Team 23

Team 23
Leagues The Basketball Tournament
Founded 2015
History Team 23
(2015–present)
Location Phoenix, Arizona
Team colors Crimson, Black, and Grey
              
Team manager Michael Illiano
Head coach Ron Katich
Website Team page
Uniforms

Team 23 is an American basketball team that competes in The Basketball Tournament (TBT), an annual winner-take-all competition. They played in the West Region in 2015, their inaugural year of existence. The team is managed by pro–am league director and Phoenix, Arizona native, Michael Illiano. It is coached by fellow Arizonian Ron Katich. Team 23 made the TBT semifinals in 2015 as the lowest-ranked seed.[1]

History

After being accepted into TBT 2015 with 165 registered fans, Team 23 opened its tournament run by defeating the West Coast Ronin, 91–67. The team pulled off a second double-digit win in the second round, vs. Richard Roby and Colorado, behind 28 points from Davin White. White was effective once more as Team 23 routed Team BBallBreakdown in the following game, 86–72, pushing them to the Super 17 round in Chicago.

At the Super 17, Team 23 defeated 7outz, 105–64, in their first game, allowing only two of their opponents' players to score over 10 points.[2] Team 23 made the semifinal round of the tournament after they won their fifth straight game by double figures. The losers, LAUNFD, missed one of their players, Ekene Ibekwe, and allowed Team 23 to score 11 straight points to begin the second half.[3]

Team 23 entered the semifinals as the most efficient team of the tournament.[4] In New York City on August 1, they defeated Ants Alumni, 87–76, to advance to the championship game.[5] In the finals on August 2, Team 23 narrowly fell to Overseas Elite, 67–65.[6]

Logo and uniforms

Roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Team 23 roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHt.Wt.Age
SF 2 United States Gabbidon, Travis 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 32 – (1986-02-09)9 February 1986
C 6 United States Andrews, Zach 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (100 kg) 33 – (1985-03-09)9 March 1985
SG 8 United States Scales, Alex 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 40 – (1978-07-03)3 July 1978
PG 11 United States White, Davin 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 36 – (1981-12-31)31 December 1981
PG 13 United States Wells, Marcus 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 28 – (1990-01-19)19 January 1990
SF 15 United States Owens, Larry 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 35 – (1983-01-08)8 January 1983
SG 16 United States Sandoval, Gabriel 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 37 – (1981-03-27)27 March 1981
SF 21 United States Kelly, Andrew 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 27 – (1991-03-23)23 March 1991
PF 24 United States Pederson, Dwight 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 29 – (1989-04-16)16 April 1989
C 34 Nigeria Okosun, Augustine 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (110 kg) 32 – (1986-07-04)4 July 1986
Head coach
  • United States Ron Katich
Team manager
  • United States Michael Illiano
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured
Updated: August 1, 2015

References

  1. ↑ "Team 23". The Basketball Tournament. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
  2. ↑ "Official Basketball Box Score: Team 23 vs 7outz". Imageshack. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
  3. ↑ "2015 Bracket". The Basketball Tournament. Archived from the original on 17 July 2015. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
  4. ↑ "The Basketball Tournament Rosters: Meet The Final 4 Teams". Heavy.com. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
  5. ↑ "Overseas Elite's Semifinal Win Over Team City Of Gods (Photos)". thetournament.com. August 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
  6. ↑ Connor, Desmond (August 3, 2015). "Overseas Elite Brings It Home". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. p. C3. Retrieved July 29, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
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