Any common sense effort to stop gun violence is greatly needed. With an increasing number of shootings and deaths by ghost guns and other forms of firearms, this country is dealing with a crisis that is impacting big cities as well as small towns across this nation.
The National Association of Each One Teach One, led by Bob McCullough, and the Harlem Congregation for Community Improvement, headed by Dr. Malcolm Punter, collaborated to hold a four-day high school basketball tournament that concluded last weekend to bring greater attention to curbing gun violence in communities throughout New York City.
Held at the Edward A. Reynolds Campus on West 102nd and Amsterdam Avenue, the Each One Teach One Winter Invitational saw eight local schools participate in the event: A. Phillip Randolph, Edward R. Reynolds, Frederick Douglass Academy, Harlem Village Academy, Global Commerce, Manhattan Center, St. Raymond, The Urban Assembly School for Global Commerce.
Manhattan Center, led by tournament MVP Angel Severino’s 30 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals, took the championship, narrowly defeating St. Raymond (Bronx) 63-62. Severino’s late basket put Manhattan Center ahead. St. Raymond had a chance to pull out a victory but missed a potential game-winning shot.
Jaron Bloomfield earned the Sportsmanship award, dropping 18 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.