Mt Riv Renegades
Encyclopedia
The Mt Riv Renegades, also known simply as The Gades, are the premier basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 team from Mount Riverview, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 http://www.bluemts.com.au/tourist/towns/MtRiverview.asp.

History

Established in early 2003 the Mt Riv Renegades started as a small, unsupported and unorganised basketball team playing in the Springwood
Springwood, New South Wales
Springwood is a town in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia. Springwood is located 72 kilometres west of Sydney in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains. At the 2006 census, Springwood had a population of 8,210 people. It is largely Anglo-Celtic.Springwood is near the...

 and Districts Basketball Association (SDBA) domestic competition at the Blaxland
Blaxland
Blaxland can refer to:* Gregory Blaxland, pioneer farmer and explorer in Australia, brother of John* Gregory Blaxland , British Army officer and author of biographies and military histories...

 High School Sports Centre http://www.blaxlandhigh.com.au/ http://springwood.basketball.net.au/FS_extra.asp?id=7132&OrgID=339.

Playing with borrowed generic uniforms and with little to no basketball experience between the foundation members the team quickly drew attention throughout the SDBA and attracted a large and supportive fanbase http://www.rivrenegades.cjb.net/.
While this fanbase grew and the Gades gained extra attention from local circles, they were able to expand and recruit new players, coaching staff and also purchase new and unique uniforms adding to the teams professional outlook.

Awards

During the 2003 season the Renegades were able to secure only one win in a 15 game season against some excellent competition.
Although the winning performance has never reached double figures in any one given season, the Renegades are still a massive force within the SDBA and provide some of the best plays and moments the local competition has to offer. That said the Renegades continue to notch up numerous accolades during the regular season http://www.rivrenegades.cjb.net/.
  • SDBA Most Valuable Player Award,
  • SDBA Most Improved Player Award,
  • SDBA Sixth Man Award,
  • SDBA Defensive Player of the Year Award,
  • SDBA Rookie of the Year Award


The Renegades have also had the dubious honour of most fouls per season and most suspensions per season during the 2003, 2004 and 2005 seasons.
With the trading and retirement of several of the more 'fiery' players the Gades have worked hard to lose the tag of being the most foul heavy team, while still keeping up their trademark tough and tenacious playing style http://www.rivrenegades.cjb.net/.

Playing The Game

Part of the evolution of Basketball in general is the creation and perfection of specialized positions on the team.
Typically the Gades are a much smaller and more agile guard laden team when compared to most others in the SDBA which is what creates their faster and more free flowing creative style of play as compared to other more rigid and typical style.
Whether this is advantageous is highly debatable amongst certain basketball circles.
  • Point guard: organises the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that it gets to the right player at the right time. The Gades point guard is usually the only player to play a full game without being substituted.

  • Shooting guard: creates a high volume of shots on offense; guards the opponent's best perimeter player on defense.

  • Small forward: often primarily responsible for scoring points via cuts to the basket and dribble penetration; on defense seeks rebounds and steals, but sometimes plays more actively than that.

  • Power forward: plays offensively often with his back to the basket; on defense, plays under the basket (in a zone defense) or against the opposing power forward (in man-to-man defense)

  • Center: uses size, either to score (on offense) or to protect the basket closely (on defense)


The above descriptions are very flexible. On some occasions The Gades will choose to use a three guard offense, replacing one of the forwards or the center with a third guard. The most commonly interchanged positions are point guard and shooting guard, especially if both players have good leadership and ball handling skills.
The Gades tend to use a man-to-man defense, although have been known to switch to zone defence positions on occasion.

At the professional level, most male participants are above 1.90 meters (6 ft 3 in) as are most opposing teams in the SDBA competition. This is in stark contrast to the Gades who have an average size of around 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m) tall. This height difference is the reason why the Gades play a varying mix of guards and running plays as opposed to typical post plays etc http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_average_height_of_an_NBA_player.

The future

Having lost several players through trades and retirement, and one 3 time SDBA All Star player going to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 to play in the 2006-2007 season the Renegades looked to new rookies and veteran leadership to fill the gaps and step up for the 2006 competition.

In 2006 the Renegades proved once again why they remain a powerhouse in SDBA competition by remaining focused and closely knit through adversity and loses.

The 2007 season saw the return of representative players from overseas as well as several new players bolstering the teams ranks. As a result the 2007 season saw the Renegades making their first finals appearance http://springwood.basketball.net.au/fs_home.asp.

See also

  • Basketball
    Basketball
    Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

  • Basketball in Australia
    Basketball in Australia
    Basketball is a sport played both indoors and outdoors in Australia. Basketball remains one of the most popular participation sports in Australia, having a larger participation base than Cricket, Australian Rules Football, Rugby League and Rugby Union...

  • Australian Basketball teams
  • Mount Riverview

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK