San Antonio, TX-

After playing four or five games to advance to the Championship in the bracket format of our 2022 Summer Hoopsfest, all teams proved they had more than enough fuel to push through the end. All three finals remained competitive well into the second half, including one game that was determined in the final seconds.

We have the breakdown on who took home the championships from each division.

(17U)
HD Toros Elite 77
Texas Hardwork 2023 Soto 66

Late second half, Jordan Balderas (Lytle HS/2023) would connect on and one for Hardwork, giving them a 55-53 lead. Then in the blink of an eye, the Toros would take off and flip the narrative. The ensuing few minutes saw an 11-0 run spearheaded by Xavier Martinez (Aspire Academy,OH/2023), who could not be stopped inside or out. It was the turning point in the contest, giving the Toros a 64-55 advantage.

Balderas would add one of his three treys to cut it to an eight-point deficit late, but on the next possession with just over a minute to go, Santiago Ochoa (Antonian HS/2023) would fly into the rack and throw it down. Putting the exclamation point on the championship for the Toros who had three players reach double figures in the win.

(Key Stats)
Xavier Martinez 31pts & 4 3-ptrs
Jarin Hall (Harlan HS/2023) 15pts & 4 3-ptrs
Sanitago Ochoa 14pts

Joradn Balderas 31pts & 3 3-ptrs
Matthew Soto 9pts
Tre Pullins 9pts

(16U)
Texas Hardwork Booman 50
San Antonio Future White 48

Tied at 48 apiece, with 13 seconds to go, Taveion Ford (2026) would get an entry pass near the left elbow. He pivoted, faced up, took one strong dribble and would then go up with his left over two defenders and bank in the layup for what was eventually the game winning bucket.

It was a back-and-forth affair all game between the two squads. Zahir Williams (East Central HS/2025) would throw it down two handed for Future, just before the break to make it a 30-24 game. Coming out of the half, Ford would get a hard physical bucket down low on the left block, making an eight-point margin for Hardwork, but the lead would not get any bigger.

Things would be tied at 40 all with 5:57 to play, and on the ensuing possession, Damien Ramirez would cut from the right side of the floor and receive a nice bound pass courtesy of Logan Gonzalez, leading to a reverse layup and the 42-40 lead for Hardwork. From that point they would hang on and edge out the championship win.

(Key Stats)
Logan Gonzalez 18pts & 2 3-ptrs
Damien Ramirez 8pts

Andre Starks 13pts
Zahir Williams 10pts

(15U)
Team GPS 90
Next Level Raiders Elite 78

At one point this track meet looked like it was headed into the triple digits for both clubs before the paced clamed just a bit. Tied at 54 early in the second half, Elijah Moore (Frenship HS/2025) would drain two treys and spark a 10-1 run, giving GPS some breathing room and a 64-55 lead. Teammate Victor Juarez would join the long range assault sinking one of his five treys, giving GPS a 12 point advantage, 67-55. Both he and Moore took turns with daggers to the Raiders defense.

The Raiders would not go without a fight, as Keshav Vijaykumar (2027) would respond with a trey of his own and so would Bryce Christian (2026), bringing the deficit to within single digits, but Juarez would stay on fire, hitting two more treys, eliminating any hope for a Raider comeback making it an 85-74 game late.

(Key Stats)
Victor Juarez 33 pts & 5 3-ptrs
Elijah Moore 15 pts & 5 3-ptrs
Kendrion Coleman 16pts

Keshav Vijaykumar 26pts & 3 3-ptrs
Bryce Christian 20pts & 3 3-ptrs