STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The CYO Basketball League held games at the CYO MIV Community Center in Prince’s Bay on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025.

Big passes, big baskets, and big smiles were the order of the day as players competed.

The boys’ 5th-grade St. Clare’s team came out on top over Holy Rosary by a final score of 26-14. Next, the boys’ 3rd-grade St. Clare’s team fell to Holy Family 15-10.

Check out the gallery below for the best photos of the day.

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By: Ray Fisher


Sunday, December 7, 2025 | 11:01 AM

The Brentwood girls basketball team is young and hopeful.

The Spartans aspire to flourish in 2025-26.

“We have a very young team with seven freshmen,” coach Rachel Thomas said. “We expect to be very competitive in our section, leading to another playoff berth.

“We have been concentrating on fundamentals and learning the system. These girls have been working very hard and with a lot of dedication and willingness to push themselves to become better. We see improvements with them individually and as a team every day. We are truly looking forward to a successful, competitive season.”

The Spartans won their final four regular-season games in 2024-25 to end up 6-4 in Section 2-2A and clinch a WPIAL playoff berth.

The Brentwood girls lost to Chartiers-Houston, 51-28, in the first round to finish 8-11 overall. Brentwood also dropped a nonsection decision to the Bucs in its season opener.

Thomas welcomed two returning starters to this year’s team in senior guard Tafsaria Garba Gambari and sophomore forward Emily Schubert.

Two other seniors looking to make an impact are forward Lila Tinker and point guard Emma Thompson, as are Anna Covert, a junior forward, and Delaney Rosing, a junior guard.

Three freshman who will see significant playing time are F/G Ella Dusch, F/G Avery Brendel and point guard Sophia Hilinski.

Rounding out the team are freshman guards Mia Rock, Nyah Williams, Zadira Maxwell and Emma Steinbarger.

“We are so excited to be able to have a JV team this year. We haven’t had a JV team in five years,” Thomas said. “The opportunity for these young ladies to gain valuable game experience in a JV game is very exciting.

“The returning players are very determined and working very hard. Our freshmen complete the team with basketball knowledge and a willingness to learn and a drive to be successful.”

Brentwood was scheduled to play five home games in the month of December.

The Spartans open section play Dec. 19 at home against South Side and Dec. 22 at Fort Cherry.

Tags: Brentwood

After 20 years and over 200 columns, Don Oliver’s “Flies and Lies” is over

As I write this column I am reminded of the saying, “All good things come to an end.” I am saddened, and grateful, to say “Flies and Lies” is coming to end.

It saddens me to know that I will no longer be writing for you. It gladdens my heart to know that I have been able to write 234 columns in nearly 20 years. Having made a full-time move to Tennessee, to be closer to three-fifths of the Wild Bunch, it is time for SWMBO and me to “move on.”

With this last column I want to say thank you to the owners and editors of the Durango Herald and Southern Ute Drum. Without the owners signing my paychecks and the support of numerous editors, I would not have been able to write this column for all these years.

The editors, for the most part, never made large corrections, nor changed the content of what I had written in “Flies and Lies.” If they had questions, and there were some, they did me the courtesy of calling for clarification of my intent, or asked why I had worded a sentence in such a way.

This attitude was a positive way to do business and a great encouragement. Even when I climbed on my short soap box, to pontificate, my thoughts and words almost always passed their scrutiny. To those men and women I say, ‘Thank You.’

Lastly, and most importantly, a huge THANK YOU to everyone who read “Flies and Lies” for all these years. Your encouragement and positive thoughts via texts, emails, phone calls, and word-of-mouth meant the world to me.

When someone disagreed with something I said, usually through a letter to the editor, it was done in a respectful manner, proving, once again, that people who fly fish can disagree, but still be friends.

Maybe the people holding elected office in this “me first” politicized country should pay attention to, and take a lesson from, those that fly fish. Writing “Flies and Lies” has truly been one of the most fun and rewarding ventures I have ever taken on. I will always remember my years with you. I just cannot say THANK YOU enough.

Now, I will once again, for the last time, leave you with my annual politically incorrect statement. I wish everyone Feliz Navidad, Happy Hanukkah, a good Eid al-Adha, and of course, merry Christmas. If none of these fits your beliefs, then may whatever touches your heart with hope be with you all of 2026. Thank you and farewell.

From sports editor to columnist: Thank you to Don Oliver

The Durango Herald wouldn’t be the paper that it is without its columnists, and Don Oliver is a big reason why that statement is true.

I’ve only been at the paper for a little over two years, but I was saddened when Don said he was going to stop writing for us. He’s been an institution in the Sunday paper for two decades. I don’t want to make Don or anyone else reading this feel old, but 20 years ago, George W. Bush was president and the iPhone that some of you are reading this article on didn’t exist. Let’s also just say, I was still in school.

What’s always existed since Don has been writing for us is knowledge, education, wit and an appreciation for all that fishing can bring to someone’s life.

Whether it’s recapping great road trips with his SWMBO, writing about fly fishing with his grandchildren, local fishing spots, or different techniques, Don has consistently written about fishing in this area that has improved many local fishermen’s experiences in the greater Durango area and beyond.

When I got to the Herald a little over two years ago, it was a new experience for me in a new part of the country. Having a dependable columnist like Don was such a blessing to know I could rely on getting his column the same time every month. I also learned a lot about fishing, and Don’s columns have deepened my appreciation for the sport.

Although I’m saddened to see Don go, I’m excited for him to embark on a new adventure in Tennessee, and I’m sure he’ll have some great fishing experiences there just like he’s had here.

Thanks so much to Don.

All of our fishermen reading this, don’t worry, there will be a new fishing columnist for the Herald in the new year.

Best regards,

Bryce Kelly

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Mike Hill kneels at the bed of his son, Jaeden Udean, and peeks under the striped sheets. A shaky stack of shoe boxes scales one of the bedroom’s walls, high enough to cast a shadow. Hill’s head is nowhere to be seen, but the shoes are. He flings them out from under the bed, and they thud across the room. Black high-tops and low-tops with pink laces. Nikes and Adidases.

“He’s got all kinds of shoes,” said Hill, with a grunt. Another Nike shoots out.

Udean, a standout basketball player at DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis, said he keeps other shoes at his friends’ houses. His high school gave him two lockers, he said — one for his jerseys, another for the shoes.

Space can seem like the only limitation for high school hoopers like Udean, whose shoe collection stretches into the dozens of pairs and probably deep into the thousands of dollars. And the shoes seem to just appear, either from brands trying to get products in front of their social media followers, or from coaches as a reward for winning.

Historically, shoe companies have leaned on superstars to sell shoes but are now using high school athletes to be brand ambassadors as the sneakerhead economy descends from a larger marketing shift in amateur sports.

For shoe companies, giving out free kicks can tap into a kid’s local influence. And for the players who are good enough, the shoe game gives them another arena in which to compete, if an unspoken one.

Fans sitting in high school stands from Minneapolis to Rochester may not notice, but the players do. With the 2025-26 boys high school basketball season underway, players admit their eyes are bound to drift from the scoreboard to the floor, just to see if their shoe game got beat. They’re also a bit apprehensive about disclosing where, and who, they got their shoes from.

“If you know, you know,” Udean, a junior guard said, holding back a smile.