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2007 Mayor's Cup Wheelchair Basketball Tournament
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| Date: |
October 5-7, 2007 |
| Location: |
Manhattan College: Draddy Gymnasium (4513 Manhattan College Pkwy), Bronx
Horace Mann High School (231 W 246th St), Bronx
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12 of the top wheelchair basketball teams in the nation competed in the 2007 Mayor’s Cup Tournament at Manhattan College and Horace Mann High School over Columbus Day weekend. The Dallas Mavericks successfully defended their Division II title and the CRS Hot Wheels took home the Division III championship.
The Mavericks, led by tournament MVP Bobbie Nickelberry, were clearly in a class by themselves. Dallas went 5-0 with an average margin of victory of 42 points. In the finals, Nickelberry guided the way with 22 points and 13 rebounds en route to a 72-47 victory over the New York Rolling Knicks. The Knicks’ Eddie Lopez (classification III), Mavs’ Chuck Allen (classification II) and Ghana’s Mensah Richard (classification I) were named to the Division II All-Tournament Team.
The CRS Hot Wheels of Los Angeles dominated Division III, going undefeated and beating teams by an average of 27 points. In the final match against the Connecticut Spokebenders, the Hot Wheels rode tournament MVP Robert Mena to a 59-38 win. Division III All-Tournament Team honors went to Connecticut’s Josh Rodriguez (classification II), Christy Cruz (classification I) of the Bulova Renegades and Rochester’s Jamie Gilmore (classification III).
Ghana’s Greater Accra Regional Team was the first team from outside of North America to participate in the Mayor’s Cup since the tournament’s inception in 2001. The Greater Accra team was comprised of the top wheelchair basketball players from Ghana, including members of Ghana’s Paralympic Team. The squad, which featured the tournament’s leading rebounder Mensah Richard (12.0 RPG), quickly became the favorite amongst the fans and other teams.
The New York Metropolitan Area was represented by several local clubs including the Bulova Renegades’ (Bronx) division II and III teams, the New York Rollin’ Knicks (Manhattan), the Nassau Kings (Long Island), the United Spinal Nets’ division II (NJ) and III (Queens) teams as well as the United Spinal Cobras (Brooklyn). The Division II National Champion Dallas Mavericks (TX), the Division III National Champion CRS Hot Wheels (Los Angeles, CA), the Rochester Wheels (NY) and Connecticut Spokebenders filled out the rest of the bracket.
At the welcome dinner for participants and media, Commissioner Ken Podziba presented the Mayor’s Cup Community Service Award to former New Jersey Nets player Albert King. King is currently involved in the community as part of his participation with the Nets Foundation, a community outreach program dedicated to positively impacting the lives of metropolitan area youth through educational and athletic programs. 4 Wheel City, a hip hop group started by Ricardo Velasquez and Namel Norris who both suffered spinal cord injuries caused by gun violence, entertained the dinner guests with an inspirational hip hop performance.
Wheelchair basketball is played on a regulation basketball court, but players may only push their wheelchair twice before dribbling or passing. The height of the basket is the standard 10 feet used in both college and professional basketball. Athletes opt for specially designed wheelchairs engineered for speed and maneuverability.
The New York City Sports Commission created the Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Tournament in 2001 in an effort to enhance the scope of adaptive sports in New York City. This NWBA-sanctioned tournament has been held annually ever since and has become the largest wheelchair basketball tournament in the Northeast. The City also sponsors Mayor’s Cup tournaments in a variety of other sports including: field hockey, billiards, handball, baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis, kayaking, track & field, cross country, chess, table tennis and wrestling.
For more information about wheelchair basketball, please visit the National Wheelchair Basketball Association website.
For more information about the history of wheelchair basketball, Hall of Fame players and statistics, please visit the NWBA Hall of Fame website.
Contact Information
For more information about this event, please contact tournament director Jeff Mohl at (212) 487-6627 or jmohl@cityhall.nyc.gov.
| 2007 Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Teams - Division III |
| EAST |
WEST |
| Rochester Wheels |
CRS Hot Wheels |
| Spokebenders |
Nassau Kings |
| Bulova Renegades |
Adventist Knights |
| United Spinal Cobras |
United Spinal Nets |
2007 Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Teams
- Division II |
| Dallas Mavericks |
| Ghana Accra Regional Team |
| New York Rolling Knicks |
| United Spinal Nets |
| Bulova Rolling Renegades |
2007 Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Schedule/Results
Friday, October 5, 2007 (Manhattan College) |
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Main Court |
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Court 2 |
| Time |
TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
| 5:30pm |
Knights vs. Nets D(III)
(Forfeit) |
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Kings vs. CRS Hot Wheels
38-17 |
| 7:30pm |
Knicks vs. Nets D(II)
43-24 |
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Bulova D(II) vs. Ghana
(Forfeit) |
| Winners listed in BOLD |
| 9:00pm |
Welcome Dinner @ Manhattan College’s Draddy Gymnasium
Former New Jersey Net star Albert King will be presented with the Mayor’s Cup Community Service Award. Teams and Media welcome. |
2007 Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Schedule/Results
Saturday, October 6, 2007 |
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Manhattan College |
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Horace Mann |
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Main Court |
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Court 2 |
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Main Court |
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Court 2 |
| Time |
TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
| 8:00am |
Bulova D(II) vs. Knicks
54-43 |
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Mavs vs. Nets D(II)
81-24 |
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Wheels vs. Cobras
61-19 |
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Knights vs. Kings
(Forfeit) |
| 10:00am |
Mavs vs. Ghana
68-8 |
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Nets D(II) vs. Bulova D(II)
42-28 |
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Nets D(III) vs. CRS Hot Wheels
53-14 |
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Bulova D(III) vs. Wheels
47-16 |
| 12:00pm |
Spokebenders vs. Cobras
49-12 |
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Knicks vs. Ghana
49-15 |
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Knights vs. CRS Hot Wheels
(Forfeit) |
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Kings vs. Nets D(III)
36-18 |
| 2:00pm |
Mavs vs. Bulova D(II)
73-18 |
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Wheels vs. Spokebenders
31-25 |
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No Game |
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No Game |
| 4:00pm |
Cobras vs. Bulova D(III)
36-18 |
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Ghana vs. Nets D(II)
34-5 |
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No Game |
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No Game |
| 6:00pm |
Mavs vs. Knicks
72-47 |
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Bulova D(III) vs. Spokebenders
34-16 |
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No Game |
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No Game |
| Winners listed in BOLD |
2007 Mayor’s Cup Wheelchair Basketball Schedule/Results
Sunday, October 7, 2007 (Manhattan College) |
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Main Court |
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Court 2 |
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Court 3 |
| Time |
TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
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TEAMS |
| 8:00am |
Div III 3rd Place: Wheels vs. Kings
38-31 |
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Div III 4th Place: Bulova D(III) vs. Nets
39-30
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No Game |
| 10:00am |
Div III Championship: CRS Hot Wheels vs. Spokebenders
59-38 |
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No Game |
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No Game |
| 12:00pm |
Div II Championship: Mavs vs. Knicks
76-46 |
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No Game |
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No Game |
| Winners listed in BOLD |
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Awards Ceremony |
| Most Valuable Player for Division II: Bobbie Nickelberry (Mavericks) |
| Most Valuable Player for Division III: Robert Mena (CRS Hot Wheels) |
| Division II All-Tournament team: Class I player Mensah Richard of Ghana's Greater Accra Regional Team, Class II player Chuck Allen of the Mavericks and Class III player Eddie Lopez of the New York Rollin' Knicks |
| Division III All-Tournament team: Class I player Christy Cruz of the Bulova REnegades, Class II player Josh Rodriguez of the Spokebenders and Class III player Jamie Gilmore of the Rochester Wheels |
Last Updated On:
Wednesday, January 30, 2008 | |
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| 2 Washington Street, 15th Fl., New York, NY 10004 / Toll Free: 877.NYC.SPORTS / Fax: 212.788.7514 |
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