DOC'S PENALTY BOX

"THE SPORTS DOC"
ED POTHUL

 

 

TWO FREE THROWS

        Amidst a darkening storm of self-aggrandizing and phony apologies as well as continual let downs when it comes to our supposed sports heroes, there is one tiny flicker--a small beam of light that has restored my faith in humanity.

        That beacon is two free throws at a high school basketball game in Wisconsin.

        It all began last Saturday when the mother of Milwaukee Madison High School guard Johntell Franklin lost her battle with cancer.  That night, Johntell's team had a scheduled game with DeKalb High School.

        The game began more than two hours late as the Madison coach, Aaron Womack Jr., spent the day with Franklin and his family at the hospital.  Womack had been given the chance to post-pone the game, but declined because DeKalb had traveled two-and-a-half hours to play the game and he didn't want to disappoint the visiting team.

        In the second quarter, Jontell Franklin walked into the gym and told coach Womack he wanted to play--and his mother would want him to play.  So, Jontell was told to suit up and get ready.  However, because Womack didn't think Franklin would be there, his name was not in the scorebook.

        The referees ruled that Franklin's entry into the game would result in a technical foul on Madison for entering an illegal player--a rule that's on the books for a good reason.  DeKalb coach Dave Rohlman tried to decline the technical, but was told a rule was a rule.  It was still early in the game and DeKalb held a small lead--so the two points could be crucial.

        After nearly 10 minutes of discussions with the officials, Rohlman asked his team who wanted to take the free throws.  Senior guard Darius McNeal stepped forward and said he'd do it.  Rohlman then asked McNeal "You know what to do?"  McNeal simply nodded his head and walked to the free throw line.

         After the referee handed McNeal the ball, he simply rolled it across the floor to the end line.  He repeated this on the second free throw, and was given a standing ovation by the Madison home fans.  "I did it for the guy who lost his mom,"  McNeil told a newspaper after the game.  "It was the right thing to do."

        Madison went on to win the game.  Then after the game the two teams did what they do after every game--eat pizza--together.  Four players (two from each team) per pizza in the school's cafeteria.

        So, when you turn on your TV and see some pompous, arrogant loser like A-Rod or Miguel Tejada or Andy Pettite cry crocodile tears just because he got caught; when you see some punk like Roger Clemens or Barry Bonds spit in the face of the fans and the game; when you see a self-absorbed moron like Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson try to turn sports into their own personal stage for self edification, just remember that Darius McNeal and two simple free throws are why sports is still beautiful.

 

 

Please e-mail your comments and criticisms to The Sports Doc at: doc@kwhi.com

 

 

 

 

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