YOUTH SPORTS: BAM Team Wins Section Title

The Berryessa and Milpitas (BAM) National Junior Basketball (NJB) 5th/6th grade girls team didn't face any adversity until it reached the Silicon Valley NJB playoffs, but still found a way to grind out two tough wins to clinch the NJB Girls Division 2 Slum Dunk Section Championship earlier this month.

“They scout you and have a game plan against you,” first year BAM coach David Davis said of his playoff opponents. “We didn’t really have any struggles [during the regular season] but I think that gave us a sense of invincibility.”

Davis’ team edged out two wins--both by two points--en route to the title. Los Gatos rallied in the championship game, held on March 6, and gave BAM a scare.

“If there were three more minutes, they probably would have beat us,” Davis said.

His team was led by great one-on-one defender Sharon Roldan, 3-point specialist Krissy Miyahara and team Most Valuable Player Kyanna Davis, David’s daughter.

Despite the nail biters in the playoffs, BAM finished the year with a perfect 12-0 record in league play and the playoffs.

Coach Davis knew the road would be tough and challenged his team prior to the start of the regular season. They entered a tournament and held scrimmages against the 5th/6th grade boys team.

“They really showed heart through the whole season,” Davis said, “They could have folded or gotten rattled. They were determined to win.”

Despite winning the championship, Davis thinks some rules need to be modified.

NJB rules state that all players must play two full periods of the five in the game and if a team has fewer than 10 players, the opposing team is awarded three points at the start of the game.

In the championship game, Los Gatos only had eight players and three points were awarded to Davis’ team. Three points are not enough for Davis.

“(The opposing team) gets to play his two best players two extra quarters,” Davis said, “It’s not just scoring. They’re going to be involved in every play.”

“I’ll take that over three points any day of the week.”

He also believes the schedule needs to be tweaked. During the week of the girls first playoff game, schools were on spring break, limiting access to gym facilities.

“We didn’t get any access because the schools were closed,” Davis
said.

His team practiced outside on the day of a playoff game. Because of this, Davis knows his teams’ accomplishment is all the more impressive.

“But even with that going for Saratoga they didn’t have enough to beat us,” Davis said. “That’s why the win was so special.”

Davis’ team was not the only BAM team to make a run for a championship. The 3rd/4th grade girls team reached the championship game before falling in overtime.

The BAM NJB has 17 teams, ranging in age from five to 17, including 168 players.

The NJB is an intra-state non-profit organization where young basketball enthusiasts can, “Develop basketball fundamentals while stressing good sportsmanship and fair play,” according to the Silicon Valley NJB website.

Among the notable alumni of the program, although not from Berryessa and Milpitas, is current Golden State Warrior Jeremy Lin.

"The Berryessa And Milpitas (BAM) NJB chapter just completed a great season," NJB Berryessa/Milpitas president Julie McMullen said.  "We had 17 teams ranging in age from Kindergarten to high school, with 168 players in total.   Two of our teams went 9-0 in the regular season, and almost all of our divisional teams had winning seasons."

Sign-ups for next season begin in August.