Award-winning columnist Tom Archdeacon — an old-school storyteller in a brand-new venue — writes about sports, the city, southwest Ohio and anything else that catches his fancy… or yours.Home > Blogs > Through the Arch > Archives > 2008 > March > 16 > Entry
A Choke, A Crotch, A Punk
When it comes to March Madness, everyone embraces the Cinderella stories. But if you remember that classic fairy tale, you know the glass-slipper girl also had some ugly stepsisters.
We’re now two weeks into March Madness. The Ohio High School basketball tournaments — both the girls and the boys — are done, as are the college conference tournaments.
Here are some of the ugly stepsisters I’ve seen or heard about at games I’ve been to already this month:
— There was one of the best-known prep coaches in the Miami Valley grabbing his throat in self-throttling fashion and yelling at a kid on the opposing team as he walked past on his way to attempt a pair of late-game free throws:
“Choke, you Son of a Bitch!!!”
— There was an Alter High guard — after his team had just lost the hard-fought regional final to Graham — acting like a real punk when he ran up to one of the game’s referees and clapped mockingly in the official’s face the whole way across the court as the ref headed to the dressing room.
— There was the University of Dayton backup player who took the pregame banter between his Flyers team and the Xavier players to the extreme before their Atlantic 10 tournament game in Atlantic City, Thursday.
As both teams went through their drills amidst some spirited, back-and-forth chatter, the UD reserve was near the middle floor when he turned to face the Muskies and — in front of the Boardwalk Hall crowd — grabbed his crotch and taunted Xavier.
— And Saturday night at the Division I state title game at Value City Arena — just as they had done in their semifinal game there Thursday night — students in Lakewood St. Edward’s cheering section repeatedly used vile and vulgar language in their full-throated chants aimed at the opposing team.
By halftime Saturday night, St. Ed principal Eugene Boyer had had just about enough of the embarrassing behavior and he took a seat in the front of his students’ section to try to put a stop to it.
Ironically, that was about the only distasteful incident from either the boys’ or girls’ state tournament games in Columbus the past two weeks. For the most part, the place was a bastion of good sportsmanship.
Before each tournament game this year, the Ohio High School Athletic Association had a star player from each team appear on the jumbo video screen overhead with a message for everyone — players, coaches and fans — at the game.
Senior point guard Tony Meyer appeared on the screen for New Knoxville before the Rangers met Worthington Christian for the Division IV crown, Saturday.
Meyer told the crowd: “Please remember sportsmanship is everyone’s responsibility.” He then reminded those at the game: “Speak with courtesy. Act with dignity. Play with pride.”
New Knoxville and Worthington Christian — as did most teams — did just that.
As for the ugly stepsisters, maybe there is such a thing as karma.
The four examples I gave of rude players, fans and a coach — each of their teams lost.
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By Bud Norton
March 19, 2008 9:04 AM | Link to this
I agree with Bill; that principal reacted a lot more slowly than my high school principal (G-d rest his soul) would have. I’m sure he would have been up into the stands immediately to tell the ringleaders how many days of detention they were going to get, and then he would have had them kicked out of the gym.By bill angel
March 17, 2008 12:26 PM | Link to this
So, by half-time of Saturday’s game, St. Ed’s principal had “had enough.” Great, but where had he been on Friday night and during the districts and regionals when St. Ed’s student section had been exhibiting the same behavior?