What an incredible way to close out the busy July basketball tournament schedule for teams from all over the West Coast! This past weekend, teams converged to compete in the G365 Summer Hustle, held at Open Gym Premier locations in Anaheim and Ladera. The event was a spectacular showcase of high-level youth and high school basketball, drawing teams from Orange County and beyond. The energy and excitement electrified the Orange County youth basketball scene as players took to the courts to display their talents on one of the largest youth basketball platforms in the county.

Throughout the event, The G365 media team provided continuous coverage, while Scope Scouting offered comprehensive evaluations of top individual players and teams. Scope Scouting’s in-depth assessments highlighted players’ performances, praising their work ethic and providing constructive feedback for improvement. These evaluations are invaluable for players aspiring to make an impact in high school and beyond.

Additionally, The Passport excelled in collecting rosters, enabling them to spotlight daily top stat performers. Stats were meticulously tracked during each game, ensuring that standout performances were showcased.

DIVISION HIGHLIGHTS

8U/9U:

OGP Ladera 8U Black

The division came down to a battle between two OGP Ladera Teams. OGP Ladera 8U Black turned out to have just enough in the tank to take down their counterparts in OGP Ladera 8U Blue to take home the championship on the weekend. Baker Ward, division MVP, went for double digits in 2 of his 4 games to help his team take home the trophy.

9U:

OGP Ladera 9U Black

After stumbling out of the gate to All For One, OGP Ladera 9U Black never looked back. On their way to a championship they finished up pool play with a double digit win, and then in the semi-finals they put on a defensive showcase, holding their opponent to just 25 points in the game. With that being said, they had a battle in the championship game, and barely snuck out the 2 point victory. Liam Mysin, truly is the engine for this team, and it was on full display this weekend. Liam struggled in the first game, but then went for double digits in each of his last 3 games, all leading to OGP Ladera 9U Black wins.

10U:

Pro’s Vision

Pro’s Vision made it very clear early on that they were the team to beat in this division. Coming out of the gates strong, Pro’s Vision won their first 2 games by a margin of 50.5 points. Now as the weekend progressed and they got deeper into Championship Sunday, the games tightened up. They saw their stiffest test against OGP Ladera 10U Black in the Championship game, still seeing them win by double digits. Sione Taipe Vaka led Pro’s Vision with 10.7ppg and 6.3rpg, putting up a double double in their championship game against OGP Ladera 10U Black

11U/5th Grade Silver/Gold:

OGP Ladera 11U Black

OGP Ladera 11U Black made it known from the get go that they were going to protect their home court, and they did just that. Coming out of pool play with a margin of victory of 20 points, they put the rest of the division on notice heading into Championship Sunday. Adding a 36 point win in their first elimination game, they carried that momentum into a 19 point championship game win. Chase Walton carried a heavy load, putting up LeBron numbers throughout the weekend. Walton averaged 18.5ppg and 7.8rpb on the weekend, putting his 2023-2024 season averages at 13ppg and 4.1rpb.

11U/5th Grade Bronze/ Copper

OC Heat

OC Heat went through the gauntlet to pull out the championship in the 11u Bronze/Copper Division. Playing 3 games on Sunday is never an easy task, but it seemed that this OC Heat team just continued to get better as the day went on. OC Heat capped off the day with a 39-36 win over a very tough OGP Fullerton 11U Blue team. Like his OC Heat team, Cody Lam got better as the weekend progressed. Coming out of the gates slow with scoring performances of 9 and 5, Cody went off his last 3 games averaging 18 a game with a high of 22 in the semifinals.

12U/6th Grade Silver/Gold

A Division Loaded With Out of Town Teams

In a division of 5 teams, we saw 3 teams from out of town competing to take home the championship in the 12U Silver/Gold Division. EWA Basketball out of Hawaii proved early on that they were the team to beat in the division, starting off the tournament with a 33 point win over IE Rain. Kent Elite 2030, one of Washington’s top teams, proved to be the toughest test for EWA Basketball, taking them down to the wire in their first matchup of the weekend. The division even saw a team from Canada make an appearance, and compete against some of the West Coast’s premier programs. Vikes Nation (CAN) was led by the outstanding play of Maverick Marsh, averaging 12.8 ppg in his first G365 Event.

12U/6th Grade Bronze/Copper

OGP Fullerton 12U Blue

In a loaded 12U Bronze division, filled with programs such as Gamepoint and Pro’s Vision. OGP Fullerton 12U Blue came out on top to win the championship on Sunday at OGP Ladera. Pro’s Vision, Gamepoint Elite and OGP Ladera, all finished undefeated in pool play, with the champions dropping their second pool play game. Gabriel Hoshide made the MVP discussions very easy this weekend averaging 22ppg over the 4 games for OGP Fullerton, adding 28 in the championship game alone.

13U/7th Grade East

OGP Newport 13U Blue

OGP Newport learned this weekend that winning isn’t always easy. Their first game they took care of ACR Ballerz with a 27 point victory. They ended up dropping a close one in their next game which was a 4:35pm tip against OGP Ladera 13U Black. OGP Newport would not taste defeat again, winning their semifinal game by 38 points, and avenging their loss from Saturday by beating OGP Ladera 13U Black 48-39 to claim the championship. Going off for double digits in 3 of his 4 games for OGP Newport, Aidan Paolone took home the MVP honors of the division for the weekend.

13U/7th Grade West

Aspire Youth Sports Warriors

Aspire Youth Sports Warriors found different ways to win all weekend on their way to a 13u Championship at the G365 Summer Hustle. Jasiah Simien and De’Marcus Simien Jr. led the way for Aspire Youth all weekend with their stellar play. Big time weekend for the brothers!

14U/8th Grade Gold/Silver

International Teams

With the 14U division being one of the largest in the tournament, it saw teams from both Canada and Taiwan. Both teams went toe to toe with some of the best teams in Southern California, and are going back to their respective countries’ better basketball players. Bakersfield TTP led the way all weekend and took home the championship in what ended up being a competitive division.

14U/8th Grade Bronze/Copper

Carson D.U.C.K.S

Very rarely does the championship matchup between the two best teams in the division happen. Luckily for spectators at OGP Anaheim, that is exactly what happened in the 14U Bronze/Copper Division. Carson D.U.C.K.S and Aspire Youth Sports Warriors, showed throughout Saturday and early Sunday that they were in a class of their own in this division. Both teams had point differentials heading out of pool play of more than 33 points. Their championship matchup was a battle of heavyweights and it delivered, Carson pulled out the 1 point win and walked away with the championship.

15U Frosh/Soph

OGP Anaheim 14U Black

From the moment the ball tipped in this division, OGP Anaheim 14U Black was the team to beat. Their average margin of victory over the weekend was 25ppg. Leading the way for this Anaheim squad was Jason Ross who put up 17 points in multiple games and averaged 13 over the 5 games.

16U /JV

Next Level 805

In a division that saw an international team from Brazil participate, Next Level 805 truly stole the show with their dynamic scoring and lockdown defense. Next Level put up a tournament high of 87 points in a 40 point route of Team Triple Threat in their second pool play game. The games got closer as the weekend progressed but the winning mode was already turned on for Next Level 805 and they rolled to a 10 point championship game victory.

17U/Varsity East

SDA 17U Premier

Led by the scoring of Francisco Ortiz, SDA Premier rattled off yet another championship to add to their stellar 2023-2024 club campaign. Ortiz averaged 19.3ppg and quickly showed off why he was one of the top scorers in the tournament over the weeknd. SDA Premier, by no means cruised to a championship, with this division including teams from all over Southern California and Washington.

17U/Varsity West

OGP Ladera 17U Grey

Aiden Martinez continued with his high level of play averaging 19.3ppg and 8rpg, from the guard position. Aiden has been one of the best all around players on the G365 High School Circuit this year averaging 15.1ppg and 5.5rpg over the course of the season. With 29 points in the championship game, it is easy to say that Aiden wasn’t allowing his OGP Ladera 17U Grey team to lose in that game. The division was loaded as well with teams not only visiting and competing from Washington, but also from Brazil.