Once again, the no back court defense brought another tight game to a conclusion and the CYA 4th Grade Hornets advanced to the Championship game. Eldest finished the game with tears in one eye and a giant smile and we are set for one last basketball game of this exciting, but increasingly stressful season.
As a parent spectator, I find the potential strategy of 4th Grade basketball to be fascinating. Last night's game was another classic example. The Hornets took their typical big lead early, and watched their opponents slowly but surely chip away. By the middle of the 3rd quarter, both teams were playing strong defense and points were hard to come by. The 4th quarter saw a small surge from the Hornets, and with just under 2 minutes to play, we had a 5 point lead. One or two baskets at that point would have sealed it. Despite one spectacular play, though, we just couldn't get the ball in the hoop. Missed shots by both teams left the score the same, with less than a minute to play. A flurry of activity on the defensive end resulted in a made basket by our opponents and a 3 point lead, with 27 seconds to go.
At this point, I looked up and saw Eldest with one hand over an eye and tears streaming down his face. No one else seemed to see this and he was jogging down the court to play defense. I yelled at him to tell his coach he was hurt. I admire the "play through the pain" additude he was exhibiting, but I had two concerns. First, his eye was clearly hurt. He needed to have that checked out. Second, and only slightly less important, this was a tight game. We needed to be full strength on the court. If he wasn't up to playng, we needed someone else out there. I say this half in jest. In all seriousness, a loss was going to end with a crying boy in my house and probably several others. A loss that Eldest thought was his fault (it wasn't, but you go ahead and use logic with a 9 year old) was going to be exponentially more devastating. He got his coach's attention and took himself out of the game. He is nothing if not a selfless basketball player. He proved it again last night.
With a sub in for Eldest, the game continued. Another missed basket by the Hornets and a defensive rebound left us in a very odd position. There were only about 15 seconds left. Our opponents needed to score immediately to even force us out of the backcourt. They didn't, but managed to draw a foul, on a shot, with 7 seconds to play. Luckily, the shot didn't go in. At this point, I found myself fascinated by the strategic possibilities. The one I didn't think about was actually the ace up the sleeve. A 4th grade boy stepped up to the line, shooting two. The possibilites were as follows:
1. He makes the first shot. He must miss the second shot, giving his team a chance to get the rebound and score to tie the game.
2. He misses the first shot. He must miss the second shot, giving his team a chance to get the rebound and hope for another foul on a shot, that either goes in with a chance for a 3 point play, or misses, putting them in the exact same position. There is no 3-point line.
He missed the first shot. The probability of a Hornets win went from 99% to 99.99% with that miss. If you are the opposing coach, do you tell him to intentionally miss? If you don't, and he makes it, the game is lost. Here is where it got interesting. On the second shot, the ref called a lane violation on the Hornets. The basket counts, and we inbound the ball. For some reason, the ref was about to give him another shot. This would dramatically change the situation and is completely contrary to the rules. Luckily, our coach, calmly as always, clarified the situation and convinced the ref she was wrong. The basket counted. We inbounded. Game over. For the second game in a row, the effective end of the game was followed immediately by a cry of "WHAT?!!" from the opposing team's best player; and the end of the game was our point guard, casually dribbling the ball in the backcourt. It's good to know the rules.
For the record, the lane violation was irrelevant, he made the second free throw. Of course, this brings up the fun new strategy. With a 2 point lead, less than 10 seconds on the clock and an opposing player on the line, the "win at all costs" move is an intentional lane violation. The basket counts and you get an inbounds pass with no backcourt defense. I'm not saying this is the best lesson to teach a group of 4th graders, but it is playing to the rules.
This leads to another issue from last night's game. What message do you want to give a group of 4th grde boys? In about 10 "regular season" games, I saw no illegal screens called and maybe two 3-second violations called. Last night, I saw 5 illegal screens called and (I'm not kidding or exaggerating for effect) about 15 3-second violations called. For 3 months the refs have "let them play". For about 20 minutes last night, I was convinced the only thing the ref was doing was watching the lane and counting to 3, sometimes as fast as she could. To make matters worse, one of the father's from the opposing team starting screaming for 3 second violations. I wasn't sure if I should ask him if he really wants his boy's team to win because he was screaming "3 SECONDS!!! 3 SECONDS!!" at the top of his lungs or if I should just go smack him.
The 3-second violation prevents Wilt Chamberlain from parking himself in the lane, catching a pass and dropping it in the basket. It is basically irrelevant when a 9 year old boy loses track of where he is and stands 8 feet from the basket. I get into these games, but I don't want to be the jack-ass whose son wins because I was screaming for the ref to make a call that has almost no impact on the game. Great message" "Congratulations son. You won because I berated the ref into calling 3-seconds 22 times during the game." "Dad?" "Yeah, son?" "What's 3-seconds?"
I am proud of our team and of Eldest. I am proud that they have reached the title game. I am proud the coach has remained calm the entire season and has never tried to influence the ref. (Explaining during a dead ball situation that an obvious call is wrong, like he doesn't get another free throw because of a lane violation is not trying to influence the refs.) I am proud that Eldest takes pride in playing good defense, setting good screens and just playing. Tonight's game should be fun. And I don't think it will be that difficult to remind myself that the journey has been the joy, and the destination doesn't matter.
Reflections on What Has Happened
1. How do you go from 25-0 to 1-4? The losses at Duke and at UVA are defensible, but home losses to BC (4-13 in ACC) and GTech (5-12 in ACC)?
2. If you are a politician, you never, never, never get anywhere when you say the word, "Hitler". I don't care if it is historically accurate or just for a comparison to tactics. Don't go there. Don't do it.
3. Tiger's done winning majors. I have believed this to be true for a couple years. At this point, I am ready to take a stand.
4. Alex Ovechkin and the Caps are having their predicted post-Olympics slump. Or maybe they just suck.
What to Watch For
1. Results of the CYA 4th Grade Championship game.
2. High temperature of 67 predicted for Chantilly, VA on Tuesday. Spring may come after all.
3. DIAA Boys Basketball State Tournament Finals on Saturday. I don't care, but I need to throw a bone to my 3 loyal readers.
4. Conference Tournaments heat up. William and Mary plays Saturday night. Will this year be the first invite to the Big Dance in the 321 year history of the school? Was I really in college when they had their 300th anniversary?
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