The competition is stopping in 46 cities this year. Proceeds benefit the CanTeen.
Syracuse, NY -- Thousands of people are descending on the Driver’s Village complex in Cicero this weekend to watch scores of three-on-three outdoor basketball games.
The Gus Macker tournament kicked off Saturday with some 500 men, women and children shooting hoops on Hogan Drive South, between Price Chopper and Driver’s Village in Cicero.
The local tournament is part of a bigger Gus Macker 3-on-3 Basketball All-World Tour, which is stopping in 46 cities and towns across the country this year.
The Friends of the CanTeen, which provides an after-school youth center, is coordinating the local tournament and hopes to raise $15,000 for its operating costs. The center is moving to a permanent home next to Cicero-North Syracuse High School later this year.
Seventy percent of the registration fee of $120 for each team will benefit Friends of the CanTeen. The national Gus Macker organization keeps 30 percent. There are 123 four-person teams competing, said Julie Raddell, local tournament director.
Local businesses and individuals also gave cash donations and in-kind services, such as advertising, signs, use of generators and other items. The presenting sponsors, Driver’s Village and Price Chopper, contributed cash and services totaling $10,000 each, Raddell said.
Other nonprofits, including Cicero United Methodist Church; Boy Scout Troop 157, in North Syracuse; Cicero/Mattydale Lions Club; and North Syracuse Dollars for Scholars are also raising money for their groups by selling water and other products at the tournament, said Raddell, who’s also a member of Friends of The CanTeen.
The Gus Macker tournaments began in the mid-1970s in Michigan and have grown into a nationwide series, providing weekend-long community entertainment and helping groups to raise funds.
Excitement has been bubbling in Cicero for months. The tournament was mentioned at town and school board meetings and other functions. Dance and cheer teams — the Macker Girls and the Macker Cheer Team — were created and have appeared throughout Central New York to promote the tournament.
For the honor of singing the national anthem before each day’s competition, contestants came to audition from as far away as Rochester and Weedsport. Nina Dunlap, 40, of Cicero, was chosen to sing Saturday; Gabrielle George, 15, of Cicero, will sing the national anthem today.
Another vocal performer scheduled for the event is Melissa Brown, 40, of Shortsville.
Syracuse University women’s basketball star Tyler Ash and VIPs from the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame showed up Friday night to give shooting tips.
One man traveled from Florida to play in this weekend’s tournament. Another team came from Buffalo. Others traveled from around the region.
“It’s so exciting,” Raddell said. “Cicero has never had an outdoor basketball tournament of this size. It’s not just going to benefit the Friends of the CanTeen but also local restaurants, businesses and hotels. It’s going to bring a boost to the local economy.”
Contact Catie O’Toole at cotoole@syracuse.com or 470-2134.