Sports

For The Love Of The Game

“The Cage” is a famous basketball court in New York’s West Village, known for its fierce play and competitive summer tournaments. This summer a team representing the Kings Bridge section of the Bronx is attracting a lot of attention not only because of their winning play on the court, but because of their two coaches – a pair of sisters from the Bronx.

“It’s a lot of pressure on us because we are females,” said head coach Elizabeth Gonzalez who coaches the King’s Bridge team with her sister Emily. “We earn our respect once they see what we bring to the table.” Currently there are very few females coaching men’s basketball teams at any level. Becky Hammon is an assistant coach with the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. Of the teams in the Pro-Classic tournament at “The Cage”, the Gonzalez sisters are the only female head coaches.

The sisters are from Kings Bridge, and have been playing basketball since they were kids. In their second year of coaching at the 24^th annual Pro-Classic tournament, Emily and Elizabeth Gonzalez do much more than just coach, they also serve as positive influences on their players’ lives and are mentors to many of them. Their mission is to continue is to help the young men in their community that love playing basketball stay on the right path.

When they aren’t coaching the players on the court, the Gonzalez sisters help their players put together their resumes, and encourage them to participate in community service. “It’s more than just a game, it’s about getting these guys off the street for the summer and giving something positive and fun to do,” said coach Elizabeth Gonzales, who is also an active service woman in the National Guard. Younger sister Emily added, “We play for fun, but we also play to win.”

“At first it was difficult,” said player Ridge Grant describing what it was like to play for female coaches. “It was a new feeling that I had to adjust to.” He described the sisters coaching style, as strict but fair. He added, “They’re like big sisters to me.”

Other players were also skeptical at first, but bought into what the sisters were brought to the table. “This is my second year with team. I didn’t think it would work at first because things were very chaotic,” Adonis Jimenez said. “They didn’t look like they knew what they were doing but it turns out, they do know what they’re doing.”

Team captain James Sykes said that playing for the sisters is different. “This team is better than the other teams because the sisters are dedicated to making us better on and off the court.” He added, “Because they’re from the military we have to work hard.”

“It was new to me. This is my second year with the team, and I’ve developed a bond and connection with the sisters,” said player Anthony Rivera.

On July 19^th, the team’s toughness, and the sisters coaching were put to test during an early morning game on a hot Sunday. They only had six players available, but the Gonzalez sisters remained calm, cool, and collected.

Kings Bridge was up by ten points throughout the entire game. Once the 4^th quarter hit, the sun started to get higher in the sky, and fatigue started to set in. Kings Bridge continued to fight with only six players against another team who had 10. The Kings Bridge players were tired, but the sisters continued to motivate and push them to their limits. With a couple minutes left in regulation, after a player fouled out, Kings Bridge was down to the five players on the court with no substitutions.

After five overtimes, they emerged on top due to all-around teamwork from the players, and strong motivation from the Gonzalez sisters. “It was a close game,” said captain James Sykes. “I knew we could do it though.”

The sisters bonded with the players by doing three count jumping jacks and burpees as a cool down workout after the game. They were all smiling and happy,  because the win was well earned. Even though some players were frustrated by how they were playing, or a certain call the referee made, the sisters continued to praise their players for their hard work and hustle.

The tournament isn’t over yet, but led and guided by the dedication of the Gonzalez sisters, the players seem to be headed in the right direction on, and off the court.
[google-map-v3 shortcodeid=”8f35f4c146″ width=”850″ height=”350″ zoom=”12″ maptype=”roadmap” mapalign=”center” directionhint=”false” language=”default” poweredby=”false” maptypecontrol=”true” pancontrol=”true” zoomcontrol=”true” scalecontrol=”true” streetviewcontrol=”true” scrollwheelcontrol=”false” draggable=”true” tiltfourtyfive=”false” enablegeolocationmarker=”false” enablemarkerclustering=”false” addmarkermashup=”false” addmarkermashupbubble=”false” addmarkerlist=”West 4th Street Courts Avenue of the Americas & W 3rd St New York, NY 10012{}2-default.png{}West 4th Street Basketball Court” bubbleautopan=”true” distanceunits=”miles” showbike=”false” showtraffic=”false” showpanoramio=”false”]