Hardwood Palace Organization Tournament

Uptempo Hoops hits the road

"The Hardwood Palace - where families & friends cheer on dedicated young men who represent the wisdom and teachings of their coaches. On this hard wood battlefield, every young man wears their team colors. We wear Blue & Gold. WE ARE Uptempo."  ~~ A. Gloria (father of N. Gloria, grade 5).

Noriega's no look pass to Inciong

The whole organization travels to Rocklin, CA for another organization tournament.  From Union City, the location is about 2.5 hours drive northeast.  Many of the families hit the road early, some even spending Friday night in the Sacramento area. Those who left the Bay early, head out in the early morning Saturday chill.  The 7th and 5th grade teams start off the event.  Their first games begin about ~10:00 am in the morning.  It was a great start to the day and for those of us who arrived early, it was fun to cheer them on.  Both teams won their first games. 

The Hardwood Palace, for those of us who have never been there, is an impressive place.  It's not as big as Reno.  It's what you can call "just big enough".  The place is spacious and opens up to a complete snack bar offering smoothies, pizza, hot dogs, nachos...all the good sports food.  The first floor is filled with side by side courts.  Imagine a donut configuration with the snack bar and stairs in the middle.  Oh yes, there is a second floor.  The second floor is a huge balcony area in which spectators can watch the games below.  It was a perfect place to hang out or let the younger UH members run and play in safety. 

Coach Otico shouts out instructions

Upon arriving, we grabbed some stools and watched the 5th grade play to the left of us and the 7th grade to the right of us.  The 4th grade moms were in regular form and screaming for Uptempo.  We are not afraid to call the ref's on what we think are bad calls.  After the 5th and 7th grades won their first games, it was time for the 4th grade to face their first opponents at 11am.  They were a bit nervous and tired, but ready.  The 9 players took the court and didn't look back as they won their first game.   

5th grade knows how to kill time between games

The day was filled with 3 games per grade level.  The 4th grade and 6th grade were able to stay at Hardwood Palace for all three games.  The 5th grade and 7th grade had to play at least one game at another location, Roseville.  There was some time to kill for all grades between games.  The kids know how to have fun.  The 6th grade faced their first opponents at 2pm.  This was unfortunately late because the other three grades had already played about 2 games each by then. 

6th grade enjoying snack time in the balcony

Maybe if the first game was earlier, and the boys didn't have to wait so long, the turn out of the first game may have been a victory.  Unfortunately, the 6th grade did not win their first game against a D1 team.  They fought hard and did their best and the loss did not sway their positive attitude.  They had a great time hanging out with friends drinking Icee's and hanging out on the balcony. 

UH comes to watch and cheer on 4th grade in game 3

The weather in Rocklin was well over 100 degrees.  Some families chose not to leave the facility at all because of the heat.  Some families enjoyed the closeness of Thunder Valley Casino and still some other families enjoyed the nearby eateries.  Hardwood Palace seems like it's in the middle of nowhere, but there are actually places nearby...just be sure you have a GPS. 

When you are hanging out with the families and friends of Uptempo, you don't mind hanging out the whole day.  The snack bar food was good, the company even better and we had a few victories under our belt.  Groups of UH members walked over from one court to the other supporting each other.  The only team to win the championship and receive much deserved medals was the 7th grade team.  They finished the day undefeated.  Watching them was so exciting.  They are such a smart group of boys who know how to play basketball.  They return to the fundamentals, they listen to their coach and they respect each other.   After winning their medals, they went to watch and cheer on the 4th grade team in game 3.  At one point, I saw my son turn his head in their direction and nod.  Later, I asked him what did they say, what was the advice?  His answer...back to basics...they said "next time aim".  There can't be any better advice than that. 

Tournament champs.  7th grade wins 3-0!!

As one parent so eloquently put it:  "what a great example of what "the pyramid of success" teaches. it's not just an ideal or concept. Uptempo team/family practices this on and off the court. confidence, self-control, friendship, and a real love of a hard battle ... to name just a few... we do our best to become the best that we are capable of becoming. we hear the acknowledgment and say "thank you." :)"  ~~ L. Mercado (mother of M. Mckinney, grade 7).  She made this statement the day after Rocklin and after a successful organization tournament. 

Uptempo Hoops is very proud of all the players.  They work hard on the court, during games and at practices.  As young men, they are great examples of stellar athletes in action and in attitude.  With a roster of over 50 players, there isn't one bad thing I can say about any one of our players.  Each member is an asset to their team.  The championship of one team is the championship of the whole organization.