Hoops

Even after going to sleep only at 2:30am (great ACF party) and a teammate staggering out of the house at 4am waking me up...I still pulled myself out of bed to get over to the stadium for the morning matches. Our girls were down 7-2 at one point but came back to only to lose 12-11. Adiza was the MVP making 4 baskets. Bibata double-dribbled shortly after being called in and the Mens coach yelled at her so I yelled at him saying, "Chill! It is her first match ever and she is only 12 whereas most of the other girls are in high school!!" 5 of my 6th graders made the circle team. Ansongo represent! The guys lost their match. Both teams played Ménaka, who ended up winning the basketball tournament. The Mens teams are full of guys making stylized passes and shots and voguing instead of passing to teammates. Gah. It was great seeing other youth cheer the girls on and I had a moment where I wished I had gotten more involved in youth development my whole stay here—they are so enthusiastic it is encouraging.