Sunday, July 8, 2018: Wild fight mars AAU basketball game in Georgia

   Leading off today: The Deadspin take on what transpired Sunday during an AAU basketball game in Emerson, Ga., pretty much nailed it: A youth basketball game under the supervision of adult referees and coaches, held in the presence of adult parents, should never be allowed to become so intense so as to deteriorate like this one did.

   As reported by numerous media sources all day, this particular game descended into chaos in the final minute when players from Chicago's R.A.W. Athletics got into an ugly physical battle with at least one of the referees.

AAU contest ends in massive brawl between players and referees: https://t.co/4xSjm2VuD7 pic.twitter.com/t7NMhrVifb

— Deadspin (@Deadspin) July 8, 2018

   ESPN.com seemed to have the most detailed, albeit inconclusive account of what happened. Though all agree that a technical foul preceded the fisticuffs, the issue of who started the physical contact that triggered the brawl hasn't been resolved.

   "They started arguing with each other and their coach," Bobby Benjamin, coach of the Houston Raptors, said about the moments before the fight started. "During a timeout, I said, 'I think they know they're not gonna beat us in basketball, but I think they might try to challenge us in something else because they're challenging their coach.' Five minutes before the fight, God gave us a sign that something ugly was about to happen."

   On the move: Rising junior Zed Key, who was eighth-team all-state in boys basketball, is leaving Brentwood for Long Island Lutheran. Key averaged 15.9 points a game as a 6-foot-7 sophomore and reportedly already holds offers from Cincinnati, Florida, Rutgers, UMass and a variety of others.

   L.I. trainer dies in crash: Longtime St. John the Baptist trainer Joseph Cloonan and his son were killed in a crash that took three lives early Sunday, Newsday reported.

   Cloonan, 65, his son John Cloonan, 34, and Alex Demetrius, 27, were all pronounced dead after the crash in Amityville shortly after midnight. Police said the SUV driven by Demetrius apparently crossed into oncoming traffic on a residential street, striking the car driven by Joseph Cloonan, employed as the athletic trainer at St. John the Baptist since 2007.

   Sunday reading: The Journal News followed up on the progress of Liam Frawley, 49, the Tappan Zee AD who suffered a massive ruptured brain aneurysm at his home in January 2016.

   Frawley has regained the 65 pounds he had lost. Though his appetite is strong, Frawley remains weak and has little movement on his right side.

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   Fundraising to assist Frawley and his wife Janine continues. On Thursday, the Tappan Zee Hall of Fame will hold its second annual Liam Frawley Golf Classic, a $150-a-head event at Pearl River's Blue Hill Golf Course and a barbecue at the Blauvelt Knights of Columbus.

   Early on, one neurologist told Janine, "The Liam you knew is gone."

   "I'm not going to accept that," Janine said. "I see the way he reacts to stuff and the guys today and the things he remembers… I'm going to keep pushing him."

    • The New York Post did a lengthy story Sunday on basketball star Cole Anthony, first-team all-state for archbishop Molloy last season as a junior.

   The son of former NBA player Greg Anthony is the latest in the long line of heavily recruited New York City guards.

   "My drive is just to be one of the best players to ever play the game," said Cole, who won a gold medal recently with Team USA's U-18 team in the FIBA Americas and was part of the all-tournament team.

   "He's freaking awesome," one college coach said. "He's got the whole package. He's competitive, he can run a team. He's a good teammate and he can score the basketball."

   Extra points: Retired Sweet Home baseball coach Joe Caggiano died Wednesday at the age of 75. Caggiano coached the Panthers to an unlikely NYSPHSAA championship in 1983 after five players opted to stay home on the day on the semifinals and finals in order to attend the prom.

   To accommodate seven other players who opted to pass up the prom if necessary, the school In the end, arranged for a bus to bring the players' dates to Little Falls. If Sweet Home lost the semifinal, they would hop the bus back home in time for the prom. If they won, they'd get their own dinner and dance on the road.

   Extra points: John Gallo retired as the athletic director at Schalmont at the end of the school year. He arrived in 1996 as a teacher and football and wrestling coach after stints at Draper, Mohonasen and LaSalle.

   Matt Ronca will replace Gallo, 54, as the AD, a role he held at Cobleskill-Richmondville the last two school years.