VIDEO: Another Great Slamma Jamma Basketball Season

On its 28th year running, Art Leary’s Slamma Jamma Basketball Camp had another successful season with more than 300 kids statewide participating in area week-long clinics. Last week in Branford, the final installment of the five-day basketball camps for kids ages 5 to 14 was held. Though Branford's camp marked the end of the 2011 season, camps were offered throughout the area including East Haven, North Haven and Hamden (click here to learn more).

Branford’s camp, held Aug. 15 to 19 at the Community House was led by Camp Director Al Carfora, who also led the East Haven camp, Aug. 8 to 12. A resident of Branford for the past 20 years, Carfora is an graduate who has been coaching Slamma Jamma in the area for about 15 years.

A former East Haven High School basketball player himself and a past member of the Quinnipiac University basketball team, Carfora brings with him years of experience. On the of the Community House during last week’s camp, he instructed a group of players telling them to keep their heads up when dribbling. “If keeping your head up,” he lectured, “causes you to bounce the ball off your foot, that’s fine with me. I’m OK with that.”

Carfora is currently an area official referee for high school basketball, football and lacrosse games. He is the former East High School basketball head coach and the former Branford High School girls’ basketball assistant coach.

Slamma Jamma was started 28 years ago by Bob Ruderman (head coach at Mattatuck Community College) and Rich Pagliuca (Head Coach at St. Bernard High School).  The camp, which used to run overnight, was moved to Southern Connecticut State University a few year later and that’s when Leary, then Head Coach at SCSU, became a camp partner.  Leary, a college coach for more than 40 years, is now the owner of area camps while Ruderman owns an operates camps in other parts of the state. To learn more about Ruderman’s Slamma Jamma, click here.

Leary, who has won more than 350 games during his career as a head coach at SCSU, stopped by the recent Branford camp to watch the athletes practice. Though this year’s turnout was pretty strong, Leary said the failing economy has declined camp attendance. Branford used to draw about 80 participants and several camp weeks were held, he said. This year, added Leary, 40 to 50 players signed up for the one-week camp. Though attendance had been down overall, Leary said this year the attendance numbers showed improvement and he’s confident they'll continue to rise again next year.

On a mission to spread knowledge of basketball fundamentals like dribbling, shooting, passing and defense, Leary said he’s a proponent of the basketball camp for the younger players. “The idea was to teach the fundamentals of the game,” he shared. “I don’t think it’s any different than any other sport. You see some of these kids in the PGA Tour; they picked up a golf club up at age 3, 4, or 5 and they get a feel for it.” After they learn the fundamentals of basketball, he said, “All you really need is a hoop and ball.”