Tuesday night, in a girls high school basketball game, Christian Heritage beat West Ridge Academy 108-3. No, that's not a typo. It was 108-3. A 105 point victory in a 32-minute game. Unbelievable.
The game has attracted a lot of national attention, with people focusing on the apparent lack of sportsmanship by the Crusaders. On the surface, that's understandable. But those people don't have all the facts.
Dana Greene interviewed the coach and some players from the winning team, who have taken a lot of flack from people. The coach, Rob McGill, says that while the score was regretable, he was not trying to run up the score. He feels it would have been more of a disservice, and more disrespectful, to not play hard the whole way. He feels it would be insulting to just pass the ball around. McGill said he's been on the other end of blowouts before, and thought it better if the winning team just played hard.
The team claims it was not trying to hurt anyone's feelings, and has apologized. West Ridge Academy has accepted the apology. The girls were encouraging their opponents the entire game, not rubbing salt in the wound. Plus, West Ridge Academy had lost another game this year 70-0, and no one said anything.
But it does bring up some interesting moral questions. Is it wrong to play hard? Should a team quit playing its game just because its opponent isn't as good? There was a similar situation a few years ago with a handicapped boy who came to bat in the 9th inning with 2 outs. The opposing team pitched him the way they would pitch everyone else, not giving him any special treatment. He struck out, and there was a national outcry. But would the boy or his parents want it any other way?
Its a tough question, with no right or wrong answer. Its not a black and white issue. Just lots of gray. I would love to hear what you think.
