Leading off today: The situation at a Section 5 school turned more serious on Thursday as administrators in the Warsaw Central School District canceled the remainder of its boys varsity and JV basketball seasons amid an investigation into an unspecified incident involving multiple students.
Western New York media reported the district says it has received additional information related to the investigation that may require a additional inquiry.
The district, which announced its investigation on Feb. 5, issued a statement saying it is cooperating with law enforcement and the district attorney's office.
Friday's fifth forfeit since the district suspended its schedules dropped the varsity teams record to 2-17.
Wacky ending to girls basketball game in Canandaigua
Anyone who's watched maybe 200 or so basketball games has seen a basketball get wedged between the rim and the backboard on a failed shot attempt. If you've maybe 300 games, you seen a ball come to rest on the back on the rim.
This one, though, was a new one for me and many others: Friday's girls game between host Canandaigua and Our Lady of Mercy, which is ranked 23rd in Class A by the NYSSWA, actually ended with the ball sitting on the rim. It made Canandaigua a 38-36 winner.
The scenario:
Gianna Buchiere (nine points) scored Canandaigua's go-ahead basket with 15 seconds left.
Mercy set up for a final shot and worked the ball to Laura Kosten for a left-handed layup with 4.7 seconds left. The ball landed gently on the rim and sat there until time expired.
Numerous people viewing the video pointed out that the play should have been whistled dead at some point. On the other hand, never underestimate the effect of stunned disbelief for everyone on the court in a nail-biter ending.
Leah Sheridan led the winners with 13 points.
2,000-point scorers popping up all over
Two Section 5 players reached 2,000 carer points on Friday, and both still have a full season ahead of them to tack on even more.
Honeoye junior Landon Washburn scored 28 of his game-high 39 points in the first half of a 79-46 victory over Marcus Whitman. Washburn also added 11 rebounds and four assists.
Meanwhile, Alyssa Marsh scored her 2,000th career point as the Lima Christian girls routed Northstar Christian 66-18. Marsh added 12 steals to make it a double-double.
The week began with yet another player hitting the scoring milestone. On Monday, Lisbon senior Allison Bell knocked down a 3-pointer in the third quarter to reach 2,000 for her career in a 62-34 victory against Heuvelton.
Bell is the fifth Section 10 girl to reach 2,000 points.
New Jersey basketball attracting attention for wrong reason
As blowouts go, I'm not sure Thrive Charter's lopsided boys basketball wins this season by scores of 102-16 and 74-10 require
a story asking whether the New Jersey school is breaking any rules. I think PSAL games in New York City routinely result in comparable routs each season.
The Thrive Charter situation, though, is a bit different. Thrive (16-3 this season) used to be known as Trenton Catholic and played in the super-competitive Non-Public B playoff classification. In fact, the school won the state's ultimate title, the Tournament of Champions, in 2010.
However, Trenton Catholic converted to a charter school two seasons ago and now plays in Group 1 against the smallest public schools in the New Jersey. Its enrollment is 27th out of the 29 schools in Central Jersey Group 1, but Thrive is favored to win its second consecutive Group 1 state title this winter.
"We're not breaking any rules or anything like that," coach Khalid Lewis said. "We heard a lot of it last year, a lot of stuff on social media this year, too. We don't get into all the outside noise, man. We control what we can control."
Thrive can draw students from Hamilton and Trenton, each with a population over 90,000, through a lottery system. Most Group 1 schools draw from communities with populations under 15,000 residents.
The dynamics will change next year. Last May, the state's governing body for high school sports approved moving charter and magnet schools into a classification with private schools.
"This goes a long way toward solving the competitive imbalance that we saw happening with the charter schools," state Sen. Paul Sarlo said. "In the world we live in high school sports today, there always will be those who want to find a loophole, who will try to exploit any advantage they can."
Ohio having second thoughts about NIL
The Ohio High School Athletic Association responded to a lawsuit by agreeing in November to allow scholastic athletes to accept NIL deals. Now, a bill from a pair of Cincinnati-area state representatives proposes to
end NIL opportunities.
House Bill 661 would ban compensation tied to an athlete's name, image, and likeness when connected to participation in interscholastic sports. The bill would make athletes ineligible in a sport for which they received compensation, but allow them to remain eligible in other sports.
"High school sports are an extension of the classroom. They teach character, discipline, leadership, work ethic and fitness," Rep. Adam Bird said. "This bill is about protecting kids, keeping the focus on learning and development, and ensuring students across Ohio compete on a level playing field."
