South Florida Gold: Planning The Work and Working The Plan!!!

South Florida Gold: Planning The Work and Working The Plan!!!

     Every time you step on the court as a coach you have a game plan designed to put your team in a position to win. Throughout the game you make adjustments to improve your position and in the end you come out on top. The South Florida Gold is planning for an exciting season for 2015-2016 as we put together a team poised to chase a championship. In an effort to be of service and value to the community and our fans The South Florida Gold will be be hosting several meet and greets and offering opportunities for charitable organizations to partner with The South Florida Gold. Our first Meet and Greet will be at Tijuana Flats in Tamarac.

The South Florida Gold also has many sponsorship opportunities for the upcoming season.

The key is that much like in basketball in life you must plan your work and work your plan.

Summertime a Time For Preparation!!!
by Jonathan JDOGG Lederman Team Ambassador and PA Announcer

    It is written that when you plan your work and work your plan you will find success. This is very true when it comes to basketball as practice leads to success. In practice you may run the same play over and over so during a game the play works. This summer The South Florida Gold will be playing in many tournaments and hosting many skill camps so as to develop a team that will be chasing a championship for the 2015-2016 season.  The South Florida Gold has named a new head coach, Earl C. Williams whose extensive experience in the international game will lead to better preparing The Gold to have more victories and to position themselves to bring an ABA Championship to South Florida.
    The Gold is seeking sponsors for the 2015- 2016 season and will have several new initiatives launched this summer like www.southfloridagoldtv.com and a blog talk radio show. The Gold will also be at many community events this summer.  Look for details about summer activities at www.sflgold.com

Gold Extinguish Fire Now Poised For Playoffs

GOLD EXTINGUISH FIRE NOW POISED FOR PLAYOFFS

Parkland, FL - The South Florida Gold took to the hardwood on Saturday 2/28 and Sunday 3/1 taking on a very formidable foe in The South Coast Fire. The Fire started off strong taking an early lead but after a quick time-out The GOLD regrouped an began to show excellent team work with excellent ball movement on the offensive end and a smothering defense leading to many turnovers and creating a few 3D opportunities. Sean Batman Scott and Jarret Smith along with Padrick Matilus would facilitate the offense leading to scoring from Scott The Professor Draughn and Marquis Starquis Mathis. Downtown Freddy Brown would show that not only could he hit from the outside but he could also drive the lane creating several traditional 3 point opportunities. Dane Givner and Maurice Veal along with Jeff The Rifleman Remington would come off the bench along with Dante Valentine and they would build on the momentum and continue to stretch the lead. Charlie Cobra Coley and Daniel Bryant would team up with some give an gos leading to some monstrous dunks by Coley. The final buzzer would sound and The Gold were triumphant 121-102.
    looking for the sweep on Sunday The Gold would come out raining 3's by Daniel Bryant and Sean Batman Scott. Marquis Starquis Mathis and Scott The Professor Draughn would show inside strenght grabbing offensive rebounds leading to points. Jarrett Smith would keep many plays alive exhibiting great hustle that lead to him scoring and facilitating scoring for The Gold. The Gold would maintain a seven point lead late into the 3rd quarter. At that point The Fire would go on a bit of a run to go up by 1 then Downtown Freddy Brown would get fouled and step to the line sinking both free throws which seemed to ignite The Gold putting them up by one, The Gold would create a 3d and Maurice Veal would get a put back rebound worth three as a result of The 3-D. The Fire would keep it close. The Gold would control the ball and work to get good looks and extend the lead. With 39 seconds left in The game the Gold would be up by 7 with the Fire on the line shooting Free Throws. The Fire made them both and cut the lead to 5 The Fire would create a 3-D and score cutting the lead to 2. The Gold would inbound and immediately The Fire would foul. The Gold would again inbound and The Fire would foul. The Fire now had 7 team fouls and they were 1 foul away from putting The Gold in the bonus. The Gold would inbound and with 9 seconds left The Fire would foul putting The Gold on the line shooting 2. The Gold made them both and were up by 4. The Fire would turn the ball over and on the ensuing inbounds they would intercept the ball creating a 3-d opportunity. The Fore would launch a half-court shot that if it went in would have been worth 5 points asa result of the 3-D the shot fell short and The Gold prevailed 101-97 over The Fire.
      The Gold now turns it focus to March 14 and March 15  when they will host The Divisional Playoffs at The Coral Springs Charter School. Games on March 14 are scheduled for 6 PM and 8 PM with the Divisional Final being played on 3/15 at 3 PM. The winner of The Divisional Playoofs advances to The Regionals.

Emotions Ran High Against Rival Midnites!!!

Emotions Ran High Against Rival Midnites!!!
    After The Gold were informed that they had dropped from # 8 to #11 despite defeating the #2 Ranked Jacksonville Giants the weekend before they were truly motivated to defeat The Miami Midnites and move up in the rankings. You could feel the emotional charge from the tip off on Saturday, 2/21 as the starting five of Paidrick Matilus, Marquis "Starquis" Mathis, Scott "The Professor" Draugn, Sean "Batman" Scott, and Downtown Freddy Brown, started strong and built a slight lead. The Gold would then insert Jarrett Smith, Dave Noel, Maurice Veal, Jeff "The Rifleman" Remington, Dane Givner, and then continue to rotate Charlie "Cobra" Coley and Six Freeman into the game. At the end the 1st it was Gold 26- Midnites 26. The second quarter would be an up and down battle that saw the Midnites take a 62-60 lead at half time The 3rd quarter would see some excellent play by The Gold sparked by some energy from Alonzo "Stretch" Miller who contributed on offense and defense. The 3rd quarter would end with The Gold up 89-88. as The Fourth Quarter started The Gold would gain momentum started with a Charlie "Cobra" Coley dunk that brought down the house. The Gold would play tenacious defense and create a few 3D opportunities one which led to a Sean "Batman" Scott 3 pointer which under 3D Rules is worth 4 Points. This ignited a run for the Gold as they finished out the game strong with a 123-113 victory over The Midnites.
     Sunday The Gold seeked to sweep The Midnites and the tension is the gym was at a feverish pitch as both teams were poised for battle to increase their playoff seeding and have bragging rights for the season series as The Midnites were up 3-2 in the season series. The Gold would start off strong led by Sean " Batman" Scott and Downtown Freddy Brown raining down threes in the gym. Paidrick Matilus would serve as a great facilitator with crisp passes inside to Scott "The Professor" Draugn and Marquis "Starquis" Mathis. The substitution packages of  Charlie " Cobra" Coley, Jarett Smith, Six Freeman, Dane Givner, Maurice Veal coupled with other bench players Dave Noel, Jeff "The Rifleman" Remington, would have the Gold up 25 -22 at the end of the first quarter. The Gold would build on their lead playing excellent team defense and sharing the ball on offense leading to a 64-53 halftime lead. The Midnites would come out with a unique 4 guard line-up led by George Gray and Ray Taylor who would led a fierce run aided by the shooting of Tremaine Stevens. The Gold would Counter with Sean "Batman" Scott and insert Alonzo "Stretch Miller" into the game. With both teams playing at a very high pitch and getting physical the emotions began to run very high and several technical fouls were assessed. AS the 3rd quarter ended it was Gold 94 Midnites 91. The 4th quarter began with physical play on both sides and with a great deal of controversy over the amount of team fouls each team had due to technicals being assessed. Tensions began to flare but finally order was restored. The tension seemed to lite a fire under the Midnites and they began to chip away at the Gold's lead. With 53 seconds left in the game The Midnites took their first lead 112-111. The Midnites would press on the inbounds and Ray Taylor would create a 3D for the Midnites and score on a lay up worth 3 points under 3D Rules. The Gold would inbound and quickly get the ball up court and with 3 seconds left a held ball was ruled and the possession arrow favored The Gold. The Gold needed a 4 point 1/2 court shot to tie they inbounded the ball and there last shot fell short. As the final buzzer sounded it was Midnites 115 - Gold 111. The Midnites took the season series 4 games to 2 games. These two team are on a collision course to meet in The Divisional Playoffs.
      The Gold have  games at The Parkland YMCA at 7 PM on Saturday, 2/28, and Sunday at 2 PM on 2 PM. Wear Purple or Gold and get in FREE. You can also follow the Gold on Facebook at South Florida Gold- ABA.
   

South Florida Gold Conquer Giants

SOUTH FLORIDA GOLD CONQUER GIANTS

   Just a Jack slayed the giants in Jack and The Bean Stalk The Gold slam dunked The Jacksonville Giants on 2/14 and 2/15. The Gold also slam dunked cancer by raising $127 for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Coral Springs. The Gold have proven to be winners on and off the court as they continue to climb the rankings in The American Basketball Association. The Gold were ranked #8 and The Giants ranked #2 so the two victories should see The Gold move up a few spots in the rankings.
    Saturday's Game was a lesson in teamwork as The Gold worked to get everyone involved. From the opening tip to the final buzzer you could feel the intensity of the Gold and see first hand their commitment to working together. Downtown Freddy Brown started the scoring and The Gold would play tenacious defense smothering the Giants on each trip down the floor. Scott Draughn would show why they call him The Professor as he was giving lessons in ball handling and 3 point shooting while creating many steals. Marquis Mathis would live up to his nickname Starquis as he was a top scorer with 28 points while also distributing the ball to Sean Batman Scott and Padrick Matilus who would convert the assistants into points. Lavelle Bring The Payne would bang inside earning several trips to the free throw line where he would convert to build momentum for The Gold. Coach J.R. Gamble would use what many referred to as The Hockey Line Substitution bringing in Charley Cobra Coley, Dave Noel, Rel Blocker, Jarrett Smith and Six Freeman who would continue to work the ball and score while also playing staunch defense. The Gold took a lead and never looked back winning 119-99.
     Sunday The Gold came out a bit slow turning the ball over and giving The Giants several 3D opportunities and the Giants capitalized taking an early lead. The Gold would make adjustments and trail at halftime 63-59. The Giants would get the ball to start the 2nd half but the Gold would intercept the ball and score a 3 by Downtown Freddy Brown cutting the lead to one. The Gold would begin to create some 3D opportunities as Padrick Matilus, Sean Batman Scott, and Jarrett Smith would play relentless defense leading to scoring by Lavelle Bring The Payne, Scott Draughn and Marquis Starquis Mathis. The Gold would stretch the lead as Charley Cobra Coley, Six Freeman, Dave Noel, and Rel Blocker checked into the game. The Giants would begin to hit a few 3's and cut into the lead however with a good rotation and timely substitutions The Gold would continue hold the lead. The Gold would build on their lead when a Scott Draughn crashed the boards putting back a Mathis miss with authority which seemed to ignite the team. Down the stretch The Gold would play physical and take over the game with Down Town Freddy Brown hitting several 3's, Scott Draughn hitting 3's and Marquis Mathis showing some outside range hitting many of his shots. Padrick Matilus would drive the lane on several occasions and score, Lavelle Bringing The Payne would draw many fouls and convert from the free throw line.  Each player contributed leading to a Gold victory 130-119.
     The Gold will play The Miami Midnites on 2/21 at 7 PM at The Parkland YMCA and on 2/22 at 4 PM at The Parkland YMCA.  The Midnites are currently ranked #3 in the league. These two games will have major impact on where The Gold will be seeded for The Playoffs.

Gold Mining Going Deeper

Gold Mining Going Deeper!!!
   
     When the Gold tipped off the 2014-2015 they had a full understanding of the idea that to whom much is given much is expected.  Through out the season players and coaches have done their best to live up to the idea that it is Championship or Bust. The Gold have been digging deeper and deeper to move up the ABA Rankings and to  secure a top seed for the playoffs. This past weekend saw 2 very competitive games as The Gold traveled to Davie to face The Miami Midnites. On Saturday The Gold came out very strong and built a 15 point lead, however as the game wore on The Midnites would chip into this lead and cut to 3 points. That is a s close as The Midnites would get as the final buzzer sounded and The Gold prevailed 105-102 hading The Midnites their 1st loss of the season. On Sunday The Midnites would come out looking for revenge and they would build a lead that ballooned to as much as 22 points. The Gold Would dig down deep and cut the deficit to 2 at the end of the 3rd quarter and then tie it up in the 4th quarter. The Gold would match The Midnites basket for basket  and with 18.5 seconds left in the game seemed poised to tie the game as their pressing defense was creating turnovers that led to points. The Midnites in bounded the ball and were having difficulty getting the ball over half court when they called time out with 9.7 seconds left. Gold fans though that The Gold had created a 7 second violation and would be rewarded with the ball and a chance for a 3-D, where each basket is worth one extra point when the ball is turned over in the back court. The referees must have thought this was The NBA as they gave the ball to The Midnites. The Midnites broke the press but failed to make a basket. the rebound was gathered by The Gold who quickly got the ball to Scott Draughn who put up a shot that was close but a bit off the target as the buzzer sounded giving The Gold a loss 98 - 95.
    The Gold return to action on 2/14 at 8:00 PM at Coral Glades High School when they face The Jacksonville Giants. The Gold also play The Giants on 2/15 at 5:00 PM. On 2/21 at 7:00 PM and 2/22 at 5:00 PM The Gold get a chance for revenge against The Midnites as they play at The Parkland YMCA.  The Gold will be mining a bit deeper as they are poised for a playoff run.

ANNOUNCER EXPERIENCES GAME AS A SPECTATOR

ANNOUNCER EXPERIENCES GAE AS A SPECTATOR!!!
BY JONATHAN JDOGG LEDERMAN - PA ANNOUNCER FOR THE SOUTH FLORIDA GOLD

     It was a different experience for me on Saturday 1/24 and Sunday 1/25 as I was not behind the microphone as The South Florida Gold was the away team when they faced The Miami Midnites instead I was in the role of a fan.  As the game started I found myself caught up in the cheering for The Gold, questioning referees calls that seemed to be a bit one sided toward The Midnites. I would watch The Gold go down by 11 and come storming back not once but twice. I would stand and cheer as Charley "Cobra" Coley slammed the ball through the hoop and then applaud as Marquis "Starquis" Mathis would hit a few long range shots. I would cringe when Paidrick Matilus went out with an injury and be frustrated when "Downtown" Freddy Brown would pick up his second technical of the game and be ejected. I would feel the excitement when Danny Bryant and Scott Draughn would dial long distance connecting on threes. I would then watch as Dezmond "D-Train" Brown would play tenacious defense leading to points on the other end by Jarrett Smith. I would feel the pain when the Gold fell 124-116 on Saturday.
     Come Sunday I was a spectator again and I witnessed what would turn out to be a great game. The Gold unfortunately would come out slow and get behind early and trail by 18 at the half. The midnites would stretch the lead to 20. The Gold could have folded at that time but they did not playing a pressing defense that saw them cut into the lead and at the end of 3 the Gold only Trailed by 9. The 4th quarter would start with stifling defense being played by The Gold and The Gold would tie the game. Scott "The Professor" Draughn, "Downtown" Freedy Brown, Dante Valentine, Gertavian Blake, Marquis "Starquis"Mathis, Rel Blocker, would show tremendous heart in what would end in a 98-96 defeat by The Midnites. These 2 teams meet again on 2/7 and 2/8 at The David Posnack JCC. Watch the website www.sflgold.com for mor details.