In the battle of neighborhood hoop squads, Dorchester came out on top in the highly anticipated Crew Love basketball tournament in Harambee Park the weekend of Aug. 10-11. The showcase games of hoops talent, now in its 12th year,
brings with it neighborhood braggin’ rights – and both the men and women teams took the trophy over their Roxbury rivals. The Mattapan men got it done, too, against Hyde Park for the second year.

For the Dorchester men, the win puts the rivalry series at 2-2 with two “no contests.”

Big man KC Ugwuakazi slams one home during men’s tournament play on Sat., Aug.10. A Boston product, Ugwuakazi is headed into his sophomore year playing for Division 1 Texas A&M-Commerce.

Dorchester’s Araion Bradshaw pushes ahead of a Roxbury defender late in the game. Bradshaw, a former standout at Dayton and South Carolina Universities, collected MVP honors for the game.

The Dorchester women won their fourth title over Roxbury, with stars like former Dayton Flyer standout guard Araion Bradshaw leading the charge and collecting the game MVP. The final score for the well-attended contest was 66-34, with former Archbishop Williams High and Fordham University standout Asiah ‘Little Suzi’ Dingle also putting on a strong show for the unstoppable Dot ladies.

For the traditional Crew Love tournament, a new team emerged – Member’s Only – and won the title in their first year out. They were led by Keyon Jones, who was the MVP of the overall tournament and a key player on the men’s team. Dorchester’s Jones was a standout player at New Mexico State prior to the pandemic, helping them win two Western Athletic Conference (WAC) titles in 2018 and 2019 using skills that showed in the ‘Shooter’s Clinic’ that he put on all weekend from beyond the three-point line and with mid-range jumpers.

Organizer Jay Branch, of Mathmatik Clothing, said the tournament was very competitive this year, and the vibe all weekend was top-notch. Host Robert Blue, of Roxbury, once again provided the play-by-play and no-holds-barred narration.

Crew Love, put on by Broz 4 Lyfe and Mathmatik Clothing, has been ongoing around the city for many years, but settled in Franklin Field several years ago, becoming a summer staple for high-quality hoops and neighborhood legends.

It was founded and is still maintained by life-long friends Ceasar Veal, Greg Jean, Andrew Angus, Richard Nichols, Phil Bell, Jay Branch, and Philip Jean.

On the Dorchester women’s squad, Asiah ‘Little Suzi’ Dingle maneuvers past a Roxbury defender.

Natalia Hall-Rosa goes up for two to push Dorchester further ahead. Hall-Rosa is widely believed to be one of the top talents in New England coming out of high school.

Vanessa Udoji, a former Howard University player, goes up for two to help Dorchester’s cause.