Season: December to February
Email: RecYouthBB@somdmontgomery.org
Overview: SOMO has three youth recreational basketball leagues, one for each age group.
- Elementary League (Grades 1-5) (min. age is 7)
- Middle School League (Grades 6-8)
- High School League (Grades 9-age 21)
All youth recreational leagues play a “Player Development Unified Basketball Format” which features skill development and Unified game play with Unified Partners of similar age
Coaches assign athletes to teams in each league, with the goal of balancing ability across teams to enhance game play and competition.
Elementary and Middle School teams play half-court 5v5 basketball. High School teams play full-court 5v5 basketball. Normally, the Elementary and Middle School Leagues have 4 teams. The number of High School teams varies from year-to-year.
| Coaches | TBD – Head Coach |
| Season Dates & Times | Practices: Sundays starting 1/7/2024 Practice January 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th. February 11th. Elementary: 11:00 – Noon Middle School: 12:15 – 1:30 High School: 1:45 – 3:00 The Grand Finale: February 18, 2024 |
| Medical & Volunteer Expiration Date | February 26, 2023 The expiration date on an athlete’s Medical form, or a Volunteer’s certification, must be after the above date to participate in the upcoming season. Check athlete status here. Check volunteer status here. |
Equipment: SOMO supplies all equipment needed by the athletes.
Uniform Requirements: Athletes should wear appropriate athletic apparel and tennis shoes. SOMO provides basketball pinnies in each team’s color that are worn over the athlete’s shirt.
Practice Overview:
Location: The Landon School, Perkins Gym, 6101 Wilson Blvd. Bethesda, MD 20817.
Timing: Practice occurs on Sundays. Each League plays in a different time block. Practice starts in mid-December and continues until late February, with a break for Christmas and New Years.
Activities: Practice begins with warm-ups, followed by basketball skills training. Practice concludes with recreational play against another team in the same League.
Grand Finale: The Grand Finale is a Round Robin tournament in each League. While the athletes compete in their age groups, all of our age groups are on campus at the same time while the tournament proceeds in two gyms. Often, athletes cheer on the other teams, in all Leagues, during the tournaments. The Grand Finale includes a Parade of Athletes, awards for all of the athletes, and awards to recognize our graduating long-term Unified Partners and Coaches.
Participation in Other SOMO Sports: Basketball players can participate in other SOMO sports so long as the athlete can maintain full practice participation in all of their sports.
Athlete Participation Contract: Not Required
Volunteers: It takes many volunteers, especially Unified Partners, to run our Youth Recreational Basketball program.