The Bayonne Board of Education has formed a travel basketball program for boys and girls in grades 6, 7 and 8. The Jr. Bees program began in early March and will run through the middle of May. There are 30 boys involved on two boys’ teams and 15 girls on the girls’ team. All teams compete in Elite Travel and AAU basketball tournaments throughout North Jersey and New York City.
The program is coordinated by Jr. Bees Boys’ 8th grade coach Steve Russell. The Jr. Bees 6th and 7th grade Boys Team is coached by J.J. Haladik, and the Jr. Bees Girls Team coaches are Jamie Smith and Tara Furmaniak. The Jr. Bees program’s philosophy is to develop solid fundamentals, skill development and team basketball. The program exposes players to top competition against elite players in order to prepare players to play at the high school level.