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The Sweet Sixteen. Following much controversy, the NACBA has expanded once more to allow the top 16 teams to play in a more competitive environment. Expect tough games throughout the tournament from Saturday through Monday. There will be no cupcakes, and teams know what’s on the line. The defending NACBA Champion New York USAB Warriors Gold return with a bit of a new look, but will still play their basic man to man defense and patented 3-2 high trap. Their defense leads them to some easy scores, so that’s how they always seem to be in the thick of the race. Gone is MVP Sam Luong (Dominican U.). Added to the roster are 6-7 Eli Strauss (Bard College), 6-4 PF Joe Vines (Slippery Rock), 2007 All-NACBAIT guard Zachary Liu (Pitt-Greensburg), 6-3 center Brandon Chock, and SF Chi Ming Pun (Gallaudet, USA Deaf Basketball National Team). With returning guards Justin Kao and Nick Mui (Staten Island) as well as 6-4 C Mike Pan (Staten Island), USAB’s uptempo attack seems to be a decent bet to get back to Monday. The Chicago Dragons A were a fan favorite last year as they faced a tough schedule and pulled off gritty wins against more athletic and speedier teams like the SF Duke and Washington CYC. The Dragons return with 3-point specialist Andrew Tsai (MIT), veteran PG Tony Ling (Northwestern U), silky smooth small forward Joe Carlini (Lake Forest), and the infamous Damean Clinton (Univ. of Wyoming). These guys have the overall talent and some support guys willing to do the dirty work, like C Patrick Chin and PG Chris Hugh, to make another deep run in the playoffs. This battle tested group is a team that no one wants to see in their bracket. The New York RL Cruisers reached last year’s Final Four but ran out of gas against the faster USAB team. New coach Arcadio Colon brings fresh innovation to the team, and the addition of Big Howie Chu, bomber Leon Chu, and SF Eddie Wang (All-Tournament in 2007, 2008 Pre-NACBAIT Classic MVP) brings the Cruisers a few new members of the family. Another key pickup will be underrated scoring guard Mark Yiin, formerly of the Pittsburgh Pandas. If the new Cruisers mesh with holdovers CB Liu (Haverford), 6-2 Tony Hu, and 6-4 George Chan, they will prove that their Pre-NACBAIT Classic win last month was no fluke. Over the past 10 years, Washington CYC A has reached the Final Four 5 times, which is better than any other team over that time period, except for the legendary Seattle Bladerunners and LA Alpine. Despite their success, this team always manages to fly under the radar- which suits these guys just fine. The strength of this team is their smooth guard play and perimeter defense, as the tandem of brothers Jeff Lee (Univ. New Haven, All-NACBAIT 2004-2007) and Chris Lee (Rutgers Univ., NACBAIT Top 25) controls the ball with precision. SG Bobby Hsieh is a perfect complement to the Lee brothers, as he is a bit more offensive minded than those two. Keith Wang (Gettysburg) gives CYC another 3-point bomber and strong finisher, while Kwan Huynh (Montgomery College) is known as instant offense. The additions of former D-1 PG recruit Kenny Ho and the highly touted Mario Lancioni (Stockton College) will provide DC with even more scoring options. Down low, 6-3 Jeff Wu and 6-1 Jason Lee hold their own, while 2e Chin (Charles College) will give CYC another body to do some dirty work. If they can control the tempo of the games and keep things moving at a fast pace, CYC could make it another Manic Monday.

The San Francisco Duke had a rough time last year, losing twice to the Chicago Dragons as the Dragons were truly a team of destiny. They return with all their horses, and have tons of tall interchangeable parts, including C Henry Hong, the multitalented Conlan Kwong, defensive guru Dennis Yuen, bucket dropper Ryan Dunn, Ross Lim, and Devin Wong. Late roster additions Cory Mew and scoring machine Mike Reding will also make an impact. The Duke looks to make a return to Monday action and they have the guns to get it done. Arizona Desert Jade was another team who was picked by most to reach the Final Four last year as they held the home court advantage. However, they bowed out early, losing to NY USAB in the Quarters. Their roster looks pretty much the same, with Stephen Chang (Notre Dame de Namur), David Clarke (Notre Dame de Namur), and Bennett Woodward returning on the wings. Big monster Stan Hwang will man the middle, and fresh face Phil Heu Weller (George Fox) will run things at the point position. The talent is there for Arizona. The Toronto Dragons have the same core players returning, including NACBA Top 25 center Denny Lee and 6-7 Jon Tam. Young guys Jordan Chiang, Kenny Ao, and Andrew Suen will be asked to carry more of the load this year, so this may signal a changing of the guard. Nevertheless, the Dragons have made the playoffs 8 of the past 9 years and have made a couple Final Fours, so don’t expect too much of a change. One team to keep an eye on could be the Cali Davis Dynasty. They return last year’s key players, Yitao Sun and Joe Tang (2007 All-NACBAIT), both of Pittsburgh Pandas fame. If 6-2 SG Jeremy Lin (Harvard) can figure out a way to conflict out of his final exam schedule, then the Dynasty may be able to begin their reign. Their forecast is all contingent on Mr. Lin. They made the playoffs last year, so if Jeremy straps on the cape for the Dynasty, they’ll probably still be dancing on Monday. Otherwise, it may be another one and done for Cali in the playoffs.

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