Grab Bag: Mercy, Mercy; Run & Gun

#8 posting 1.31.2008
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

AFTERNOON GRAB BAG:
MERCY, MERCY
The MSHSL is going to vote on the "Mercy" rule on April 1st. From the St. Paul Pioneer Press. USA Today wrote about the mercy issue last Friday. In fact a coach in Washington was suspended and reprimanded as his team beat another 112-16.
I have seen six games this season that would fall under the "mercy" rule. These games don't have a lot of appeal and I can't wait for the contest to end. But every time my scorn is on the team getting mauled.
Here is my take:
#1 it is up to the team that is getting hammered to get better. I think the score perfectly reflects the time, energy, effort that players put in during the off season. Why reward mediocrity? What message is being sent?
#2 How will a team know that they have improved if a team has eased up and not given full effort?
#3. teams and players have been kicked out of sports because of trying to fix games. Nothing but full effort should be given. doesn't the integrity of the sport matter anymore? or are sniff, sniff, feewings sniff, sniff, more important these days?
I am NOT in favor of the mercy rule. It cheapens the sport due to some misplaced notion of fairness or compassion. Teams should be trying to maximize their potential.
Let's say 40 points is the threshold. What will be the result? teams ahead will TRY to keep the score under the threshold to keep playing. That my friends is a "fix."

In a related message I think it is up to the team getting beat to "throw in the towel." I have been around too long to see a misplaced notion of compassion for the opponent come back an bite the team ahead. Case in point: Osseo was miles ahead of another team once upon a time with the 3rd string in when the other team slapped a full court press on the deep subs. Bam, Bam, Bam the game all of sudden became "interesting." Coach Thorpe was not pleased and put the full unit back in with instructions to press the other team full bore. The game quickly reverted back to the natural order of things.

So how do you avoid these travesties? Don't schedule cream puffs on your schedule. It does nothing to increase your standing or admiration in the polls. Now some teams are stuck in horrible conferences (St. Paul Central vs Harding). It would be great if the two city conferences could combine and have a two tier league going divided by skill. Then games and margins would be more competitive. Will that happen? Not while I am still breathing.

RUN & GUN
Dunkerton, Iowa is averaging 83.8 ppg, which is under the 85.85 set by Cedar Falls in 1999. If Dunkerton was in Minnesota they would be averaging 94.3 ppg (in 36 minutes). Scroll to get to this in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier.

POINTS & BOARDS
Maranda Dohrn will own the rebounding and scoring records at Lake City. She has a feature in the Rochester Post Bulletin.

LATE RESULTS
IOWA: MSAE beat WACO 48-31 to advance to the SEISC championship. Is this code? find out in the Washington Evening Journal.

Next up: later tonight with another out & about.