MIBC
ZGReport heads to Stoneham to talk with the Mass Intensity Basketball Club. The club started with small beginnings in the fall of 2008. The first season for MIBC started with only one boys team, and one girls team. The program had its start in Stoneham, but now finds it’s home base in Malden. Scott Marino started the program with a vision of quality over quantity. He does not believe in growing the program if it means diluting the quality of the coaching and teaching for the kids. The program has grown to 8-10 teams and could easily add more each season – but Scott refuses to dilute the quality of his coaching. He will take a slow approach to make sure the infrastructure of coaching is ready to take on more teams. His goal is to add more competitive teams over the next couple years. Marino points to the quality of his coaching staff as the main reason for the program’s organic growth over the last decade.
Scott’s favorite memory with the program is having players come back to him with news of making their school’s teams. Doesn’t matter if its travel, middle school, JV, or varsity – it’s the same excitement and satisfaction for MIBC to see his players succeed. “My proudest moment(s) as Director of the MIBC Basketball Program happens when current players and former players approach me and tell me of their individual successes on the court and in life and thank me for offering a program to help them achieve their successes.” He points out that most of his players come back and acknowledge their roots.
When asked what the most challenging part of directing a program, Scott points to time management. “The most difficult part about having your own AAU program is managing time during tournament weekends. Also, trying to watch all of your student-athletes games during the weekend tournaments is challenging.” This is also where the program excels. “MIBC Basketball excels in communication with parents and players. Parents are players receive emails before each AAU season begins with an entire practice and game schedule, so they can navigate their already busy lives knowing when, where and what times they need to be present.”
According to Scott, team concepts are what separate MIBC from the others. It’s not all about individual skill sets; it is about applying those skills to the team. “Our mission is to teach young student-athletes to play fundamental basketball at a high level. We believe in giving each student-athlete a firm foundation required to be a strong basketball player. Equally important, our experienced coaches teach their players to use these skills effectively in a team concept.”
Look for MIBC on the ZG Spring 2020 circuit. MIBC has their eyes on cutting down the nets at ZG Finals! #RoadtoZgFinals
For more info on the MIBC program:
@MIBCbasketball
