BASKETBALL: School of excellence targets Oxford talent (From Oxford Mail)

BASKETBALL: School of excellence targets Oxford talent

1:00pm Saturday 4th September 2010 in

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St Gregory the Great School will be the home of the newly-created Basketball School of Excellence (Oxford City).

Organisers hope the venture, which has been two years in the making, will prepare youngsters to National League level and help them link up with clubs and academies.

Basketball School of Excellence (BSE) is a partnership between the school and Oxford Hoops Basketball Club and is aimed at students in the Oxford area just starting Year 7 and 8.

Hoops head coach Franky Marulanda said: “We are really excited about what this school of excellence will mean to youngsters in Oxford and what talent we will discover.

“We hope we’ll have a few England players in the near future.

“It is just the beginning of a great dream, the hard work is just about to start and we are actively looking for links with larger clubs to assist us in guiding our future stars by sharing their knowledge and experience.”

Marulanda added that the curriculum would include skills and drills, video analysis, theory and discussions with the aim of increasing “basketball IQ” as well as a broader understanding of the game.

Coach Jermaine Jarvis, from Cherwell School, Oxford, said: “What I love about it is that is not an after-school activity, it is a full blown professionally managed school of basketball.

“I wish I’d had the same opportunity when I was at school.”

“This will change the way Oxford is perceived within the basketball map across the country, ” said Amir Bou-cena, who was the Oxford Hoops’ Midnight Madness Point Guard winner last year.

For more information on BSE, email bse.oxford-@gmail.com or call Marulanda on 07827 331 593.