By Michael Tierney, Business Manager
Sunlight is running out over Tee Garden Park on a Monday night. Sweating from exhaustion, Team 3’s Collin Todd paces the ball up court and quickly dishes it to junior Aidan Carew in the corner wide open for three. Carew takes his time, lines up the shot and nails his fourth consecutive three-pointer of the night, giving Team 3 a narrow lead in their first Btown Hoops game. It’s all smiles from Team 3, and they quickly get back on defense against their classmates. Btown Hoops, a pick-up basketball league created by two ’Stoga alumni, is taking rec basketball to the next level this summer.
The Btown Hoops Summer League was founded by Connor Nichols ’year graduated and Chris McGovern ’year graduated. The league consists of two divisions: high school and college. Games are pick-up style and are played first to 21 points in a best-of-three series format. It costs $15 to join the league and games are Monday through Friday at Tee Garden and Friendship Park. Each team plays seven regular seasonal games, and then every team moves on to the playoffs. Captains draft teams, and the majority of the high school division is made up of ’Stoga students.
Nichols and McGovern started this league due to their love of rec basketball.
“We were just hanging out one time and were talking about how we used to love playing rec basketball with our friends in the Tee Garden League, but that only goes up to high school. Also, playing regular pick-up ball would normally be fun for a game or two, but loses its competitiveness. So, we decided to start a pick-up league ourselves,” Nichols said.
Nichols and McGovern spread the word of Btown Hoops which immediately sparked interest. The league got off to a great start and received attention quickly throughout the Conestoga community within a few weeks.
“We made an Instagram account, followed a bunch of kids that we knew would be interested in playing, and from there it pretty much took off. We started getting a bunch of people messaging us and trying to play, so it just grew from there,” McGovern said.
Junior Collin Todd, a current player on Team 3 in the high school division, is having a great experience playing with Btown Hoops. His team is currently winning 2-1 (will update this as more games are played) and the increasing competitiveness of the league has motivated him to strive to win, especially against fellow classmates.
“The games have been really fun due to the intense competition level. There’s something about wanting to beat your classmates that really drives you to play hard. Most of my teams’ games have been close, so that also adds to the intensity of the games,” Todd said.
Btown Hoops has increased bonding on Todd’s team and gives him and other ’Stoga students a way to have a great time in an environment balanced between competition and entertainment. The best-of-three series playing format and the absence of referees has played out perfectly for the league. It gives players a space to build strong relationships with their classmates and simultaneously improve their basketball skills together, which is exactly what Nichols and McGovern were aiming for in creating the league.
“On my team, we are very talkative and energetic, so even when we are losing, we are having fun,” Todd said. “There have been so many cool moments so far, whether it was a cool pass or an insane shot, and I’m glad this league was made because it’s a great experience and a great time to spend with my classmates.”
Michael Tierney can be reached at [email protected].
