Diane Mattison, Kyle Wright and Wes Wright, from left, sort out the jerseys for the brand-new Picture Rocks Pride youth basketball team. The jerseys were presented to the team members earlier this month during a meeting of a Picture Rocks community group.

Will Seberger/ Special to the Arizona Daily Star

Other articles by Brian J. Pedersen:

Ground under road, park projects rich in history Kids' desert tips for newcomers Candidate charges conflict of interest Cops catch speeders in Thornydale work zone Ex-assistant chief's hearing to start Only Democratic candidates show up at District 25 debate Foothills swath chilly to annexing Luxury living takes long-range planning Paving of critical route nearly done Catalina Foothills annexation proposal likely over before it starts

General
CORT
WAREHOUSE/DRIVER General
CORT
Warehouse Supervisor Education
Assessment Technology, Inc
Social Studies Content Writer Health Care
Rio Salado College
PA's/Online Instructors Construction
Komatsu Equipment Co
Mechanic

A blue-and-white mesh tank top has brought legitimacy to the Picture Rocks Pride, at least in the eyes of one team member.

"I think this makes this a little bit more of a team," Veronica Labonte, 14, said of the uniform she received last week as a member of the Picture Rocks Pride youth basketball team.

Labonte and her twin sister, Monica, are two of the roughly 30 kids ranging in age from 9 to 17 who for the past few months have been regularly taking to the outdoor courts at the Picture Rocks Community Center, 9515 N. Sanders Road. Both will attempt to make the freshman girls basketball team at Marana High School this winter.

The Pride is coached by Josh Mattison, 26, a 1998 Marana High grad and basketball star who went on to play at Central Arizona College and then Texas-San Antonio.

Now owner of Picture Rocks Realty, Mattison and 26-year-old Benny Twilegar, owner of local restaurant Benny's Café, each put up $230 to pay for the team's jerseys. The new jerseys were presented to the players during the July 18 meeting of the Citizens for Picture Rocks community activist group.

"I think they're cool," 9-year-old Tianna Valerio said of the reversible uniform tops, for which she helped pick the colors.

If not for the basketball team, "we'd probably be sitting at home," said Monica Labonte, referring to the lack of recreational options in Picture Rocks, a collection of homes west of the Tucson Mountains along North Sandario Road.

"It's so much nicer to have them here," said Wanda Crawford, coordinator at Picture Rocks Community Center.

Mattison said when he was growing up in Picture Rocks he had to go to open gym sessions at Marana High or Marana Junior High to be able to stay active. He said having something organized for the local kids is important, and he hopes to soon be able to get his team some opportunities to play teams from other area community centers.

"Whenever we can get into the high school (gym), that's great, but even playing at the park here is cool," Mattison said. "Instead of going out and getting into trouble, they're coming here."

How competitive the Pride will be against other teams is unknown, but for most of the participants it's all about getting a chance to play and have fun.

"I kinda got bored just sitting around," said Richard Defour, 15, who says he will play football at Marana High when he starts there next month. "It's something to do if I don't have football practice. We're out here every day. We were out here today before the storms hit."