Middle School Students Face Off In Basketball Tournament
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Hundreds of school kids took part in a basketball tournament at Manhattan’s Riverbank State Park today. NY1’s Roger Clark was there and filed the following report. While it’s not quite time for March Madness, some middle school students are fighting for a basketball title.
"You've gotta be smart, sportsmanship, you know, just play your game,” said M.S. 53 student Clyde Richards.
The fourth annual Sports and Arts in Schools Foundation (SASF) Three-on-Three Basketball Tournament is the largest middle school tournament in the country with about 750 students from 70 teams participating.
The sporting event is just one of many programs sponsored by the non-profit SASF in partnership with the Department of Education. SASF reaches 300 schools and more than 50,000 students each year.
"We offer arts, sports, academic and all kinds of enriching activities that go along with it,” said SASF’s Ben Nisbet. “And what we do is we really connect the school day to the afterschool."
The tournament is held during school break, designed to keep kids off the streets and off of their couches at home.
"I would just be staying in the house right now playing my game, but I came out here, now I can play basketball,” said M.S. 53 student Tariq Robinson.
"It is a good opportunity for people to get a chance to get outside instead of staying home and playing games,” said Isaiah Philpot, also a student at M.S. 53.
Coaches in the program say while the game is all about fun, there is no playing around when it comes to the kids’ school work.
"Like I tell them every day, school is the most important thing, education, you can't go nowhere without education,” said coach Clifford Bitter.
After this tournament, the basketball after-school program ends for the season. Next up, the kids will be playing soccer.