The Bradsher Beat
Wednesday, November 23,
2011
By Bethany Bradsher |
|
Thank God for hoops
By
Bethany Bradsher
©2011 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
It’s Thanksgiving Eve,
and my gratitude overflows. I’m thankful for countless things that have
nothing to do with sports, but for our purposes today let’s narrow the scope
to the most sublime and thrilling sport in this country.
It’s Thanksgiving Eve,
and I’m thankful for college basketball.
I’m thankful for the
sport that presents a true clean slate every fall, for the pregnant promise
of even the smallest Division I school that — given the right fall of the
dominoes — could become a glorious March Madness fairy tale.
I’m thankful for frenetic
fast breaks that start out looking too fast and too out of control but end
with a graceful layup that seems impossible coming after such all-out
intensity. I’m thankful for defenders who put their bodies in the way of
that charging bull, sacrificing themselves for the sake of two points.
I’m thankful for arenas
that come to life, even in November, even against schools fans have to find
on a map. I’m thankful for C-Bass and the guy with the afro and the guys who
wear the spandex suits because, even when they’re obnoxious, they remind
Jeff Lebo and his team that people care. A lot.
I was thankful last
Thursday, when the Lady Pirates played a home game and then the men filed in
to play their own, both improbably against two different teams whose mascots
was Cobras.
People were there for
both games, and they were pumped. If this is what Coker brings, let’s take a
moment to imagine the fever that could accompany the Memphis game on
February 8.
I’m thankful for the
history of the college game, a history I have been saturated with lately as
part of a different writing project. As much as Pirate fans might be loathe
to admit it, an old N.C. State coach named Everett Case lit a fuse when he
arrived in 1946 that is still burning.
The achievements of Case
and Bones McKinney and Lennie Rosenbluth mean something even at ECU, but
around here we can also cherish the contributions of Blue Edwards and Oliver
Mack.
I’m thankful that after I
eat the turkey leftovers, Christmas jumps right in to fill the void, but
there’s no letdown after Santa comes because soon college basketball teams
start battling with conference foes, and before we know it we’re looking for
the biggest flat-screen we can find to watch conference tournaments and
selection shows and the greatest spectacle in all of sports, the NCAA
Tournament. I’m thankful that in my world, Christmas goes all the way to
April.
I’m thankful for the
unwritten promise of players who have come to make their home in Eastern
North Carolina from other Division I programs like Virginia (Whitny and
Britny Edwards), Missouri (Miguel Paul), Clemson (Bryelle Smith) and South
Carolina (Austin Steed). At this stage in the season hope is everything, and
newcomers with that experience added to the experience of a Darrius Morrow
or a Chareya Smith make a hopeful recipe indeed.
I’m thankful for a Pirate
pilgrimage to Charlotte Tuesday that ended in
a 20-point victory over an Appalachian State team
ECU hasn’t faced in a decade. And even if their most recent road trip to UNC-Wilmington
ended in defeat, I’m thankful for the chemistry and skills an almost-new
Lady Pirates squad has collected as they prepare to host the ECU
Thanksgiving Tournament this weekend.
Not to take anything away
from football, but that’s another topic for a different Thanksgiving. This
year I’m fixed on the long road ahead, full of last-minute comebacks and
bubble teams and impossible three-pointers. I don’t want to wish any part of
it away in my rush to get that day when my brackets are due and the first
tip-off is at noon. I just want to soak up each game I get a chance to
experience, in front of my TV or in Minges surrounded by other thankful fans.
E-mail Bethany Bradsher
01/03/2012 02:39 AM |