MADISON TWP. — Madison High School girls basketball coach Tommy McGuire was embraced by Waynesville’s Maggie Stephenson after the third annual Southwest Fall Basketball League All-Star game wrapped up Sunday night.
McGuire then got confirmation from Lakota East’s Addyson Johnson that if all things line up, she’ll be back for a third time next year.
“That’s why we put this together,” said McGuire, who has helped organize the five-week Sunday fall event with Mohawks co-coach and father Brian McGuire and assistant Robyn Meinking. “It tells us that we’re doing something right with creating a good atmosphere, a fun times, but also with some competitiveness.”
The trio kickstarted the league in 2021 with six teams and roughly 50 players, and it grew to 58 players the following year.
This most recent session had 68 girls participate — including players from Madison, Lakota East, Lakota West and Monroe.
“We want the kids to have a good experience,” Tommy McGuire said. “This is what it’s all about — to get the kids ready for the high school season and knock the rust off from the shutdown in August.
“They make a lot of friends from meeting other kids they usually don’t see throughout the season. It’s cool to see them build those relationships. We want it to be a cool experience for all of them, and it is for us coaches, too. You see names in the paper and on social media — but now you can put a face to a lot of those names.”
McGuire said as long as the interest is there and the staff is available to put on the league a fourth year in 2024, it’s going to happen.
“Selfishly, it’s great for our players,” McGuire said. “They get to see a lot of good competition from girls they usually don’t play against. We like to get our kids in the gym and play. It’s organized with good officials — so you’re not just looking at this as a random open gym on a Sunday. This is some good basketball.
“We find little things each year to tweak to make it better.”
Johnson said seeing the extra competition is beneficial for when the 2023-24 prep hoops season begins.
“It’s a good opportunity to stay in shape,” said Johnson, who is a junior guard for the Thunderhawks. “The season is coming up close. This gives me a chance to try things that I may not be used to doing in games during the regular season or struggling with. I feel like I want to shoot more. I’m going to try and improve on that.
“But I’m pretty sure I’m coming back next year for this.”
The fall league saw other participants from Preble Shawnee, Middletown Christian, Alter, Springboro, Clinton Massie, Carlisle, Valley View, Dixie, Waynesville, Tri County North, Mason, Franklin, Anderson, Tri Village, Eaton, National Trail and Fenwick.
For more information on the Southwest Fall Basketball League, visit https://southwestfallbball.org.
