Run it Back Alumni tourney renews red-hot hoops rivalries

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This article was published 14/08/2024 (756 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After a slam-dunk debut event, Calvin Diaz and Joseph Medrano are running it back.

And this time, ladies are invited.

The local hoopsters will return their popular Run It Back Alumni Basketball Tournament to the Duckworth Centre from Aug. 24-25.

The city-wide event successfully renewed some of the most storied high school rivalries on the hardwood last year, welcoming 13 teams — comprised of players who went on to play professionally, in university or recreationally — to the Sport for Life Centre.

This year is even bigger, as alumni from 21 high school teams, dating back to the 2004 graduating class, have united across the competitive Legends Division, the recreational All-Time Division, and the Ladies Division.

The tournament is the only one of its kind in Winnipeg and, as Diaz and Medrano found out early on last summer, there is a high demand for more opportunities on the court.

“Right from the jump,” said Diaz. “I played in the first basketball game at 9 a.m. As soon as I hopped out, there was a Sisler game… they must’ve had over 100 people for a 10 a.m. game. That was probably the most surprising to me, that early in the morning there were that many people willing to watch.”

Added Medrano: “I was pretty overwhelmed and really surprised at how many people actually came out throughout the weekend, so that kind of inspired it and made us want to go bigger.”

The first place they looked to grow was with their female representation. Diaz and Medrano received numerous messages ahead of last year’s event from female hoopers, expressing their interest in playing again.

“It was always in the back of our minds, but for this year specifically, it was, ‘Hey, let’s be a bit more inclusive.’ We have a lot of lady hoopers out there so we put the post out and got a lot of support,” said Diaz.

“We have four teams in that division so it’ll be exciting.”

Other changes include the scheduling format for each division. Saturday will be dedicated to round-robin play to determine playoff seeding, setting up a single-elimination bracket to crown the champions on Sunday. At the end of the tournament, all-star teams — dubbed the Fab Five — will be announced and winners will receive T-shirts and a championship belt.

“A bit more competitive too,” said Medrano. “If you’re trailing by 30 coming into the fourth quarter, the game is done. We kept the same Target Score ending, obviously, that is big throughout the summer with the (Canadian Elite Basketball League) so we love to keep that running.”

The last few years have been nothing short of a whirlwind for the tournament organizers.

The idea for a high school alumni event emerged in 2015 after Diaz played in a poorly run tournament with a similar concept. In 2020, with Medrano on board, the duo’s attempt to bring a bigger and better version to the basketball-hungry town was stifled by the pandemic.

After quietly working behind the scenes for two years, Diaz and Medrano’s idea finally came to fruition last summer. It was the first in what they expect to be a long-running annual event.

“I think Joseph and I had a little bit of a revelation afterwards. We took some time to just debrief and gather our thoughts, like, ‘Man, we did it,’” said Diaz.

“It was a good time to just reflect and think about all of the hard work we put into it, and just seeing the fruits of your labour, it was a great thing to experience.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam