They've still got it: men's basketball tourney heats up the court
By Stephanie Heelan Cotsonas

Being over 30 did not stop these players from enjoying a little hoops action at the annual over- 30 basketball tournament at Lawn school. Left to right are, Tom Waddington, Mike Casey, Ward McIntyre, Steve Froberg, Jim Simmons, and Matt Swistak. Photo by Stephanie Cotsonas

Some of the faces looked familiar, but instead of being on the sidelines as parents or coaches, these guys were playing in the Men's Over-30 annual basketball tournament held at the Lawn School gym last Friday night.

The players were mostly islanders and former islanders. Some literally wore two shirts acting as a player and an official.

With 28 players divided into four teams, there were six 12- minute preliminary games. Chris Varrecchione organized the event and was pleased with the exceptional turnout of players, as well as friends and family that were there to root for their teams.

The first game had Team White, led by Eric Bush and star rebounder Sean Maloney, playing against Matt Swistak, Steve Froberg and Team Red who gave a solid effort. It was a close match and Tom Waddington went to the free throw line for the final point to give White the win 20-17.

Game two was Blue versus Black. Dave Clarke of Team Black made the first basket only seconds into the game. Michael Bradley of Team Blue had a three-point shot to tie the score 11-11. After a couple of breakaways and a basket by Doug Chapman for Team Black, the points were tallied and the score was 20-11. Brian Cotsonas got a nice three-point shot for Blue with less than a minute to play and the game started to turn as Blue crept up the score 26-17, but they could not make up the difference and Black won with a final score of 30-17.

The next match-up was White versus Blue with Eric Bush sinking two of the first three baskets for White in the first minutes of the game. Blue started putting on the pressure when Ward McIntyre, at 6-feet, 8-inches, entered the game. He gave an all-around effort with a turn-around jump shot and seconds later he dove to the floor to get a loose ball on defense. Blue sealed the victory, 18-15, when McIntyre sunk the game clinching free throw. When asked what he was thinking about when he went to the free throw line McIntyre said, "I wasn't thinking, I was praying."

In Team Red versus Team Black, Rich Berthelot got a fast break and passed to Mike Casey for a 5-2 early lead for Red. Alex Bush and Nick Malloy both added two points to finally upset Black 11-4. The teams were evenly matched and after the first four games all the teams were tied with records of 1 win and 1 loss. In Black versus White, Jim Simmons and Ernie Violet of Team White stepped up the pressure to no avail as Black won 23-17.

In the final preliminary game, the players were getting heated as Red took on Blue. Alex Bush scored the first two points for Red, and as Matt Swistak ran by he said, "Is this the ugliest game you have ever seen?" After Blue pulled ahead 11-10, Froberg got the final basket for Red giving them the victory, 11-12. Varrecchione got an amazing shot off at the buzzer from full court, which bounced off the rim.

Team Black won the championship game against Team Red with a final score of 33-28. Team members included Mark Swistak, Jim Hamilton, Ryan Zilly, Ryan Moniz, Dave Clarke, Doug Chapman, and Kevin Sullivan.

Mark Swistak was happy with his team's win and gave credit to Jim Hamilton. "When you have the all time leading three-point scorer in Naval Academy history on your team (Hamilton) it makes things a little easier. He's not in his old playing shape, but he can still shoot the lights out."

It turned out to be a fun evening

for everyone and even Mark Swistak, Sr. sat in the stands and reminisced about the days he and other islanders, including Bob Sutton and Bert Brodin played similar tournaments at the Rec Center and the Lawn Avenue gym.

The Jamestown Basketball Association thanked Mike Swistak for refereeing and the Narragansett Cafe for hosting the post-game reception.