Basketball Season Overview 2016

Published September 2015

Table of Contents 1. Deadlines 2. Levels of Competition a. Community Games b. Leagues c. Qualifying Tournament d. Season Ending Tournament 3. Criteria to Attend 4. Event Dates 5. Frequently asked basketball questions 6. Basketball League Overview 7. Community Games a. Event locations & Quota per event

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Basketball Season Deadlines  

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All Medical/Class A forms due no later than 1 week before your qualifier, or they will be scratched All Basketball Registrations from 2015 to be sent to programs on Weds. December 16th o Will contain last season’s roster, medical and Class A expiration dates o You can either modify this document and submit as your 2016 registration, or use it as a reference to complete a blank SOMA Basketball registration (found on our Forms and Downloads page on our website) Basketball Registrations due Weds. January 13th o Rosters o Team Rating Form o Unified Checklist (If team is Unified or Player Development) o All these forms are available online Final registrations sent to all Basketball programs on Weds. Feb 10th Official changes to final registration due by Weds. Feb 24th Any expired medical or class A between qualifier and season ending tournament due by Weds. Feb 24th Housing for those moving on to Season Ending tournament will be due February 10th Be sure to check Dashboard emails from Business Ops Department for any registration news

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Levels of Competition 

Community Games o Local mini round robin competitions where SOMA partners with Schools, Universities, or Rec Leagues o Events are set up by Special Olympics MA to give athletes another opportunity to compete and play o Low Key, fun events with community involvement that integrate SOMA programs with groups such as Law Enforcement, Corporate Sponsors, Civic Groups, school groups, etc.

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Basketball League o Targeted teams in a similar geographical area that have similar ages and ability levels o Leagues have a set schedule or season and a season ending championship tournament

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Qualifying Tournament o Mid-season tournament for all Traditional and Unified teams that compete in the Senior (13-21) or Masters (22+) age groups interested in advancing onto the Season Ending tournament o Teams must attend a qualifier in there discipline in order to advance on o Medals and Ribbons will be awarded. o Criteria to attend is detailed on page 5

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Season Ending Tournament o Two day tournament hosted in Greater Worcester area o Teams compete on both Saturday and Sunday and are awarded medals/ribbons based on placement within their division o Season ending tournament for all teams that meet prior advancement criteria (see page 5)

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Criteria to Attend 

Community Game or League o Be a part of a certified SOMA Local Program o Have a valid Class A or Athlete Application on file with SOMA

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Qualifying Tournament o Must meet all deadlines with complete and accurate information o All forms (Class A or Athlete Application) are to be up to date and valid o Have submitted a complete and accurate Team Rating form for divisioning purposes o Required attendance for all Traditional & Unified Seniors(ages 13-21) & Masters (ages 22+) teams wishing to advance to the Season Ending Tournament (Winter Games)  Unified Player Development teams are not required to attend a Qualifying Tournament  Juniors (ages 8-15) level teams are not required to attend a Qualifying Tournament o Event dates are on page 6 o Teams must attend qualifier in their discipline.

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Season Ending Tournament (Winter Games) o Traditional & Unified Seniors (ages 13-21) & Masters (ages 22+) teams must finish in a pre-determined place at their respective state qualifying tournament. o All Juniors (ages 8-15) level teams automatically advance to their season ending tournament assuming all other criteria is fulfilled o All Unified Player Development teams automatically advance to their season ending tournament assuming all other criteria is fulfilled o Must meet all respective deadlines o Must attend two (2) Community Games, or participate in a league o Must meet all prior criteria o Dates see page 6

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Event Dates 

Community Games Opportunities o Assigned games are posted on the Winter Season Page of the SOMA website.  Assignments will be updated as new sites and information is confirmed o Teams will receive a detailed game schedule 1-2 weeks prior to the assigned game

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SOMA Basketball Leagues o See pages 8-9

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Qualifying Tournaments o All Traditional & Unified Masters (ages 22+) Teams  February 6th, 2016  Stonehill College, Easton  Bridgewater/Raynham, Bridgewater  ForeKicks Taunton o All Traditional & Unified Seniors (ages 13-21) Teams  February 7th, 2016  Rivers School, Weston  Weston High School, Weston *Teams may be scheduled on either day pending final registration numbers

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Season Ending Tournament o Juniors (ages 8-15)  March 6, 2016  St Marks & Fay School, Southboro, MA o Unified Player Development (All age groups)  March 6, 2016  St Marks & Fay School, Southboro, MA o Traditional & Unified Seniors (ages 13-21) & Masters (ages 22+)  March 12 & 13, 2016  Greater Worcester

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Frequently Asked Basketball Questions 

Does my program need to submit a registration form for a Community Game? o No a program can bring any of their basketball athletes to an Community Game. The program just needs to stay within the roster size that it is given for that event and all participates must have valid forms on file

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What is the Roster size for basketball?  Teams must stay within the Min & Max roster sizes for all events  Minimum Roster size is 8  Maximum Roster size is 15 (UPDATED 2016)

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Why has the roster size increased to a maximum of 15 players? o After receiving feedback from teams the decision to increase the roster limit to 15 was to keep programs from having to withhold athletes from competition due to roster restrictions. With the current min/max once a team exceeds the maximum they have enough players to divide the team into two for competition and still meet the minimum roster size requirement.

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Can a basketball team attend a qualifier if they do not attend to advance onto the Season Ending Tournament? o The qualifier is a tournament to advance onto the season ending tournament. Teams must medal at this event to move onto the Season Ending tournament in March. o If your team does not wish to advance on to the Season Ending Tournament, it is highly recommend to just to attend your local community or league games, as priority to attend a qualifier will be giving to those teams looking to advance on.

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Can my team get a waiver to advance on to the season ending tournament (Winter Games) if it misses the qualifying tournament? o NO, your team must attend qualifiers in your discipline and finish in a predetermined place with in your division.

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SOMA Basketball League Overview Note that not all teams in a program or in the area of the league fit the league structure. For those teams not a part of a league, community games opportunities will be offered 

Greater Boston o Traditional Masters (ages 22+) o Ability level of league: high to Medium o Participating Programs: Belmont, Brookline, Cambridge, Delta, EMARC, Ivy St School, Learning Prep School, Madison Park HS, Milford, MiltonQuincy

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Central Mass Unified League o Unified Masters (ages 22+) o Ability level of league: Medium to Low o Participating Programs: ARC Fitchburg, Center of Hope, Seven Hills

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Merrimack Valley o Participating Programs: Andover, Haverhill. North Andover, Newburyport, Lawrence,

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Cape Cod o Traditional Masters (ages 22+) o Ability Level of league: Medium to Low o Participating Programs: Cape Cod Waves, Latham, LIFE, Mid Cape Sports, Wareham

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Hockomock League o Unified Seniors (ages 31-21) & Traditional Masters (ages 22+) o Ability Level of league: Medium to Low o Participating Programs: Easton Tigers, Franklin Challenger Heller’s Angels, Hockomock YMCA, Mansfield, Milford, North Attleboro Schools,

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Unified Player Development Juniors League o Juniors (ages 8-15) o Ability Level of league Medium/low to Low o Participating Programs: Mansfield, Seven Hills Shrewsbury, Westborough

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SOMA Basketball League Overview 

Pioneer Valley o Unified Player Development o Ability level of league: Low o Participating Programs: Hampshire County Youth Sports, Westfield, West Springfield

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Community Game Opportunities For the current listing of Community Games venues for the 2015-2016 Special Olympics Massachusetts Basketball Season. Please visit the Basketball Local Tournament Information section of the Winter Sports Season webpage: https://www.specialolympicsma.org/events/sporting-events/winter-season/ To provide teams with an improved competition experience SOMA has scheduled all Community Games. An updated schedule will be posted to the Winter Season page. Please continue to monitor the competition listing as new venues are being confirmed as the season approaches.

Community Game Cancellation Policy Community Games attendance is a core requirement for teams to remain eligible to advance through levels of SOMA Basketball Competitions. In the event a team or teams must withdraw from an upcoming tournament they must send an email to SOMA Sports Staff at least 3 business days prior to the scheduled tournament. Teams that withdraw from an event in this timeframe will have no repercussions on their eligibility for advancement. However, they must still attend a minimum of two community games events. Teams that either do not attend a scheduled event or provide notice under 3 business days will be ineligible to advance through levels of SOMA Basketball Competitions.

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