Repeating as a champion is usually a more difficult task than the initial go-around because a previous winner can no longer surprise opponents and teams also gear up for the opportunity to knock off the frontrunner. But none of this mattered Monday afternoon as the Los Angeles Dream Team (LADT) again took top honors at The Rumble In The Bay tournament.

It was a different supporting cast than last year but the centerpiece, 6-foot-10 Renardo Sidney, made his return visit to Santa Clara a successful one as the Los Angeles Dream Team beat Yakima Elite 71-61 in the championship game. Although the Washington Staters had size at 6-10, 6-8 and 6-7, its best players were of the backcourt species. As a result, LADT generally cruised to victory -- this was no redux of Gulliver and the Lilliputians.

But Yakima never surrendered, continuing to battle until the end, this despite having no answer for the skills and athletic ability of Sidney, 6-foot-7 Kawhi Leonard and 6-foot-4 Nigel Carter upfront. Dream Team backcourters Dominique O'Conner and Antonio Biglow, both with quickness to spare, also played solidly.

At the 7:54 mark of the first half, the score favored the southern Californians 18-8. One highlight was a pick-and-roll jam finish by Leonard. At the half, there was an eight-point differential, 30-22.

Yakima closed to five, 35-30, early in the second half and was down by just six points, 49-43, at the 8:15 mark. But the Dream Team extended its lead, doing so with Sidney taking periodic rest breaks.

LADT reached the finals after defeating The Greenline Basketball Club, aka De La Salle High School, 42-38, and this despite Sidney sitting out the entire game. It was apparently decided to rest him as much as possible since the finals would be played soon after this contest. So 'The System' versus 'The Force' never came to fruition. Despite being Sidney-less, the Dream Team jumped out to an 8-0 lead as Greenline wasn't able to generate any good looks at the basket.

It was 16-7 at the 10:00 mark.

But then Greenline finally began clicking. A Jeff Powers three-pointer cut the Los Angeles-ites lead to three, 19-16 with 5:45 on the clock. A Greenline backdoor layup -- sound familiar? -- cut the lead to one, 21-20.

It was 25 apiece at the half.

The Dream Team then jumped out to another lead on a series of dribble-drives and led 36-27 with nine minutes remaining. Greenline closed to four, 37-33 but could get no closer and eventually fell by that margin.

One other squad the Dream Team beat in its march to the championship was High Intensity. Early on it was a matchup between Damon Powell at 6-foot-6 and Sidney, who enjoyed a four inch and multi pounds advantage. Powell persevered, displaying an outside touch with a pair of treys from on top and the left corner respectively.

High Intensity was down by 11 at the half, 28-17.

A Powell tip-in rallied his team to being down by just one at 35-34. The team were tied at 43 at the 7:49 mark.

But the Dream Team held on and eventually won 59-55.

Another game we caught on Monday was a scorcher between the Bay Area Hoosiers and the Bakersfield United Red team. Based on solid play by Aalim Moor and Tim Harris, the Hoosiers enjoyed a 49-34 halftime lead. Moor totaled 10 points on a combination of dribble-drive scores and Harris drilled a pair of three-pointers and slammed down a dunk on a breakaway long rebound.

But Bakersfield failed to fold. In fact, they came roaring back as the Hoosiers began missing more shots than they took, suffered turnovers and became more pliable on defense, allowing baskets and committing fouls leading to free throws.

At the 4:45 mark, the visitors from the valley were down by just two.

The teams were tied at 69-69 and also 71-71. Bakersfield went ahead 73-71 and then 75-71.

Aaron Moore hit one of two free throws to cut the deficit to three, 75-72 with 1:54 remaining but that was the closest the Hoosiers would come as Bakersfield closed out with an 84-78 win..

Sidney simply oozes potential: inside scoring talent, good shooting range, soft hands, a body that can take a hit and still perform. Having typed such, we would actually love to see him matched up with someone of similar size, basketball talent and physical ability. He clearly had no such opponent on Monday.

It was nice to see Aalim Moore not only in a 'quarterbacking' role but also putting up shots, a underexposed talent of his.

Tim Harris showed flashes of his physical ability/basketball skills combination, hopefully putting a less than stellar prep season behind him.

Playing on his future home court on Monday, Niyi Harrison displayed some nice drop steps and at the rim play. It will be interesting if he plays at the 'three' or the 'four' at the next level.

Shaheed Young was another impressive Hoosier. He continuously penetrated into the paint and scored more often than not.

Damon Powell possesses more than major hops but the key to his college success will be his shooting range and consistency.

Yakima's Eric Hutchinson, at 6-foot-10 and with a head of blonde curls, clearly reminded us of seven-time NBA all-star Jack Sikma who played in the late-70s through the early 90s for Seattle and Milwaukee. Of course, our mention of Sikma brought mystified looks from the young-uns around us who must have thought we were also present when James Naismith first nailed up his peach baskets.

Speaking of Yakima, 6-foot-5 guard Matt Borton (the son of the team's coach) impressed us with his shooting talent and competitiveness. He'll be playing in college somewhere.

Kudos to Nelson Washington and Gerry Freitas for a finely-run, first-rate presentation. It's never easy running a four site, 80+ team tournament over three days but this duo and their staff pulled it off. Others should take note.