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    Paratroopers build camaraderie through recreation

    Paratroopers build camaraderie through recreation

    Photo By Staff Sgt. Joshua Ford | Spc. Brian Jones, a cook with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 82nd Brigade...... read more read more

    Sgt. Joshua R. Ford
    3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division

    CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS BASE SPEICHER, Iraq—Six paratroopers from the 82nd Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, formed an intramural basketball team before they deployed and practiced by playing pick-up games on the basketball courts at Fort Bragg, N.C.

    Soon after forming, they competed in their first tournament only to be eliminated in the first round.

    This didn't discourage the paratroopers. Instead of giving up on the team, they practiced harder and sought a mentor — someone who could bring camaraderie to the group.

    Sgt. 1st Class Mandrell McGill, with Company A, 82nd Brigade Support Battalion, stepped in and whipped the men into shape.

    "We started out slow but after a couple weeks of practicing hard we built good cohesion between each other," said McGill.

    Staff Sgt. Anthony Benjamin, Sgt. Victor Cameron, Spc. Brian Jones, Spc. Anthony Bynum, Spc. Eugene Cross, and Spc. Joshua Casey make up the 82nd Brigade Support Battalion Goosenecks.

    They are from all corners of the United States, and make up a wide range of job skills within their battalion. They are cooks, mechanics and supply sergeants before they are basketball players.

    All of the men have a history in basketball. Some played college ball while others played on the neighborhood court everyday, said Benjamin, who picked jersey number 00 because he said, "That's all you're going to take away when you come to my court, nothing."

    There was one thing teams that played the Goosenecks during the Winter Contingency Operations Base Speicher Basketball League took away from the court – a loss.

    During that season, the Goosenecks went undefeated through the regular season and the playoffs. They won 16 games in a row.

    They also play in the Commander's Cup Basketball Tournament. A 3-on-3 tournament put together by COB Speicher's garrison command.

    The Goosenecks had come a long way from losing their first tournament in the first round at Fort Bragg to going undefeated in the 2006 winter season in Iraq. Now they faced their sister unit in the tournaments championship game. The 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, would prove to be a tough opponent.

    The tournament rules stated that the first team to 12 points wins or whichever team has the highest score at the end of ten minutes wins.

    The Goosenecks and their rivals played hard in what was a very close game.

    The game wound down to the last second when Jones took the game tying shot and missed it, giving the commander's cup to the BSTB.

    "I'm proud of the guys. They played hard. You can't win them all, right?" said McGill.

    "We are coming back during the summer season to win the championship again. This is no big deal. We went to the final round. That's pretty good from where we started off a year ago," said Anthony.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 04.30.2007
    Date Posted: 04.30.2007 10:45
    Story ID: 10179
    Location: TIKRIT, IQ

    Web Views: 493
    Downloads: 423

    PUBLIC DOMAIN