High School Basketball Games

With the Bibb County (Centreville, Ala.) Choctaws and the Brookwood (Ala.) Panthers each playing their fourth game of the week, coaches from both teams decided to let their kids play a relaxed game during their Jan. 31 meeting.

Instead of trying to outscore their opponents, the teams played "stall ball." A total of seven shots were taken in the game, with the Choctaws' Brandon Rutledge recording the only points of the night—15 seconds in.

The final score: Bibb County 2, Brookwood 0.

Brookwood coach Thad Fitzpatrick, via Joey Chandler of the Tuscaloosa News, talked about the game plan:

It was not my intention to go into that game and stall. The intention was to get as much rest as we can offensively, and do whatever we needed to do defensively. It was our fourth game of the week, and on Friday night we started cramping a lot, so I made the decision. We played earlier in the year and won, and I just decided we were going to try and slow down the offense, and on defense just guard like we normally do.

Both teams were tired, and the coaches didn't want to run the kids into the ground. It may not have been the most thrilling contest ever, but it was more suspenseful than some high school games.

The National Federation of State High School Associations claims the score tied the record for the lowest-scoring game in the history of high school basketball. Ron Ingram, the director of communications for the Alabama High School Athletic Association, said, "As far as I know, that is the lowest score that has ever been reported [in the state of Alabama]."

The only games known to have ended in a 1-0 score have been the result of forfeits.

Bibb County improved its record to 22-9, and Brookwood dropped to 19-9. Earlier in the season, the Panthers pulled out a 40-36 victory over the Choctaws.

A girls high school basketball game in San Bernadino, California, that finished with a 159-point margin of victory (161-2) for Arroyo Valley High School over Bloomington High School Jan. 5 led to a two-game suspension for its coach, Michael Anderson.

Troy Machir of Sporting News reports Anderson will be eligible to return to the sideline next Monday for one of the region's most talented squads. He's received plenty of criticism for running up the score against an obviously overmatched opponent:


Anderson told Landon Negri of the Orange County Register that he met with opposing coach Dale Chung before the game to discuss the situation. He was trying to balance getting his team prepared for league play with avoiding an embarrassing scenario.

"This was our last game before we started league, and we were going to come out playing hard," he said. "I wanted to let him know there was no harm intended, and that if he had any ideas or concerns just to let me know. We were going to play a half of basketball, at least... And he seemed fine with that."

He tried to slow the onslaught by benching his starters at halftime and telling his reserves to burn the shot clock before trying to score. A running clock isn't allowed until the fourth quarter under current high school rules.

Chung still wasn't pleased with the lack of sportsmanship, though. He made his feeling crystal clear in a report from Pete Marshall of The San Bernardino County Sun.

"People shouldn't feel sorry for my team. They should feel sorry for his team, which isn't learning the game the right way," he said.

He also questioned Anderson's approach.

"I've known him for about seven years... He's a great X's and O's coach. Ethically? Not so much," he said. "He knows what he did was wrong."

Ultimately, this type of situation tends to pop up a couple times every season. There's a fine line between an acceptable display of dominance and going overboard. When the talent gap is significant, it can be difficult for a coach to slow things down once it gets out of hand.

Changes would likely have to come from the top of regional high school basketball hubs. A solution where games that are no longer competitive don't turn into these type of stories. Perhaps something along the lines of stopping scorekeeping at halftime.

Women's high school basketball.

I like how "winning" isn't "learning the game the right way."

It's a subjective point and in the context of the quote it is difficult to determine what was really meant.

For example it doesn't indicate if the team just outright dominated them utilizing team strategies or if one or two players were so skilled that there was essentially 8 spectators on the court.

If it was the latter he might have a small point.