Rays win Elite Classic
The Rays, owned by Matt Shanahan and Pat Reidy took out the championship of the inaugural High Stakes Hoops tourney in Adelaide.
The title match saw the Rays defeat the Coasters owned by netballer Julie Corletto 95-81. The win brought the team a windfall of $175,000. Shanahan proved to be an astute young coach , being diligent in preparing his team by holding video sessions and using a “Hoya Paranoia” strategy, having his team stay at an off-site hotel through the tourney.
Overall the tourney proved to be an innovative event with crowds steady if not spectacular through the duration of the event. Hopefully it will be a solid base for an annual event. From a fans viewpoint, it would be great to see the purse rise which would hopefully see the talent levels of overseas players boosted. While all imports had stellar credentials by Aussie standard, the fact remains that fans will not see too many just below NBA level players on our shores simply due to financial restrictions. Maybe Foot Lockers continued involvement along with TenHD and a bit more advertising can change that.
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