Get Ready To Slam During The First Annual Mad Hops Basketball Tournament

By Ronald N. Bryant
Editor Columbus POST

Get ready for some serious basketball during the First Annual Mad Hops Tournament set to take place Saturday, May 18th and Sunday, May 19th at THE HOOP located at 4185 E. 5th Ave. Games begin at 10:00am each day.

The Mad Hops "Big Dawg" Tournament will provide an opportunity for the public to witness some great amateur basketball play by players from around the country. A percentage of the proceeds generated from this event will benefit research towards diabetes and the Diabetes Association of America. The event is organized/produced by Down To Earth Public Relations and hosted by Mad Hops, Ltd.

This stellar event will be the first of perhaps many annual tournaments produced by Mad Hops, Ltd. throughout the United States. It is the hope of Mad Hops, Ltd.’s President/CEO, Herbert L. Baldwin, Jr., "To eventually grow the tournament to include a "Family Fun Day." This day would feature events such as live music concerts, mini carnivals and health fairs that would be enjoyable for an entire family."

The "Big Dawg" Tournament will feature a 32 Team double elimination format. The participants will be men aged 23 and above. The teams will be comprised of 7 to 8 players per team. The field of competitors will most likely be avid basketball players as well as fans of the game. Due to online registration made available at MADHOPS.com, a number of participants will be from outside of Ohio.

Mad Hops, Ltd. has been involved locally in the annual Inner City Games (IGC) held at The Ohio State University. Baldwin was drawn to the Inner City Games because of its focus on inner city youth. The mission of ICG Columbus is to provide opportunities for inner-city youth to participate in sports, educational, cultural and community enrichment programs; to build confidence and self-esteem; to encourage youth to say "no" to gangs, drugs and violence and "yes" to hope, learning and life.

Among its many endeavors, the company will donate water bottles to the free basketball clinic hosted by former OSU and NBA basketball star, Dennis Hopson this year. It is Mad Hops, ltd. desire to maintain a high level of visibility within the basketball community and the community at large. "We strongly believes in the old African saying that it takes a village to raise a child. It is crucial that our children have support from their entire community so that we can help them to become positive, goal-oriented individuals. I think every contribution matters no matter how big it is." Baldwin states.

Baldwin, who was born and raised on Columbus’ Southeast Side, understands the need to provide positive leadership to those children who may be disadvantaged socially and financially. "Children need to be around positive role models in order to have the desire to be successful." He says. "They should not be afraid to dream or let anyone tell them that they can’t do something."

SLAM is the number one selling sports magazine on the newsstands in the nation. It has a readership of over 2.1 million readers per issue with a circulation of 225,000. Mad Hops, Ltd. has partnered with SLAM for this event.
Mad Hops, Ltd. views SLAM Magazine as the perfect vehicle to promote its training program along with its growing line of basketball apparel and equipment. Baldwin believes SLAM readers are passionate about not only basketball but also all sports and the culture surrounding the games. "SLAM ‘keeps it real’ with every story it produces and with every athlete it interviews." Baldwin said. "You get the real story behind the glitz and glamour."
The Columbus POST is proud to be the print sponsor for the First Annual Mad Hops "Big Dawg" Basketball Tournament.

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