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Basketball Coach Suspended After 161-2 Victory

Originally posted by Seth C:


Originally posted by Roundballaddict:

Originally posted by wildcatwelder:

Only in our liberalized Bizzaro World would anyone think it's OK to SUSPEND a coach for winning by too large a margin. Idiocy.
It's high school girls basketball, bud. It's not like he beat them by some relatively understandable margin -30, 40, 50 points...

159 freakin points.
If the other team didn't like it they were free to forfeit the game, no?

I'm not saying I'd run up the score but I'd also never, ever punish a coach for having his team play hard for an entire game. That notion is absurd.
That really is the crux: the suspension. I'm just never going to see any logic in that.....it IS absurd.

The guy most likely is a jerk to some degree, but when we begin suspending winning coaches for doing what they're supposed to be doing, no matter how you spin it, it's lunacy, IMHO.
 
I'd say its the fault of whomever scheduled the game. Why are two teams that lopsided competing against each other? Why wasn't the game called or a running clock established? Its a damn shame that it was scheduled to start with.
 
I'm not being dense. As for you, how about that apology you still owe me? I won't say more here to keep politics off this board.
 
Originally posted by wildcatwelder




That really is the crux: the suspension. I'm just never going to see any logic in that.....it IS absurd.

The guy most likely is a jerk to some degree, but when we begin suspending winning coaches for doing what they're supposed to be doing, no matter how you spin it, it's lunacy, IMHO.
You are correct if the coach is hired for the sole purpose of winning. However, if you ask any school board member (I am on one) or any administrator, he or she will tell you that they don't want only a coach who wins but one who teaches the kids some good lessons about life. And, for many of us, sportsmanship is one of those lessons.
 
Originally posted by preacherfan,

Actually, I thought of Randle and his mother when I saw this thread. My only comment in relation to that situation is to say that it apparently worked in that case but I don't think his mom should be writing parenting books for other parents!
wink.r191677.gif


As for what he should have done, it is hard to say not having seen the game and the aricle gave few details. I can venture a few ideas....for example, why not set up plays for the worse shooter on the team? The team could do some rebounding drills, etc.

Bottomline is that the coach could use some creativity to make the game at least beneficial to even his own team.

I simply see NO benefit to just crushing a team by that margin.
I never said there was a benefit to win by that margin. What I have said is teams need to play. When the coach stops his defensive attack and puts subs in for the entire second half, there isn't a lot more he can do. Perhaps his entire team was just that much better. Do you suggest they take a nap on the floor? That is what would embarrass me.
 
Originally posted by Roundballaddict:

Originally posted by Seth C:

Originally posted by Roundballaddict:
Originally posted by wildcatwelder:

Only in our liberalized Bizzaro World would anyone think it's OK to SUSPEND a coach for winning by too large a margin. Idiocy.
It's high school girls basketball, bud. It's not like he beat them by some relatively understandable margin -30, 40, 50 points...

159 freakin points.
If the other team didn't like it they were free to forfeit the game, no?

I'm not saying I'd run up the score but I'd also never, ever punish a coach for having his team play hard for an entire game. That notion is absurd.
Saying that shows you don't really understand the point people are making. This is a high school girls basketball game. Of course its a competition and you want to instill important lessons like trying your hardest and giving great effort. But other lessons you might want to instill are humility and good sportsmanship, and that even when you're losing badly, theres something to be said for giving your best effort. Taking pride in your effort despite adversity is a good lesson, too. Forfeiting doesn't accomplish that. Again, high school girls basketball game.

The coach is a school employee. He showed a lack of grace and respect for other students, and that reflects on the school. The school in turn handed down a legitimate punishment. He wasn't punished for having his team play hard the whole game, its absurd to characterize it as that.

This post was edited on 1/18 6:06 PM by Roundballaddict
Except that he absolutely, positively, undoubtedly WAS punished for exactly that even if you can't see it. How can you "go easy on someone" while also having your team play as hard as they can? You can't. He had his bench in for the entire second half, no? That's enough in my eyes. I'm not "calling off the dogs" in the first half, no matter the lead. That's just a poor lesson to teach my team, and in itself shows disrespect for your opponent. Do they want you to play them as if they are incapable losers? I hope not.

Humility and good sportsmanship don't include point shaving and going easy on other teams. It's one thing when you're playing with your younger sibling, but it's another when it is an organized sport against what (should be) your peers. They learn absolutely nothing by having you pull your punches, except that you don't respect them as a team and don't respect them as competitors.

Humility and good sportsmanship can be taught by having your team behave kindly after the game, by having them be gracious in victory.

I don't think he did anything wrong (even if I wouldn't have done exactly as he did) and don't think he was deserving of any punishment. The shame should be on the team he played, and especially THEIR coach, not on him. It's a game, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But you should always play to do your best (just as you said) and that's what he coached his team to do.

This post was edited on 1/18 8:54 PM by Seth C
 
First off, I want to know how this happens. Both of these schools have around 3000 students. Surely they can find enough talent to be competitive rather than just score 2 freaking points.

Second, please don't compare this to college or pro. In high school the coaches are limited to the players that come out and try out for their team. They can't go buy or recruit new players to improve their teams. Coaching might have something to do with this, but fact of the matter is that some communities just don't have the talent that others do, and the coach isn't going to help that.

Third, I am torn by this... first off, I think a team can be embarrassed by another team beating the snot out of them, but also embarrassed by the other team almost mockingly taking it easy on them. Neither of those things are the right thing to do. In this instance, I think the coach could have very easily realized that this team was extremely outclassed and could have called off the full court press after the first quarter at least. If the other team started to scratch back into it (unlikely) then they could have put it back on, but no need to stay in it for the whole half.

I also think the suspension is kind of silly. I think there should be a mercy rule. I think someone in the administration probably should have recognized that the game was WAY out of hand and told the coach to take his foot off the full court press. I think the coach should have done it himself as well, but I don't think a suspension is necessary.
 
3000 students?????!! Better tell bigbluelou, he's convinced they are so small they had to force kids to play who didn't really want to.
 
Originally posted by Comebakatz3:
First off, I want to know how this happens. Both of these schools have around 3000 students. Surely they can find enough talent to be competitive rather than just score 2 freaking points.

Second, please don't compare this to college or pro. In high school the coaches are limited to the players that come out and try out for their team. They can't go buy or recruit new players to improve their teams. Coaching might have something to do with this, but fact of the matter is that some communities just don't have the talent that others do, and the coach isn't going to help that.

Third, I am torn by this... first off, I think a team can be embarrassed by another team beating the snot out of them, but also embarrassed by the other team almost mockingly taking it easy on them. Neither of those things are the right thing to do. In this instance, I think the coach could have very easily realized that this team was extremely outclassed and could have called off the full court press after the first quarter at least. If the other team started to scratch back into it (unlikely) then they could have put it back on, but no need to stay in it for the whole half.

I also think the suspension is kind of silly. I think there should be a mercy rule. I think someone in the administration probably should have recognized that the game was WAY out of hand and told the coach to take his foot off the full court press. I think the coach should have done it himself as well, but I don't think a suspension is necessary.
I was going to make that point. The winning team scored an average of 4 1/2 points per minute of the game. With a 30 second shot clock, that is still astoundingly high.

Assuming each team took 20 seconds off the shot clock per possession, that would translate into 1 1/2 possessions per minute of the game for each team or a total of 54 possessions. The winning team would have scored 3 points on EVERY single possession except for one, in which they only scored 2!

The numbers for this game are just mind-boggling!
 
Originally posted by BigBlueFanGA:


Originally posted by preacherfan,

Actually, I thought of Randle and his mother when I saw this thread. My only comment in relation to that situation is to say that it apparently worked in that case but I don't think his mom should be writing parenting books for other parents!
wink.r191677.gif


As for what he should have done, it is hard to say not having seen the game and the aricle gave few details. I can venture a few ideas....for example, why not set up plays for the worse shooter on the team? The team could do some rebounding drills, etc.

Bottomline is that the coach could use some creativity to make the game at least beneficial to even his own team.

I simply see NO benefit to just crushing a team by that margin.
I never said there was a benefit to win by that margin. What I have said is teams need to play. When the coach stops his defensive attack and puts subs in for the entire second half, there isn't a lot more he can do. Perhaps his entire team was just that much better. Do you suggest they take a nap on the floor? That is what would embarrass me.
Based on my numbers in my other post, I am going to say, "Don't take a nap. Just play a zone."
 
The state high school association can help prevent this the KHSAA has a 35 point rule. Team gets up 35 they go to a running clock football and basketball. The players don't notice it
Pressing up 100 in the first half is pathetic. It's a wonder a parent didn't knock that coach out
 
Originally posted by BigBlueFanGA:
3000 students?????!! Better tell bigbluelou, he's convinced they are so small they had to force kids to play who didn't really want to.
I never said this particular school had to force kids to play. I said *some* schools have this issue...I used it to make a point that the playing field (or court, as it were) is not always level. It is sad that a school of 3000 people can't find enough girls to play that could get within...I don't know...50 points?

Regardless, you can spin it however you want, but there simply is no reason this coach could not have demonstrated a modicum of humanity, dignity and sportsmanship to keep this from becoming what it was. There is no justification for such a vulgar display of "leadership".
 
Originally posted by Seth C:

Except that he absolutely, positively, undoubtedly WAS punished for exactly that even if you can't see it. How can you "go easy on someone" while also having your team play as hard as they can? You can't. He had his bench in for the entire second half, no? That's enough in my eyes. I'm not "calling off the dogs" in the first half, no matter the lead. That's just a poor lesson to teach my team, and in itself shows disrespect for your opponent. Do they want you to play them as if they are incapable losers? I hope not.

Humility and good sportsmanship don't include point shaving and going easy on other teams. It's one thing when you're playing with your younger sibling, but it's another when it is an organized sport against what (should be) your peers. They learn absolutely nothing by having you pull your punches, except that you don't respect them as a team and don't respect them as competitors.

Humility and good sportsmanship can be taught by having your team behave kindly after the game, by having them be gracious in victory.

I don't think he did anything wrong (even if I wouldn't have done exactly as he did) and don't think he was deserving of any punishment. The shame should be on the team he played, and especially THEIR coach, not on him. It's a game, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But you should always play to do your best (just as you said) and that's what he coached his team to do.

This post was edited on 1/18 8:54 PM by Seth C
Again..absurd. He was absolutely, positively, undoubtedly NOT punished for having his team play hard for an entire game, and characterizing it as that is frankly ridiculous. Did his team do that? Yes. Was that why he got in trouble? No. Otherwise he would have been punished in the handful of prior games where his team won by 70 points. Moreover, if he were merely getting punished "for having his team play hard for an entire game", then he'd get punished for doing so even when his team only managed to win by a single point. That is plainly not the case. I never said when they should have called off the dogs... I don't know when the game got completely out of hand. But I think they probably could have done a better job of it at least in the second half.

Point shaving? Unless the spread was 80 points, I think your point is waaaaaaaay off there. Might want to look up the definition of point shaving.

And yes, going easy on teams you leap by 100 in the first half is absolutely good sportsmanship. And maybe they don't feel any better if you go easy on them. Being down 100 to a team in the first half is gonna be a rough night regardless of what else you do the rest of the game. But guess what? Maybe they get a little hope from the second half. Maybe they aren't COMPLETELY demoralized, which is absolutely guaranteed by the way you would have it.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that the opposing players aren't going to buy into the "humility and good sportsmanship" because the other team gives them a high five after the game they won 161-2.

Its fine you don't see anything wrong with what he did. But he was wrong. Clearly, clearly obvious.

This post was edited on 1/18 7:41 PM by Roundballaddict
 
Originally posted by bigbluelou:


Originally posted by BigBlueFanGA:
3000 students?????!! Better tell bigbluelou, he's convinced they are so small they had to force kids to play who didn't really want to.
I never said this particular school had to force kids to play. I said *some* schools have this issue...I used it to make a point that the playing field (or court, as it were) is not always level. It is sad that a school of 3000 people can't find enough girls to play that could get within...I don't know...50 points?

Regardless, you can spin it however you want, but there simply is no reason this coach could not have demonstrated a modicum of humanity, dignity and sportsmanship to keep this from becoming what it was. There is no justification for such a vulgar display of "leadership".
I was at a playoff game a few years ago in which a large school only had 6 players. When I asked why I was told that between suspensions, no-shows and pregnancies, they were barely able to field a team. Large schools often have large problems!

BTW, the suspended coach said he didn't know they were this bad. Well, the man should have looked at their scores:
63-10
103-12
48-3
56-8
58-17
54-13
76-23
57-9
59-7
 
Originally posted by preacherfan:
Originally posted by bigbluelou:


Originally posted by BigBlueFanGA:
3000 students?????!! Better tell bigbluelou, he's convinced they are so small they had to force kids to play who didn't really want to.
I never said this particular school had to force kids to play. I said *some* schools have this issue...I used it to make a point that the playing field (or court, as it were) is not always level. It is sad that a school of 3000 people can't find enough girls to play that could get within...I don't know...50 points?

Regardless, you can spin it however you want, but there simply is no reason this coach could not have demonstrated a modicum of humanity, dignity and sportsmanship to keep this from becoming what it was. There is no justification for such a vulgar display of "leadership".
I was at a playoff game a few years ago in which a large school only had 6 players. When I asked why I was told that between suspensions, no-shows and pregnancies, they were barely able to field a team. Large schools often have large problems!

BTW, the suspended coach said he didn't know they were this bad. Well, the man should have looked at their scores:
63-10
103-12
48-3
56-8
58-17
54-13
76-23
57-9
59-7
The ones I put in bold above suggest to me that those coaches did what some of us are suggesting...called off the dogs. If you win 48-3 or 59-7, you could obviously have scored a lot more points if you wanted.
 
This is further embarrassing the losing team by taking action on the coach. Puts the score out in the open for the entire country to see
 
The coach should have been suspended. You did get up 101-1 and THEN decide to let up a little bit. There was no need for what he did.
 
Originally posted by KingCal9:
You're right, it is the pussification of America!! I would vote for the next presidential candidate that says:
1. We're going to blow the head's off of any terrorists groups that stick there heads out of the hole!
2. America is going to drill our own oil, create jobs and we are going to bankrupt terrorism!
3. Congress will not only be on a budget and we are going to lower tax rates!
4. Any coach can run up the score as much as they want! Lol!
This is the first response I've seen that makes any sense whatsoever!!!!!!!!
3dgrin.r191677.gif
 
Just by reading the title of this thread, I knew that it was going to work like flypaper for idiots.
 
Pressing the entire first half in a game like that is not helping his case. There is such a thing a sportsmanship. The smart thing would have been to never have played that game.
 
He was truly king of the pile of

Looks to me like he was just the most competitive goat there, and if I was recruiting goats, would be the one I would go for if I could get him. Just saying.
 
Was it within the rules? Then he deserves no repercussion. End of story. High school baseball has a 10 run after the 4th inning mercy rule. Implement the same for basketball and you save time and won't have to deal with this nonsense.
 
Originally posted by EliteBlue:
Was it within the rules? Then he deserves no repercussion. End of story.
Very few walks of life are as cut and dry as that. Embarrass your employer, regardless of whether its "in the rules", get punished. Happens every day.
 
While some may have pulled back to a greater extent than subbing and discontinuing the press, All those bolded scores indicate is that it's HS girls basketball and those teams may have just not sucked quite as bad. Maybe those teams weren't much better and scoring 60 is a lot for them in any game. And the teams that scored 90+ are the teams in the league that has a shot at actually winning something.


As far as "calling off the dogs", I don't think you should do anything more than slowing the game down, subbing, and not applying intense pressure. Anything more than that and you are instructing your players to let them get to the basket and score or telling your players to not shoot at all. You're making a mockery of the other team, your scrubs aren't making the most of the limited time they get to play in a season, that's also those bench players only time to play. You know those bench players are biting at the bit to come in and have a decent game. Not stand off to the side while the other team throws it at the basket over and over until one finally goes in. The starters may be ok with that because they play but to the end of the bench it's their time.
 
As a teacher of young people, it's within my rights to impose strict rules in my class, and hold the students accountable for the slightest of disciplinary infractions.

Of course, I don't do that, because it would act counterintuitively to my ultimate goal - which is to teach and build character in them. That said, what is allowable is not always the proper course of action when attempting to teach.


That coach deserves a suspension. There's bigger issues at hand when a teacher forays into the gray areas that ultimately contradict the bigger lessons we are trying to teach.

Some of you who have no problem with this coach apparently don't work with young people, and that's a good thing.
 
Originally posted by reignof cats:

I want the CATS to beat vandy 161 to 2. GBB
Yep, I'd love every second of it and I bet there wouldn't be to many on here complaining about it either.
 
Originally posted by BigBlueFanGA:

Originally posted by reignof cats:

I want the CATS to beat vandy 161 to 2. GBB
Yep, I'd love every second of it and I bet there wouldn't be to many on here complaining about it either.
Big difference between kids and 18-22 year-old men.
 
Originally posted by AlbanyWildCat:

Originally posted by CatsFan4Evr.:
The further pussification of America.
What does onelearn from beating up on the weak?
That is completely beside the point. That notion of "I can't find anything positive about it, so let's ban it" is an unmatched example of the road to hell being paved with good intentions.. I mean, if we do the strictly utilitarian pro/con thing with various items, many could attempt to rationalize banning alcohol, tobacco, guns, cars that go above 70 mph, candy/soda/dessert, not to mention media that depicts any of these things.

None of these things are necessary for living and all can cause significant harm (more than hurting feelings over a friggin' ball game), so unless you think it's logical for a gvt or private entity to prohibit all such things (not some - all - because anything allowed must pass the test of utility in this case), you're gonna have to find a better rationale.
This post was edited on 1/20 2:10 PM by Jkwo
 
Originally posted by Son_Of_Saul:

As a teacher of young people, it's within my rights to impose strict rules in my class, and hold the students accountable for the slightest of disciplinary infractions.

Of course, I don't do that, because it would act counterintuitively to my ultimate goal - which is to teach and build character in them. That said, what is allowable is not always the proper course of action when attempting to teach.


That coach deserves a suspension. There's bigger issues at hand when a teacher forays into the gray areas that ultimately contradict the bigger lessons we are trying to teach.

Some of you who have no problem with this coach apparently don't work with young people, and that's a good thing.
Where is the line at which the winning kids are still learning lessons of "character"? If playing subs the second half is insufficient, then is it pressing only up 30? 20? 10? where is the character line?! I must know.

Look man, I'm not gonna make big sweeping statements about your efficacy in raising up young ones as you did to others. I'm sure your kids love you. But so do mine, and mine understand that in life, you suck at some stuff, and you're better at other stuff, and to be great at any one thing, you need a bit of aptitude and a whole lot of hard work. They even understand the non-PC but statistically unshakeable concept that some people have more natural gifts in more areas than others.

Amazingly, they don't need the comforting lie that everyone is born with equal talent, just in different ways, to make it through the day. They still manage to sleep soundly every night without choking on their own tears They're happy, healthy, balanced, compete hard when it's time to compete, don't expect to be rewarded for existing, but treat others with self-sacrificial caring when they're not competing. Just awful, right?
 
Originally posted by Jkwo:

Where is the line at which the winning kids are still learning lessons of "character"? If playing subs the second half is insufficient, then is it pressing only up 30? 20? 10? where is the character line?! I must know.
I think the line is like that old definition of pornography: a person should know it when they see it.

When you're up by 100 points, you've probably crossed said line.

The only way to pull off something like this in 8-minute quarters is to press and steal a deluge of in-bounds passes for lay-ups. Once you're up by a certain amount of points--50 or so, IMO--the press should be called off and every passing lane kept out of.

In a game like this you really can't provide much teaching. Nobody gets better in blow-outs of this magnitude. But you can work on a lot more by bringing the press back than you can when you keep it on. Generally if the talent level is this incredible you only help two or three players when you keep the press on, because it's those same two or three that are stealing it virtually every time.
 
Originally posted by Joneslab:
Originally posted by Jkwo:

Where is the line at which the winning kids are still learning lessons of "character"? If playing subs the second half is insufficient, then is it pressing only up 30? 20? 10? where is the character line?! I must know.
I think the line is like that old definition of pornography: a person should know it when they see it.

When you're up by 100 points, you've probably crossed said line.

The only way to pull off something like this in 8-minute quarters is to press and steal a deluge of in-bounds passes for lay-ups. Once you're up by a certain amount of points--50 or so, IMO--the press should be called off and every passing lane kept out of.

In a game like this you really can't provide much teaching. Nobody gets better in blow-outs of this magnitude. But you can work on a lot more by bringing the press back than you can when you keep it on. Generally if the talent level is this incredible you only help two or three players when you keep the press on, because it's those same two or three that are stealing it virtually every time.
I Don't disagree. It's tacky and not particularly helpful. I just don't think anybody should be suspended. Write a stern letter if you want to distance your organization from it. And more importantly I wish this generation would stop acting like all kids are these little daisies that can be permanently destroyed by any trivial thing. It turns into a self fulfilling prophecy eventually. They need to deal with some adversity, and if getting crushed in a basketball game or even going through a bad losing season is going to ruin your kid for good, you did something wrong.

there is a mile of space between the "alcoholic abusive father" archetype that many baby boomers are familiar with and this other side of the pendulum swing now where kids must be protected from strange chihuahuas and lopsided ballgames and going to the coner store without adults.. etc The softness will only hold them back later.
 
I support the message that Jkwo is saying.
My son once lost a 5 inning baseball game 52 - 1 (10 run max allowed per inning except last batter).

His reply after the game? "We scored on them, they weren't all that." - I've never been prouder.
 
Originally posted by true55:
Originally posted by KingCal9:
You're right, it is the pussification of America!! I would vote for the next presidential candidate that says:
1. We're going to blow the head's off of any terrorists groups that stick there heads out of the hole!
2. America is going to drill our own oil, create jobs and we are going to bankrupt terrorism!
3. Congress will not only be on a budget and we are going to lower tax rates!
4. Any coach can run up the score as much as they want! Lol!
This is the first response I've seen that makes any sense whatsoever!!!!!!!!
3dgrin.r191677.gif
Funny, I thought it was a marvelous troll post. Also, I would love it if any candidate says "Lol!" Bonus points for putting it on official campaign materials.

KingCal9 2016 - No suspensions for coaches running up scores LOL! Drill, baby, drillolol!
 
Originally posted by Lexchess:
I support the message that Jkwo is saying.
My son once lost a 5 inning baseball game 52 - 1 (10 run max allowed per inning except last batter).

His reply after the game? "We scored on them, they weren't all that." - I've never been prouder.
i wuould kick his rear if that was my kid. i raised winners not losers. as my man vitale says, "he is a winner with a winners mentality." parents need to raise winners and not kids who should have quit baseball because they are that bad. maybe your kid needs to play badminton
 
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