Why do you set up straw men arguments? Find me one person who has said the other team had to let them score or pretend to play.
When the game is clearly in control call a time out. Call off the press. Tell the team to work different plays. Bench your starters. Work the weaker shooters.
Play to win the game.
Respect the other team and their players.
It really isn’t hard to both.
And remarkably enough it is not insulting either.
**BTW, did you notice how I snuck in that the winning coach and team cam from an ‘allegedly’ Christian school. **
Yes, very clever.
**Sounds like their Christian values are more of a hobby. **
Sigh
"If the winning team was gracious, played by the rules, and didn’t taunt then I don’t see the problem. Is there something especially bad about 100? "
Apparently there was something special about 100, because all reports say that the team and spectators were cheering and pressing to get to 100 and then laid off. If they could lay off at 100, then why not earlier? They weren’t trying to win. They were trying to score 100 points. To me, that constitutes “taunting” and is definitely not “gracious.”
"BTW, did you notice how I snuck in that the winning coach and team cam from an ‘allegedly’ Christian school. Sounds like their Christian values are more of a hobby. "
Sounds to me like the school recognized the mistake and is trying to correct it. Sounds pretty much in line with Christian values to me.
Should you purposely lose to a winless team so they can have a victory?
Of course not. No one in their comments on this thread has come within a mile of suggesting that. The fact that you asked this question demonstrates that you have no rational basis on which to support your position.
I guess you couldn’t see the exaggerated nature of the question while perched way up there on your elitist podium.
By your thinking, when you shake hands after the game, there is no saying good game because it was not. By your thinking, you honor them by telling them they suck and they deserved to get beaten by 100 to 0.
To me, a good game is when both sides played to their ability, played by the rules, and with respect. All of that can be accomplished in a runaway. You keep saying the other team was humiliated. How do you know this? Perhaps that is how YOU would feel after a game like that but maybe this team is proud of the way they played and didn’t give up. The girl quoted in the article seemed to take it in stride. You could learn a thing or two from her.
BTW, I’m done with you.
**BTW, did you notice how I snuck in that the winning coach and team cam from an ‘allegedly’ Christian school. **
Yes, very clever.
**Sounds like their Christian values are more of a hobby. **
Sigh
When it comes to character development, it isn’t about what you have: it’s what you do with what you have.
" How are you supposed to know when you are humiliating the other team? "
The whole idea is that the coaches are supposed to be teaching this to their athletes. It’s obviously not a cut and dried issue. You can’t put a concrete score to it and say, every 100 point win is dishonorable, or every 50 point win, or every 20 point win. You have to exercise some judgement and maturity. Coaches are supposed to be teaching these kids where that line lies. This coach apparently did a poor job of teaching during this game.
True learning comes from experiencing both sides, from both perspectives. "
Exactly what did the losing team win from this that they wouldn’t have learned from a 20 point loss, or a 50 point loss? The only thin i can think of that they learned is not to follow the winning team’s example.
There is no elitist podium on which I am standing.
I think the losing team handled the situation beautifully and with grace. It is the way the teams that I have coached have handled being routed.
My issue is solely with the winning team and its coach. And I find it absolutely unbelievable that people have such skewed notions of respect, honor and sporstmanship.
I suppose we must simply leave it at that.
Why do Christians hate the learning disabled?
Perhaps, as DawnT mentioned, the winning team was practicing their full press.
Naw. No team improves by practicing against a team they can beat 100-0.
Seriously, I see where you guys are coming from with presenting alternative options/viewpoints … but the answer is still “no way”.
15 points is nowhere near enough.
It’s more than enough when you’re playing a team that scored ZERO points all game.
In a competitive game or in a game when you’re playing a team with more athletic ability and/or speed, you keep the press on.
I think in THIS situation it is important to keep in mind who the opponent is, and not refert o general games, especially competitive games. The opponent in this game did not score a single point, and I would speculate that was the goal, which might have seemed like a good idea at the time.
If we want to treat people with disabilities with respect, if they want to be treated like anyone else,
This was my (unspoken) objection to the situation that occurred a few years ago with the autistic teen (high school) basketball player that scored something like 23 points or 21 points, by shooting 3-pointers. The other team did not guard him. I think that’s unintentional insulting. I think it was a wonderful story that he was on the team and played, but I was dissappointed that when they showed the highlights, the player was unguarded. I do give him credit for making the baskets, and it was a heart-warming story. But, the true message of the story, rather than the created message, is IMO not a positive one.
expect them to have their dreams crushed like anyone else.
Maybe not go that far, but they should recognize and accept that if they underperform or are not as good, then they should expect to lose, and on occassional lose badly.
I don’t see what either of these has to do with a 100-0 game, where the winning team pressed and kept their starters in for the majority of the game.
I am amazed at how many people think it is a good thing to teach a team that it is OK to humiliate another team … at any level.
I have been on really good teams all my life, some VERY good teams. There is NO satisfaction in drubbing a team that is inferior to you. It’s a waste of time, and it only gets you out of your rythum for playing good teams. Truthfully, I’d be more embarassed that we actually played that team (as it calls into doubt our team’s W-L record) versus any sort of pride that we beat them, scored 100, or shut them out. It’s embarassing all the way around.
I have played on and coached teams that were capable of beating even average teams to the tune of “horrible massacre to zero” if the desire/intent was there. It’s pointless. It’s an insult to one’s self to be involved in such a game, much less press the issue to make a “statement” about the event.
I think there’s some folks that talk big when they have nothing personally vested in the situation. I wonder if they would say such a thing if their kid was involved in wrestling and the kid they were wrestling kept slamming their kid to the mat, only to keep picking him up off the mat and slamming him again, getting 2 pts for a takedown, even though the guy was winning 68-0 already. I’m guessing these very same folks would voice some opposition.
The whole idea is that the coaches are supposed to be teaching this to their athletes. It’s obviously not a cut and dried issue. You can’t put a concrete score to it and say, every 100 point win is dishonorable, or every 50 point win, or every 20 point win. You have to exercise some judgement and maturity. Coaches are supposed to be teaching these kids where that line lies. This coach apparently did a poor job of teaching during this game.
That is my point. People are creating a line where it is acceptable/not acceptable. It is going to be different all of the time. Not having a line at all let’s people know that the game will be played to everyone’s potential until the final buzzer. If they decide to institute a mercy rule then that is fine. Either way, the teams know what they are in for before they step on the court. No interpretation of feelings or moods necessary.
Exactly what did the losing team win from this that they wouldn’t have learned from a 20 point loss, or a 50 point loss? The only thin i can think of that they learned is not to follow the winning team’s example.
Maybe nothing. Their lesson may have ended at 30, 50, or 75 points down. Time to think about the other side now. The winning side needs to learn that you play hard until the end. We’ve already covered that it is probably insulting to the other team to go slack. But, wouldn’t they feel like idiots if the other team mounted a comeback? I won’t get into what weird scenarios would allow this but crazy things can happen. I know of games at the college level where sure victories were lost. Overcome 100 points? Probably not. But, we are only talking about this one example because of it’s enormity. The 20 or 30 points that has been tossed around could be. And once that momentum is lost there may not be a chance to get it back.
High school games are 8 minute quarters. That’s 32 minutes of game time. 100 points is 50 baskets. You see what I am getting at … to score 100 points in HS basketball you either are playing another great team that runs the floor and make s a high% of baskets or you’re over-defending a horrible team to get easy baskets.
Seriiously, go watch a high school basketball game and get a feel just for what a team would need to do to score 100. I’m guessing the team got caught up in the moment of “going for 100” and/or “holding em to zero” and got carried away. That’s reasonably acceptable for the players, not for the coach.
They showed the other team respect by playing them just as they would any other team.
You don’t know what respect means.
I bet I could change your opinion by demonstrating, personally towards you, your own version of respect.
we could start by selecting a sport in which I have every natural advantage over you, preferably something with lots of contact, and then I’ll play it “balls out” all game long. At the end of the game, I will be curious as to whether I have shown you respect or not.
I understand what you guys are saying, and in large part I agree with what you are saying as it would apply to most situations. However, please reconsider this situation when examining the fact that they played a team that scored zero points.
You don’t examine the “respect” one team has for another in how they “played them”, when you start from the situation that one team obviously has no ability/chance to even compete with the other.
I think I’ve made 5 posts on this subject, and it’s likely overkill, hopefully not ignored.
It’s important to me because I still coach sports teams, including 2nd/3rd grade baseball, soccer, basketball, and (next year) football, as well as, junior high baseball. I would not want any of my players to view the game situation against an obviously much inferior opponent the way some of you are. I don’t say that because I am not competitive, nor successful … but because I am. Please think about that last sentence, and understand it’s meaning.
But, wouldn’t they feel like idiots if the other team mounted a comeback?
You mean the team that failed to make a single basket? THAT team making a “comeback”? Seriously? Please think about it. What you guys are saying DOES apply to almost all other sporting situations, play hard till the end, give it what you’ve got, etc.
But, IMO, NONE of that stuff applies when you play a team that you CAN (not even considering whether you DO) beat 100-0. Think about it, 100 to 0. Think about how that game actually has to play out in order to get to 100-0. There are no good lessons learned, or improvements made, or any value to anything in this game other than the “eye candy” that is “100” and “0”, as well as, any artificial stats boost experienced by the starters.
YEp. Actually if you read the newspaper accounts here in dallas, what was happening was the team pressed all game and essentially stole most of the inbounds passes and had an easy layup under the opposing teams basket. The point guard who played up front had 48 points. I dont think the ball actually made it past the half court but a few times.
If this was a boys game you probably would have at some point had a fight. After some hard foul on those layups.
You know, I have to wonder something. Christianity calls for turning the other cheek, etc., for the most part, but I don’t think anywhere does it say you should allow yourself to be used as a doormat. You do stan up for yourself as well. I have to wonder how tings would have played out if at 30-0 or so, an inbounds pass was stolen and someone made a person pay for their layup, if the other team would have gotten the message. His is not absolving the winning team in any way, just wondering if the losing team had taken a few people down going up for layups if things would have been different. I know I never let an easy basket be scored. he was going to earn at the line. I never took a guy down, I just made sure he couldn’t get the shot off, and then made sure he stayed on his feet, but if this were going on I can’t say I wouldn’t have taken things to the message stage,
We need to feeeeeeeeel good about ourselves, we all know in life everybody is equal and nobody ever gets disappointed. Wonder if at an Ironman race the leader is up by 3 hours 5 miles to go, should he/she sit on the side of the road and wait unto the second place person gets closer?
"Wonder if at an Ironman race the leader is up by 3 hours 5 miles to go, should he/she sit on the side of the road and wait unto the second place person gets closer? "
I think we all know for a fact that in an Ironman, if the leader was that far ahead and there wasn’t a record time on the line, that person would not be going full out. They might not walk or sit and wait, but they certainly would slow up. No one is suggesting the winning team let the other side win. Just that they show a little class.