able to come within a point, Adelaide held on for the victory, 31-28. Adelaide's team is coached by Gary Brockbank and Mike Haslam. Hannah is coached by John and Ryan Albrecht. |