MBT tryouts start, coaches wanted

With Basketball Association of the Northern Mariana Islands participating in two regional competitions this year, a series of tryouts will be held and coaches are wanted .

First up for BANMI is the U17 Micronesian Basketball Tournament, which Saipan will be hosting from May 7 to 12. Then in July, BANMI will also participate in the 2012 Micronesian Basketball Tournament (open division) in Guam.

BANMI vice president Elias Rangamar in a telephone interview with Saipan Tribune yesterday said that they will first hold tryouts for the U17 competition and these will start this Saturday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium. The weekend tryout will run from 12pm to 2pm.

“We will hold the tryouts every Saturday for now, until we have the needed numbers and then announce the dates for the regular training sessions,” Rangamar said.

Last year during the U15 MBT that Palau hosted, each nation were allowed to bring a 12-player roster, but the CNMI had only 10 players. Connie Camacho coached the team and was assisted by Lia Rangamar and the squad went on to finish second behind Guam.

This year, BANMI is looking for one coach each for the U17 and women’s squads and the selected individual swill hold the posts for two years.

BANMI in a press statement said they are looking for coaches who will lead in the organizational, technical, tactical, physical, and emotional development of players named to women’s 17 Under Junor National and open women’s program. The selected coaches must design and implement high quality training and competitive program with the ultimate aim of developing players who are capable of performing at a high level.

Interested individuals for the positions should at least hold a Level 1 coaching certificate or willing to take the Level 1 course and have a background in playing the sport, coaching, and evaluating players. Application forms are available at the office of BANMI secretary general Michael White at the JCT Building in Susupe or can be obtained from Rangamar. Deadline for submission of application form is set for Jan. 23, while interviews will be conducted at the end of the month.

Coaches and players selected for the U17 competition will battle teams from Guam, Palau, and Yap. The U17 caging on Saipan is for west division island-nations, while host Marshall Islands, Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Chuuk will have their own competition for the east side. Then all teams in the west and east groups will head to Guam for the MBT open contest.

MBT competitions are made possible after the revival of the Micronesian Basketball Confederation in Palau during the 2010 Micronesian Games. The group scheduled competitions for four years (2011 to 2014), culminating with the 2014 Micronesian Games in Pohnpei. In 2013, three more events will be held with the east and west divisions having separate U15 tournaments and then all member-countries will compete in the U19 regional contest. Venues and dates for the 2013 competitions have yet to be announced.

For more information about MBT, tryouts, and coaches application form, contact Rangamar at 234-1775 or vial email at eliasrangamar@hotmail.com.