George E. Scott Coliseum — The IYAA basketball players, coaches and fans enjoyed an exciting Week 4 of competition on Saturday. There were several close games to keep the crowd entertained and plenty of special memories were made. The kind of memories that will last a lifetime.

Italy 9 (1st & 2nd Coed) coached by Deloris Harris competed hard against a towering Hillsboro Navy Blue team. Although Hillsboro won convincingly 31-7, the “Harris Hoopsters” simply love playing the game. If smiles were worth points, Italy 9 would win all their games by 50.

Michael Gonzalez had a monster game with 3-points, Kambria Brooks scored 2-points, Zorian Burley and Jacee Coffman scored 1-point each. Destiny Harris, Keyonna Brooks, Bryce DeBorde, Xander Galvan, Reese Janek and Kiandra Diggs helped push the ball up and down the court while giving 110% on defense as well.

Italy 31 (5th & 6th Boys) head coached by Schederick Walker, lead 22-21 at halftime against Hillsboro Royal Blue. However, Hillsboro outscored Italy 31 11-8 in the 3rd and 5-2 in the 4th to win 37-31.

Joseph Celis lead Italy 31’s scoring efforts with 7-points, Markavian Thompson put in 6-points, Lance McClendon scored 5-points, Daren Cisneros made 5-points as well. Tony Wilson scored 4-points, Michael Wilson knocked down 3-points and Jacob Brooks put in 1-point.

Italy 21 (3rd & 4th Boys) coached by Edwin Wallace, had their hands full with a scrappy Hillsboro Black team. Undecided until the final buzzer, Italy 21 pulled out the dramatic win, 28-26.

Taron Smith lead Italy 21 in scoring with 8-points, Trevor Mott was good for 4-points while Tylan Wallace, Cade Roberts, Kiunte Leonard and Al Waits each scored 3-points. Gary Escamilla put in 2-points and Cason Roberts made his haltime free throw worth 1-point.

Italy 24 (5th & 6th Girls) coached by Barry Byers, are now 2-2 after losing the rematch with Hillsboro Black, 22-10. Hillsboro’s aggressive defense held Italy 24 to only 1 field goal and that was by Janae Robertson who finished with 4-points. Hannah Washington, Ashlyn Jacinto, Jozie Perkins, DeCorea Green, Raven Harper and Lillie Perry each scored 1-point.

Brooke DeBorde, Jennifer McDaniel, Peyton Henderson and Cassidy Childers pitched in on the defensive side of the ball but Hillsboro Black outscored Italy 7-0 in the 4th to seal the deal.

Italy 13 (3rd & 4th Girls) head coached by Derrick Cunningham and assisted by Allen Richards, was tied with Hillsboro Black at the end of the 1st quarter, 5-5. Italy 13 began pulling away by outscoring Hillsboro 6-0 in the 2nd to take an 11-5 lead at the break. Brycelen Richards scored 6 of her 9-points in the 2nd half to lead Italy 13 to victory, 27-16.

Emily Cunningham put in 7-points, Jenna Holden added 6-points, Paige Henderson made 3-points and Kirby Nelson scored 2-points. Haley Jones, Karley Nelson and Raegan Jones helped out in the rebounding department as Italy 13 battled relentlessly on the boards.

Head coach Ken Norwood and his Italy 29 (5th & 6th Boys) team nicknamed, “Norwood’s Netpoppers,” remain undefeated after surviving a 4th quarter comeback by Italy 30 coached by Andrea Windham and assisted by Scott Connor.

Norwood’s team built a 22-12 lead by halftime but “Windham’s Warriors” outscored Italy 29 by 5-points, 23-18, in the final two quarters. Despite the 2nd half rally by Italy 30, Norwood’s bunch held on for a 40-35 win.

Top scorers for Italy 29 were Kenneth Norwood, Jr. who scored 11-points, including two 3-pointers, Oshea Turner who put in 9 and Christian Gatlin added 8 more. Kendrick Norwood scored 4-points, Cameron Carter scored 3-points and Jarvis Harris added 2-points. Kevin Johnson, Jarred Gatlin and Chasston Wilson put in 1-point each while Hunter Ballard pitched in on defense.

Italy 30’s scoring leader was Ty Windham who scored 15-points, including a 3-pointer. Levi McBride scored 6-points as did Ryan Connor. Caden Petrey knocked down 5-points, James Walton scored 2-points and Jorge Galvan made his pre-game layup good for 1-point.

Cole Falzerano, Thomas Crowell and David DeLaHoya played strong on the defensive side of the ball for Italy 30 as well.

A special thanks to Sa’Kendra Norwood, Michelle Walton and Darla & Gary Wood for helping to ensure the games went smoothly. Also, a thanks goes out to the IYAA players that offered their services in the concession stand and at the gate.

IYAA Sports, “The winning tradition starts here.”