How do you describe the conclusion of the 2025 grassroots season in New England?
It was wild, it was unpredictable and some championship hardware came back to the region.
The AAU campaign ended with two July championship weekend live periods, as New England programs traveled all over the country in search of glory and standout performances in front of college coaches. There was plenty to take in from a regional perspective. Most programs finished their summers with circuit championship tournaments during the July 17-20 period, and several had memorable runs.
For the Class of 2026 recruits, this weekend marked the end of their AAU chapters. Several closed the book with amazing memories. Here are four takeaways from the final live period of the summer.
Championship glory
The MADE Hoops circuit championships enjoyed a strong taste of New England flavor. Team White Mamba claimed the 16U championship with a win over Uptown Basketball before Team New England took home the 15U crown with a victory over Swish down in Baltimore, Md.
White Mamba showed serious resilience in winning their trophy. Head coach Mike Perry’s group battled back from 19 down in the championship game to complete their mission of winning five games in three days to win the championship. Raul Cruz (Dorchester, Mass.) was named the tournament MVP, while Hunter Peabody (Andover, Mass.), Jack Mullins (Westwood, Mass.) and Mamadou Camara (Salem, Mass.) were all key contributors in the run.
Team New England, the top seed in the 15U bracket, made no mistake in claiming hardware. Led by coach Joseph “Ladi” Odugbela, they beat two New England teams – Team White Mamba and then the Boston Spartans in the semifinals – before winning the title. Modu Abdul, a 6-foot-7 forward for South Kent, won MVP honors while Kyle Delves (Providence, R.I.) and John Ramos (Providence, R.I.) played big roles.
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Surprise run for Expressions
There may have been no better Cinderella story nationally during the final live period weekend than Expressions Elite’s 17U team, which made an unlikely run to the Peach Jam semifinals on the Nike circuit. Todd Quarles’ group had work to do in the first live weekend to even qualify for the prestigious tournament, and once there, they played with house money. Expressions entered Peach Jam ranked 21st out of 24 qualified teams, but it didn’t matter. They won their first three pool play games – including knocking off No. 1-ranked overall recruit Tyran Stokes and Oakland Soldiers – as they finished in the top two of their group to advance to the quarterfinals.
In their quarterfinal game, Expressions lost big man Nicolas Mitrovic to an early injury but rallied to beat Pro Skills in a dramatic, back-and-forth thriller. Ater Maker Bol Meen had a huge sequence in the final seconds, scoring a go-ahead putback before deflecting the ensuing inbounds pass to help seal the victory. A group of CATS Academy standouts – including Desmond Bellot (Boston, Mass.), Jaylin Williams-Crawford (Boston, Mass.) and Jaxson Terry (Acton, Mass.) – in addition to stock-riser Cam Hailey (Dorchester, Mass.) all had monster weeks to push Expressions to the semifinals, and helped their recruitment in the process.
This Expressions team started the spring with nationally-ranked stars Abdou Toure (West Haven, Conn.) and Patrick Otey (Westwood, Mass.) in addition to Jaylen Hunter-Coleman (Boston, Mass.), but they each left the program for their own reasons. Expressions had an inconsistent spring, but Quarles got his group playing their best at the right time. The longtime program director has to feel satisfied.
Final Fours galore for Middlesex Magic
The depth of Michael Crotty’s program was on display on a national level over the final two weekends. His top Under Armour 17U team, in addition to the HGSL (Hoop Group Showcase League) 17U team, UAA 15U team, HGAL 17U (Hoop Group Academic League) team, HGAL 16U team and HGAL 15U team were among the program’s squads that made at least the semifinals of their respective circuits.
Crotty’s top 17U squad – which was one of the favorites entering the Under Armour finals – certainly wanted more, but bowed out in the semifinals to Team Thrill in a wild ending. The Magic battled back from an early double-digit deficit to take the lead in the fourth quarter, and trailed by one with four seconds left. That’s when Ryan Moesch received an inbounds pass, made a move down the baseline but was ruled to step out of bounds. Video of the play appears to show that Moesch didn’t go out, but the questionable call led to the heartbreaking 62-61 loss.
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Crotty was proud of the way his group responded the next morning to win the third-place game as his group finished the season with a strong 27-6 record. Moesch – who received his first high-major offer during the final live period from Providence – was terrific, while Quinn Costello (Medford, Mass.), Chinedu Okpara and Ty Tabales (Worcester, Mass.) were all major factors in the Magic’s run. Declan Griffiths (Simsbury, Conn.) was called up to the 17U team from the 16U squad and also made an impact, scoring 19 points on five 3-pointers in a showcase game.
Lambros Papalambros’ 17U Hoop Group team – the Magic’s de facto second 17U team – nearly pulled off a second consecutive championship during the first July live period. After entering July ranked eighth in the HGSL standings, the Magic made a great run in Spooky Nook that fell just short in the championship game to AKT. Lateef Afolabi (Dorchester, Mass.) and Brady O’Connell (Bedford, N.H.) each continued their stock-rising seasons with strong July performances.
Character finish for BABC
July did not go as BABC’s 17U squad dreamed it would. Leo Papile’s group entered the month with a 34-0 record, and despite Amir Jenkins (Worcester, Mass.) – who committed to West Virginia on July 1 – sticking around, winning a championship at the Adidas Palmetto Road Championships in Rock Hill, S.C., was not in the cards. Jenkins’ 28 points in the quarterfinals, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to send the game to overtime, was ultimately not enough to advance.
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But despite that disappointment, BABC’s didn’t fold the following weekend in its last tournament and final live period of the summer, the Earn Your Stripes Invitational in Ladera Ranch, Calif. With Jenkins gone, BABC entered with only six bodies, and Abdou Toure missed time with an injury. A group led by Alex Egbuonu (Nashua, N.H.), Chase Geremia (Madison, Conn.), Tahlan Pettway (Worcester, Mass.) and Hunter Te Retana pushed BABC to the semifinals of the tournament, where Toure returned to score 28 points. BABC finished the season with a 40-4 record as it stamped itself as one of the best grassroots teams in the country.
