Maine Hoops "Home for Mother's Day" Bracket Buster Event! Divisions

Good Morning,

I wanted to take a quick moment to recognize the "angst" the Running time Foul Shooting rule we used yesterday and the reasoning behind it. First, I want acknowledge that it went to far in terms of taking away from the game it was intended to help and for that I apologize.

Having done this for close to 30 years and playing in hundreds of events, my issue with running time has always surrounded foul shots and the amount of time it wastes in terms of players getting actual playing time. Substitutions are frequent during this time and literally 30-45 seconds of playing time go by with each shooting foul. Add 4-5 times in a half and precious playing time is lost. I actually use to call my timeouts during foul shots to preserve playing time. Running time is great to keep teams on schedule but not so much for player development.

It is important to stay on schedule during Bracket Buster events,which is why we make the switch for those events.I did some research and a couple of different way to address the "Foul Shooting" dilemma came up. I landed on yesterdays rule because those who have used it, said it cleaned up the game in terms of teams playing proper defense and rewarded those teams for doing so. Also, since both teams are playing by the same rule there was no "advantage" to either team other than playing defense correctly.

In retrospect, it created too much of a "change" in the game and without a better explanation from me, created way too much stress on officials, coaches and fans. There are other options, 1 point and the ball possions, 2 points change possession, 15 maximum seconds run off on the clock, etc.. Personally from a teaching/coaching point of view, I still really like the rule, but I needed to do a better job of consulting others before making such a change. My apologies again.

I hope everyone is able to have a great Mother's Day and I wish all the moms a Happy Mother's Day.

Lenny

There has been a location change for the Varsity Boys Division due to officials availability. The Games are at the same time but at Maine Sports Arena in Saco. Thank you and consult the schedule for the changes.

Also, Game 6 Girls High School Championship will now be played on Court 1 not Court 2.

This is the final group notification regarding the tournament schedule. There were very few adjustments from the previous version, but please take a moment to review the schedule carefully. If any additional issues arise, you will be contacted directly.

📱 Tournament App – Highly Recommended
We strongly encourage all teams to ask their parents to download the Maine Hoops Tournament App. This is the best way to stay up to date with:

Schedule updates
Game scores
Bracket progressions
Important tournament announcements
Teams and clubs that use the app consistently have found it extremely helpful throughout the weekend.

To download:
Search “Exposure Basketball – Maine Hoops Tournaments” in your App Store.

Reminder:
➡️ Don’t leave home without checking your schedule!

🏆 Brackets & Tournament Format
Please review the brackets carefully to understand how your team may advance.

Your game times will update automatically once results are entered. These updates will appear on both the app and the schedule link.

We will be awarding Championship T-Shirts to all brackets.

🔍 Understanding the Brackets (Bracketology)
Within each bracket you will see:

Game Numbers – identifying each specific game.

Pool Placement Placeholders – examples like:
• 2nd in Pool C → the team that finishes 2nd in Pool C after Pool Play.

Outcome Placeholders – examples like:
• W1 → Winner of Game 1 advances to that spot
• L1 → Loser of Game 1 moves to that position

Once scores are entered, the bracket will automatically update, showing where teams advance.

You can view the brackets:

At the bottom of the schedule page
On the Tournament App

🔁 Consolation Games
Every team is guaranteed a minimum of 2 games. However, to ensure this some teams who are the losers bracket will get a 3rd game to make sure everyone gets at least 2 games, please check brackets carefully.

If your team is scheduled for a consolation game, please honor that game.

There is NOTHING more frustrating in tournament basketball than waiting for a scheduled game only to have the opponent not show. Please respect the schedule and the other teams participating.

➡️ Please don’t be that team.

4th Grade Girls - Please note since there is no Bracket, the team that finishes first in the play will receive the championship T-Shirts.

📊 Scores & Questions
Game scores are reported to Tournament Director Mike Tatro.
Occasionally a score is entered incorrectly, so please review your game results.

If you notice an incorrect score, contact Mike immediately.

📞 Mike Tatro
Text or Call: 207-590-6269

Mike should also be your first point of contact for general tournament questions.

📋 Game Rules
You can review the tournament rules here:

Maine Hoops Bracket Buster Game Rules

📝 Scorer’s Table Responsibilities
Each team must provide one person for the scorer’s table.

If teams cannot agree:

Home Team → Official Scorebook
Away Team → Game Clock
One table worker per team receives free admission for the weekend.

Trust us — you probably have a parent who would gladly volunteer for that!

🏟 Gym Opening Times
In most cases, gyms will not open until approximately 30 minutes before the first scheduled game.

Please communicate this to your players and families so they plan accordingly.

🎟 Admission
One-Day Pass

Adults: $12
Seniors & Youth: $8
Admission is valid for all games at all tournament sites.

Credit cards or exact cash are appreciated.

📅 Schedule Link
You can access the full schedule here:

Maine Hoops Home for Mother's Day Bracket Buster Schedule

We’re looking forward to an exciting weekend of basketball. Thank you for your cooperation and good luck to all teams competing!

See you at the gym.

Lenny
Maine Hoops

Good Evening,

I am not going to take a lot of your time as yesterday's email explained most of the weekend. You will get a Final Schedule with Notes tomorrow evening. I did want to say that there were WAY more changes then I anticipated. So PLEASE check your Brackets and Schedules again. A reminder the EASIEST way to do this is by downloading the Maine Hoops Exposure Basketball app.

Here is the link again and I hope that there will be very few changes tomorrow.

Maine Hoops - "Home for Mother's Day" Bracket Buster

I wanted to share with you the first draft of the Bracket Buster Schedule.

Here are the links to the schedule, you can find the Brackets at the end of the schedule page. The best way to see the Brackets is on the Maine Hoops Exposure App.

Click Here for Maine Hoops "Home for Mother Day" Saturday Bracket Buster

As a reminder everyone is guaranteed 2 games each day, however, often times even in a consolation round someone might get a 3rd game, so it's important to know how to read the brackets. Here is what you need to know:

Bracketology (How to Read the Brackets)
This event uses a championship bracket format, meaning teams advance based on game results.

Within each bracket you will see:

• Game Numbers – These identify the specific game in the bracket.
• Outcome Placeholders – These show how teams advance.

Examples:
• W1 = Winner of Game 1 moves to that spot
• L1 = Loser of Game 1 moves to that spot
• W2 = Winner of Game 2 advances

Once scores are reported, the brackets will automatically update, showing where teams move next.

This is why we strongly encourage everyone to download the Maine Hoops Exposure Basketball App, where bracket updates and scores will appear almost immediately after they are entered.

Click Here for Maine Hoops Bracket Buster Game Rules

Please note our new "Running Time Foul Shooting Rules" This will ensure everyone gets a maximum of the time on the floor.

As I have mentioned Bracket Busters are great fun and we have some great specially made T-Shirts for the winners, BUT we don't have the ability, time or space to "Fix" the schedule with requests that is simply the tradeoff.

I will send a Final Schedule either on Wednesday or Thursday.