The Wave
basketball AAU team has only been in existence for three years but they can lay
claim to being one of the top AAU basketball programs in Virginia after their
second straight Top 16 finish in the AAU National championships in Orlando. The
Wave made it farther than any other Virginia AAU team. Unlike some of the
huge AAU teams that are sponsored by athletic shoe companies, head coach Frankie
Cabrera said the Wave gets their backing from a local church in the Hampton
Roads area.
"Wave Church has been really
supportive in what we do and I know the reason we have been successful is
because we are connected to a great church and great people," Cabrera said. "I
always liked working with young people and I wanted to get into coaching. After
talking with my best friend Carl Lentz, who at the time was the associate pastor
at Wave Church, we came up with the idea of doing an AAU team three years ago."
He added,
"We grew up playing everywhere in Hampton Roads when we were younger and I knew
there was so much talent in our area. We felt there was a need for another
strong AAU program that could help kids get exposure and get to college. We took
the idea to pastor Steve Kelly and the elders at our church, and our church was
really supportive in what we wanted to do and it grew from there."
In
Orlando, the Wave finished with a 8-2 record and made it out of pool play. The
Wave didn't have the superstar recruits like many of the teams but they played
team basketball which proved to be a winning formula.
"Overall
as a team, we played really unselfish and took really good shots on offense and
played good team defense," Cabrera said. "We really shot the ball well from
three and Earl Norfleet [pictured]
and Dontrell Silver did a good job of finding our shooters and making
plays for us. We probably didn't pass the 'look test' compared to some of the
teams we played, but we came out and really played hard and smart and that was
the reason we beat a lot of good teams."
Cabrera
said the Wave's best game came against Gold Coast from Florida who they defeated
69-48. Earlier in the tournament, Gulf Coast beat CP3, King James Shooting
Stars, and Boo Williams B team by double digits.
"Their coach asked me if we
were a 'little high school team' and we came out and really played well and beat
them by 21," Cabrera said. The Wave also had victories over Shining Star Sports
(KY) who won their 17U AAU state tournament, the Mississippi Ambassadors 50-49
to earn a spot in the top 16.
"It was a
battle," Cabrera described the Mississippi game. "We trailed most of the game,
but we kept fighting and Dontrell Silver made a layup with five
seconds left. Demetrius Pollard
made a great block at the rim to help us get the
win and place. All our guys played really hard and had great attitudes and I was
really proud of their effort."
Cabrera see's the Wave as
more than an AAU basketball team.
"Church has been really generous and we have been able to be pretty
successful and help a lot of kids get exposure in the last couple years,"
Cabrera said. "We placed nationally two years in a row and have beaten a lot of
good teams but I know its not because of anything I've done. I know God is going
to keep blessing what we do as long as we keep doing it the right way and always
keep it about helping kids out."
This post was edited on 8/15 3:46 PM by wgarlick
basketball AAU team has only been in existence for three years but they can lay
claim to being one of the top AAU basketball programs in Virginia after their
second straight Top 16 finish in the AAU National championships in Orlando. The
Wave made it farther than any other Virginia AAU team. Unlike some of the
huge AAU teams that are sponsored by athletic shoe companies, head coach Frankie
Cabrera said the Wave gets their backing from a local church in the Hampton
Roads area.
"Wave Church has been really
supportive in what we do and I know the reason we have been successful is
because we are connected to a great church and great people," Cabrera said. "I
always liked working with young people and I wanted to get into coaching. After
talking with my best friend Carl Lentz, who at the time was the associate pastor
at Wave Church, we came up with the idea of doing an AAU team three years ago."
He added,
"We grew up playing everywhere in Hampton Roads when we were younger and I knew
there was so much talent in our area. We felt there was a need for another
strong AAU program that could help kids get exposure and get to college. We took
the idea to pastor Steve Kelly and the elders at our church, and our church was
really supportive in what we wanted to do and it grew from there."
In
Orlando, the Wave finished with a 8-2 record and made it out of pool play. The
Wave didn't have the superstar recruits like many of the teams but they played
team basketball which proved to be a winning formula.
"Overall
as a team, we played really unselfish and took really good shots on offense and
played good team defense," Cabrera said. "We really shot the ball well from
three and Earl Norfleet [pictured]
and Dontrell Silver did a good job of finding our shooters and making
plays for us. We probably didn't pass the 'look test' compared to some of the
teams we played, but we came out and really played hard and smart and that was
the reason we beat a lot of good teams."
Cabrera
said the Wave's best game came against Gold Coast from Florida who they defeated
69-48. Earlier in the tournament, Gulf Coast beat CP3, King James Shooting
Stars, and Boo Williams B team by double digits.
"Their coach asked me if we
were a 'little high school team' and we came out and really played well and beat
them by 21," Cabrera said. The Wave also had victories over Shining Star Sports
(KY) who won their 17U AAU state tournament, the Mississippi Ambassadors 50-49
to earn a spot in the top 16.
"It was a
battle," Cabrera described the Mississippi game. "We trailed most of the game,
but we kept fighting and Dontrell Silver made a layup with five
seconds left. Demetrius Pollard
made a great block at the rim to help us get the
win and place. All our guys played really hard and had great attitudes and I was
really proud of their effort."
Cabrera see's the Wave as
more than an AAU basketball team.
"Church has been really generous and we have been able to be pretty
successful and help a lot of kids get exposure in the last couple years,"
Cabrera said. "We placed nationally two years in a row and have beaten a lot of
good teams but I know its not because of anything I've done. I know God is going
to keep blessing what we do as long as we keep doing it the right way and always
keep it about helping kids out."
This post was edited on 8/15 3:46 PM by wgarlick
