Young Basketball Athletes Attend the Dru Joyce Classic Akron 2019
For another consecutive year, the Light and Peace Basketball Foundation is taking to a group of young basketball athletes to compete in the Dru Joyce Classic Akron being held in Cleveland, Ohio. Hundreds of teams in various categories from across the world will compete in three days of matches to win not only bragging rights but also an opportunity to be scouted by schools in the NCAA certified event. Today, team Belize left the country en route to Cleveland where their first game will be held on Friday night. News Five caught up with the team at the P.G.I.A. earlier today.
Roscoe Rhys
Roscoe Rhys, President, Light & Peace Basketball Foundation
“It is an NCAA certified basketball youth tournament. It’s held in cities all over the U.S. We were just fortune enough to link through Dru Joyce, who is actually Lebron James high school coach. He runs the tournament in Cleveland. We went with Coach Tarr back in 2012 and ever since then, we always wanted to go back. So I reached out to Dru Joyce with the help of Kashief Thomas who was a player on team Belize at the time with Devon Daly and so we linked Coach Dru and he sent us the invitation. We have kids or boys that have good grades, good character and I definitely feel like they are going to get a shot.”
Xylon Michael Belgrove
Xylon Michael Belgrove, Shooting Guard, Team Belize
“The first year of playing basketball was with high school. I didn’t make the cut. I tried again and went back and made the cut the second year and from then on I have been having much success while playing basketball so I have never feared playing it. Day in and day out, I have been doing my personal workouts apart from team workouts. My mother would get angry because like ten, eleven o’clock in the night I would go on the court to shoot ball. This experience for us is overwhelming. It is my first time going to Cleveland but it is not the first time representing my country. We are going to have to give it our A game. I mean last year we went out and they brought it to us. We really took a beating last year, so this year we have to give it our all. Leave our hearts blood and sweat on the court and fight and play every game like it is our last. The difference this time is the preparation that the coaches have put us through.”
Clinton Shaw
Clinton Shaw, Point Guard, Team Belize
“Being a part of this team means a lot to me. It is something I have always dreamt of. I have always dreamt of representing Belize and making my country and my family proud most of all. By the grace of God, I am just really thankful for this opportunity and all the hard work that we have put in. The preparation was really hard. From January we started training. And each weekend we go and train hard; some of us cannot even breathe. We work really hard to the point that I feel really glad about it and I feel like we really have a chance.”
Duane Moody
“What are your anticipations like for this match?”
Clinton Shaw
“With the team that I have, I feel really great. Even though we lost three guys due to them not getting their visa, I still feel really great with the team that we have and I feel like we can compete at a higher level.”
