St. Joseph. MO Hosts a Unique College/AAU Basketball Tournament This Weekend

A unique basketball tournament this weekend features college and AAU teams

Theres some history being made in St. Joseph, Missouri this weekend when two college teams, Robert Morris - Springfield (IL) and Rhema Bible College (OK) come to town to challenge AAU Slite teams the Missouri Hawks and the Kansas City Steers in the 2003 NABL St Joseph Shootout. Or is it history being remade?

St. Joseph was once quite a hotbed for AAU basketball. Back in the 1920s when club basketball teams were the norm, the Hillyard Paints team was the nations basketball powerhouse. Twice they won it all, the AAU National Championship, and they were the scourge of the basketball world for most of the decade. Hillyard Paints has continued to be a fine company, but as the NCAA, then the NAIA, and finally the NBA took root (all with Missouri roots, by the way) the Hillyard team faded into oblivion, as did the club teams in the USA.
Theres some history being made in St. Joseph, Missouri this weekend when two college teams, Robert Morris - Springfield (IL) and Rhema Bible College (OK) come to town to challenge AAU Elite teams the Missouri Hawks and the Kansas City Steers in the 2003 NABL St Joseph Shootout. Or is it history being remade?

St. Joseph was once quite a hotbed for AAU basketball. Back in the 1920s when club basketball teams were the norm, the Hillyard Paints team was the nations basketball powerhouse. Twice they won it all, the AAU National Championship, and they were the scourge of the basketball world for most of the decade. Hillyard Paints has continued to be a fine company, but as the NCAA, then the NAIA, and finally the NBA took root (all with Missouri roots, by the way) the Hillyard team faded into oblivion, as did the club teams in the USA.

This weekend, Rhema Bible College and Robert Morris Springfield College will bring their USCAA small college programs to the MWSC gym to rekindle that old school cooperation. The Missouri Hawks, from nearby Maryville, and the legendary Kansas City Steers, who won the ABL title in 1962, will be breaking new ground, or is that rebreaking old ground?

Friday night, October 31 will see the schools take the AAU teams head on at 7pm . On Saturday at noon November 1, the schools and the AAU Elite teams play each other. The AAU teams now take recent college players and give hem the opportunity to showcase themselves for FIBA pro ball overseas. The quality of the play is outstanding, with former college stars like Mizzous Jason Sutherland and Kansas States Cortez Groves the type of player youll likely see.

In all there are 24 NABL teams playing this year from Jacksonville to Honolulu, from Dallas to Saskatoon. NABL teams such as the Akron Wingfoots, KMK Hoopers, and Dallas Diesel are now in college tournaments, even DI NCAA Tournaments for the first time in years. By the way, the basketball is real throwback basketball.....team ball with community based players. Its a welcome relief for fans who have been subjected to the street ball style of the minor leagues that has resulted in the bankruptcy of that endeavor.

The NABL , like fundamental basketball itself, was on the ropes for a while. Now, both are making remarkable inroads into the American basketball landscape, pleasing the long time basketball fan who thought it was never to return.