The SGA intramural basketball tournament is something both basketball players and non-athletes can look forward to each year.
The teams are self-picked and, for better or worse, the names are too. Most of the fun stems from the unchecked nature of the games, where refs let the games play out and let the sidelines run wild.
In one game, between well-coached teams YC Darius Day and Omar BC, the sidelines got riled up and almost instigated a fight between the teams—twice. But honestly, it’s all just a part of the fun. Sophomore Jack Klein, who plays for YC Darius, said that his favorite part about SGA basketball was “the opportunity to be teammates with [his] friends” and to have a “unique experience of playing a sport that [he] doesn’t get to play very often.” The nature of these games seems light-hearted from a viewer’s perspective, but often, it is not. As sophomore player-coach Maizon Ellis of the team Driscoll Brown said, “it looks fun ‘til you get in the game.”
Emotions run high between these teams, and winning actually matters a lot to the players. Sophomore Will Hewitt was a victim of these tense emotions and was voted to be fired by his team. However, he said that he was “coaching a sorry team anyway.” Though Hewitt felt that his team was subpar, they still forced him into retirement, and went on to win three straight games after he departed under the new leadership of head coach sophomore Jayden Campbell. This team is looking to make a run for the championship, but undefeated, older teams like Shake N Bake loom large in their path.
These games do not lack talent, either. Many of the teams, including the Gonzers, are even filled with former JR basketball players, ready to make a statement and prove that they aren’t washed, they’re better than ever. When walking into the gym during lunch, it is not a rare sight to see Baltimore Bucket’s senior Aidan Giles throwing down dunks over opposing teams and beating teams like Mayne Klayne Hoops by 47 points, an absolute rout of a game.
Not all these games are blowouts, though. The intense game between the Gonzers and Cheeky Records had to have been by far the best game I have seen played during the lunch league yet. The game ended in a triple overtime tie, shut down by teachers after the hundreds of students gathered around the court to watch the sudden-death stakes ending were to be late to class. Junior Nabi Yemane, a player on Cheeky Records, could be seen walking off the court with a bloodied mouth, caught by another player’s elbow. This game almost escalated into a brawl, with coaches, players, and students storming the court after a hard foul on Gonzers player and junior Tigers JV basketball alumni Isaak Grieff, while going up for a layup on the baseline. Referee and JV boys’ basketball coach at JR Danny Larios said that from a ref’s standpoint, there are many “commotions in the game, [and] a lot of students want calls to be made.”
So far, the number one ranked team and heavy favorite to win the championship is Shake N Bake. However, they have had some pretty close games, and have not proved to be a dominant force. Truly, the crown of 2025 SGA basketball champions is up for grabs for any team that has the chance to take it. •
