BACARDI Flavored Rums and Entertainers Basketball Classic brought the Invitational challenge to South Beach Miami this past weekend (Aug. 15-17). Six teams came down, Two for New York, one team from Atlanta, one team representing the DMV, one team representing L.A. and hometown ballers from Miami. The celebrities coaches included 2 Chainz who was in charge of Team ATL, both NYC teams were coached by rap stars French Montana coached one NYC team and Jadakiss coached the other. The weekend started with a cocktail class presented by BACARDI. The drinks are amazing and each publication that came down got a special cocktail named after them. All of the cocktails tasted amazing and are pretty simple to make. See below for the cocktail recipes.

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BACARDÍ Del Rey
1 part BACARDÍ® Limón™
1/2 part Rose-Infused Syrup
1/2 part Lemon Juice
Top with Champagne
One dash Orange Bitters

Taking Pop Culture by Storm (Complex)
1 part BACARDÍ Mango Fusion™
3 parts Ginger Beer
2 dashes Angostura® Bitters

Buzzer Beater (Slam Magazine)
1 part BACARDÍ® Pineapple Fusion™
2 parts lemonade
2 parts iced tea

The Blogga (Vibe)
1/2 part BACARDÍ® Coconut™
1 1/2 parts BACARDÍ® Dragon Berry™
2 Orange Slices

Hip-Hop on a Higher Level (XXL)
1 1/2 parts BACARDÍ® Limón™
12 Fresh Spearmint Leaves
1/4 Lime Sliced
1/4 Lemon sliced
2 tbsp. Simple Syrup
Top off with Club Soda

#BETShoutOut (BET)
2 parts BACARDÍ® Mango Fusion™
2 parts Orange Juice
2 parts Coconut Water

Half Court (Baller Status)
1 part BACARDÍ® Limón™
1 part Lemonade
1 part Coconut Water®

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The games were exciting and star studded. NBA players spotted were Marcus Williams, Jamal Tinsley and Shannon Brown. The teams battled it out but at the end it was 2 Chainz's Team ATL that took home the championship and 25K.  It's pretty amazing to see the growth of EBC throughout the years but this is only the beginning. "This is all just a stepping stone," says EBC founder/CEO Greg Marius to XXL. "God has put me in different places and being apart of this and finding BACARDI to help us launch what we're doing. It's just an extension. We did Summer at Rucker Park, then Barclays [EBC America Celebrity Basketball Challenge] and now we at South Beach and ending it right here." The next goal for Marius is to hold EBC events during the winter. "I'm doing a literacy program in Gauchos Gym. We're going to get basketball hot again. We're going to help kids and put computers in there. I'm buying computers for the program. We're talking to Fresh Direct so they can provide healthy meals. Between the hours of 4-8 p.m. we're going to make sure kids eat, they do their homework and we're going to make sure to improve what they already have.

BACARDI Flavor Ambassador, Pusha T, remembers the impact of streetball when he was growing up in Virginia. "We used to have three on three tournaments in Virginia," said Push while speaking to XXL at SBI2014. "It went on for six years but it stopped. That was a big deal for a while, it was good. I felt it was good especially for the kids." When asked about what is his favorite BACARDI flavor, he adds. "Oh man, I mess with the BACARDI Coconut and the BACARDI Limón." Nothing goes better with basketball then liquor. —Emmanuel C.M.

Previously: Q+A: Pusha T (By SLAM)
Troy Ave Brought Brooklyn To Rucker Park For Bacardi Flavor at the Rucker
Wale’s Team DMV Takes The Trophy At EBC America Celebrity Basketball Challenge In NYC

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