{"id":178486,"date":"2025-07-29T13:09:07","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T18:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/?p=178486"},"modified":"2025-07-29T13:22:52","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T18:22:52","slug":"cronkite-news-stars-shine-at-native-american-basketball-invitational","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/29\/cronkite-news-stars-shine-at-native-american-basketball-invitational\/","title":{"rendered":"Cronkite News: Stars shine at Native American Basketball Invitational"},"content":{"rendered":" \"Hannah<\/a>
Hannah Quintero shoots a 3-pointer during the opening round of pool play against the Lady Akichita at Alhambra High School during the Native American Basketball Invitational in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo by Travis Bradley \/ Cronkite News<\/figcaption>\r\n
From Arizona to Alaska, Native youth shine at nation\u2019s largest all-Indigenous basketball tournament<\/div>\r\n
Tuesday, July 29, 2025<\/div>\r\n
By Travis Bradley<\/div>\r\n
Cronkite News<\/DIV>\r\n
cronkitenews.azpbs.org<\/A><\/DIV>\r\n

<\/p>\r\nPHOENIX — One thing is for certain, when the Native American Basketball Invitational<\/a> (NABI) comes to town, there are no shortages of fascinating storylines and compelling narratives to explore.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nThe 22nd annual all-Native basketball tournament — the largest of its kind in North America — brought more than 200 teams from across the United States to several Valley arenas last week. The tournament is not simply about basketball; it is also about celebrating cultural diversity, Native identities and heritage.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nWith over 160 tribal nations represented across both the girls and boys divisions, high school and soon-to-be college athletes took to the courts to hopefully distinguish themselves as the best Native basketball teams in the country.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nFrom the Athabascan tribes of Alaska to the Otoe-Missouria of Oklahoma, basketball reigns as one of the premier sports for Native youth.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

New faces, same expectations<\/div>\r\n\r\nMore than 80 of the teams in the 2025 NABI tournament were representatives of the 22 federally recognized tribes in Arizona.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nThe Spartans, a boys division team composed of young Navajo and Mohave players from Northern Arizona, were led into the tournament by Farin Nez, who recently took over the coaching position.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nNez said the Spartans were united under the cause of making their former coach Samuel David proud. David, a \u201clifelong friend\u201d to Nez, died in July.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cCoach Sam really put a good foundation underneath them, such as rebounding and trust moving the ball,\u201d said Nez, tears welling in his eyes as he reminisced about his now-deceased mentor. \u201cThis is our first tournament since his passing, and I\u2019m just trying to continue what he started.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\nThe Spartans were led offensively by Jacoby Che, a 14-year-old point guard. Che is Navajo from Winslow, Arizona, and he\u2019s heading into ninth grade in the fall.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nDespite his stature and youth, Che\u2019s offensive output led the Spartans to the second round of tournament play before eventually falling to the Snowbirds of the Native Village of Scammon Bay in Alaska.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cWe learned to play more physically because we\u2019re always playing against bigger, older guys.\u201d Che said.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nChe will team up with several of the Spartan players this winter once the high school basketball season begins.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n \"Spartans<\/a>

The Spartans defeated War Paint at the Phoenix College gymnasium, 61-18, in the Native American Basketball Invitational in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo by Travis Bradley \/ Cronkite News<\/figcaption>\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

Age-old rivalries are renewed<\/div>\r\n\r\nWith basketball as prevalent as it is throughout the Native tribes in Arizona, it can be difficult to isolate just one roster of talented players per tribe.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nThe White Mountain Apache Tribe had five teams representing their community in the girls division, and another nine teams in the boys division.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nAfter a last-second victory over the Lady Akichita from North Dakota last Wednesday, WMA Squad coach Tyrell Clawson said that one motivating factor for the players was the opportunity to compete against teammates and high school rivals from other White Mountain teams at a national level.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cThey support each other, the communities are always behind them, and there\u2019s some really big crowds here to watch,\u201d Clawson said.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nClawson is only 25, and this is his first season as a head basketball coach. With the way his team responded to his direction, it was impossible to tell that he was one of the least-experienced coaches in the tournament.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nClawson attributed the sisterhood between teammates as an essential part of the team\u2019s success in the early stages of pool play. Though they lost in the first round of the tournament 41-37, the female athletes remained united by their common love for the game.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cThey always encourage each other,\u201d Clawson said. \u201cBefore, they came as teammates, now they\u2019re basically a family.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\n \"Rezbombers\"<\/a>

Rezbombers coach Brian Kaye addresses his team during halftime of a pool play game at Central High School in Phoenix, Arizona, on July 24, 2025. Photo by Travis Bradley \/ Cronkite News<\/figcaption>\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

A dynasty is forged<\/div>\r\n\r\nNo team has had nearly the same success in the recent years of the tournament as the Rezbombers in the girls division.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nRepresented by athletes from the Navajo Nation, Samoan, Laguna Pueblo, Hualapai, Paiute and Oglala Sioux tribes, the players barrelled through much of their competition last week, posting scores as lopsided as 110-20 throughout pool and tournament play.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nRezbombers coach Brian Kaye brings a level of intensity to the game that is often unmatched by his opponents. Having won the tournament in 2024, he knew there was a very narrow margin of error for the players if they wanted to become repeat champions.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cThis is by far the biggest tournament we\u2019ll play in this year, and we take extreme pride in playing in this tournament,\u201d Kaye said. \u201cIt\u2019s one way for us to represent our culture, and we just want outsiders to know that Native Americans can play basketball.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\nKaye said that the main ingredient for the team\u2019s success is discipline, especially on the defensive side of the ball. And when you\u2019re beating a team 75-5 in pool play, it goes without saying that the players maintained that discipline throughout the tournament.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nLed mainly by the Benally sisters, Sydney and Kaiyah, the Rezbombers surged their way to the championship on Saturday evening, claiming their third NABI title since 2022.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nKaiyah, the younger of the two sisters, is a 5-foot-6 point guard and one of the most talented female basketball players in New Mexico. Her older sister, Sydney, is a two-time New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year, and she\u2019s heading to BYU in the fall to join the Cougars\u2019 women\u2019s basketball team.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cIt means a lot (to play in this tournament),\u201d Sydney said. \u201cNot only am I playing with such great players, but I\u2019m playing with my sister one last time before I head off to college.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\nWhen the trio of Kaye and the two Benally sisters were asked what it meant to them to play together one last time, their answers were all the same:\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s been a blessing\u201d they said, echoing the theme that was prevalent throughout Valley arenas.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nFor more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org<\/A>.<\/STRONG>\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News<\/a>. It is published via a Creative Commons license<\/A>. Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication<\/A> at Arizona State University<\/A>.<\/EM>
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