Day 2 of Balling On The Beach was highlighted by a pair of big upsets in the 2032 division. None was bigger than CSA Elite’s 3 point win over the #2 seeded and #2 ranked Global United. Despite having a roster full of nationally ranked players, CSA Elite found a way to overcome their underdog status in route to the 42-39 win. According to Coach Rivers, “…we were resilient; we were down by 6 points and we never blinked. It’s our first tournament [together] and we just had the will to win. Aiden [Wright] took over; we cut off driving lanes and that was the key.” We know that some questioned our BNU championship pick, but it’s safe to say, at least right now, we were not far off the mark! We were surprised by the result, but clearly they’re talented enough to win it all with a solid Sunday run. At the end of day, the much anticipated match up with BNU is still possible, but it will have to be in the semi-finals! We suspect that Global United will enter their first round game with a vengeance and a chip on their shoulder and try to prove they deserve to make the championship game.

We have to admit, not all of our initial predictions were on point, as we believed that D5 Global would play their way into the Gold Bracket. We were wrong, as CSA Elite surprised us, and as it turns out, the North Carolina-based team has announced themselves on the national scene. We really don’t like to talk about the Silver Bracket, but we would not be surprised if D5 Global took the Silver Bracket crown.

As expected, BNU dominated their way to a first round bye in the Gold Bracket, and will play the winner of Grindhouse Hoops and the Decatur Blazers in the Sweet Sixteen. We’re going with the Blazers to advance to the Elite Eight.

Third seeded Righteous Elite are on their way to a Sweet Sixteen match-up with the Miami-based Bad Boys, after easy wins over D-Up Basketball (41-15) and the Orlando-based Born Stars (44-21). We think Righteous Elite will have an easy time with the Bad Boys, and are destined for a much anticipated match up with the Buckeye Prep Hoopsters.

As we predicted, NYBA Elite finished 1st in Pool D with a pair of wins over Grassroots Academy (38-34) and DGL Allen (67-14). Based on points differential, the Buckeye Prep Hoopsters punched their ticket to the Sweet Sixteen with wins over DGL Allen (50-8) and Grassroots Academy (46-42). We have to give a shout out to Grassroots Academy, who played 2 top 10 ranked teams right down to the wire. For their efforts, NYBL Elite will face Global United in the first round, while Buckeye Prep will face a familiar foe and hometown rival, Charging Elite. In terms of predictions, we think that Global United will bounce back with a win for NYBA Elite, while Buckeye Prep advances to the Elite Eight with a win over Charging Elite. An interesting note of fate, several months ago, a Global fan/parent was dogging out NYBA Elite on social media suggesting they were “ducking the smoke!” Will karma strike again?

Texas United are on their way to the Gold Bracket, with wins over Garden State Bounce (37-31) and SWFL (50-19). First up is the Orlando-based Born Stars, who finished 2nd in pool play, had a 34-10 win against T3 Elite and a 44-21 loss at the hand of Righteous Elite. Our pick to advance is Texas United.

As we pointed out in our initial preview, it was a suggested that we “look out for Vegas Elite.” Well, we guess that suggestion was on point, as Vegas Elite finished 1st in their pool, with wins over Team Fly FLA (48-21) and Team Arsenal (52-36). Vegas will match up with a tough Team Tookie squad in the first round of bracket play. For the record, Team Tookie finished 2nd in pool play with a pair of wins over SWFL (39-19) and Garden State Bounce ( 48-33). We’re going with Team Tookie again based on their resume.

In closing, once again, this article is informational, is intended to highlight the teams and players in this class, and is not intended as a sign of disrespect or hate. Also, we understand some have used our predictions and preview as motivation and bulletin board material, and that’s all right, but please don’t take this stuff too serious or get caught up; it’s just for FUN people!