Basketball - Travel
The Berkeley Heights PAL offers travel basketball programs for both boys and girls during the winter season.
Please contact Rob Schmidt at rschmidt@bhpal.org for more information.
Objective
The travel program is designed for those boys and girls who have the desire and willingness to practice, learn, and compete at a higher level against boys and girls of similar ages from other towns, while fostering an environment of instruction and teamwork and promoting safety and sportsmanship similar to that of the in-town program.
While the travel program is more competitive than the in-town program, the travel program is intended to become more competitive as the boys and girls progress from 4th grade through 8th grade.
A higher level of commitment and cooperation is required from both the kids and their parents.
Tryouts
Tryouts are utilized to determine all grade level teams based on the number of boys and girls who register. Tryouts will be held two nights per grade. Tryouts will be conducted by independent evaluators. Current coaches and parents will not be able to observe the tryouts. Independent evaluators may elect to reach out to the Berkeley Heights Commissioners to seek input, if necessary.
While the travel program is best suited for those interested in a higher level of competition and not every tryout participant is guaranteed to make a team, the more boys and girls that tryout the more teams can be made at various skill levels.
Ages
Grades 4-8
Boys and girls are not allowed to play up in age/grade unless there is no team in their age/grade level. In no event will a boy or girl play down in age/grade.
When
Late November through early March, with optional practices starting in October.
Volunteers
Parent volunteers will serve as the coaches. Ideally there will be a head coach and two assistant coaches, a bench coach as well as a scorekeeper. In addition, travel teams will need a volunteer to maintain the electronic scoreboard for all home games.
Requirement
All girls grades 4th and 5th and boys grades 4th and 8th participating on a travel team are required to play in the In-town recreation league and attend 75 percent of the games or you cannot take a spot on a travel team. There will be no exceptions to this rule.
Commitment
Teams will be entered into a league and tournaments based on the team’s overall skill set and abilities. The boys and girls will receive playing time based on the discretion of the head coach and not all boys and girls will receive equal playing time. However, certain league rules stipulate the amount of playing time and substitution rules which generally require equal playing time during the first half of a game in the earlier grades such as 4th and 5th grade. In addition, coaches may rotate the boys and girls to gain exposure and experience with different positions. Generally, there are multiple league games per week which can either be during the week or on the weekend. The travel program also provides each team with the opportunity to play in one tournament. Given the higher commitment and competitiveness required for the travel program, gym space will be available weekly for coach led practice. Generally speaking, kids and parents should expect at least 1-2 practices and 1-2 games per week.
Frequently Asked Questions
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We are not currently accepting registrations for this program.