Saturday, March 18 (bonus blog entry)
I spent time this weekend re-reading a recent column by Patrick Newell of The Evening Sun in Norwich describing the mythical "Chenango Academy," a private school with a penchant for winning state girls basketball championships.    You don't have to be The Amazing Kreskin to figure out that Newell was taking a shot at Poughkeepsie Lourdes three days after the Section 1 powerhouse defeated Norwich, 55-31, in the NYSPHSAA tournament.    I didn't buy into his premise that "private schools (are) winning a disproportionate number of state championships" after my initial look at the article, and I'm even less of a believer now.    New York State Sportswriters Association member Steve Grandin e-mailed me a quick analysis that shows rather clearly that the advantage is overstated by a few critics who are using statistics like a drunk uses a light pole -- for support rather than illumination.    I intend to spend some time this month studying Steve's analysis and formatting it for use on the site as my contribution to slowing the latest		wave of anti-private school hysteria.    I will say, however, that Patrick's description of the mythical Chenango Academy was so dreamy that I'm thinking of having a daughter just so I can send her there. I've got the prospective mother picked out and everything. Best wishes to Cold Spring Harbor girls basketball coach Gran Roe. Newsday reported this weekend that Roe, 70, will retire after 32 years and 360 wins at Hauppauge, Hampton Bays and Cold Spring Harbor. Similar to the much-debated national power ratings in football from last fall, there are rankings available in ice hockey courtesy of the U.S. High School Hockey Organization.    Thankfully, the USHSHO admits upfront that it isn't an exact science, which is confirmed by the fact that Irondequoit is No. 11 in the country despite losing two of three games to state finalist Aquinas, which placed 15th. State Division 1 champ Williamsville North is 14th.    Division 2 champ Clinton wound up 45th.

Saturday, March 18
As expected, I got some hate mail yesterday following my posting about Fort Edward's issues (see below). As expected, none of the three people opposed to what I wrote had the courage to sign their names though all of them contained personal attacks.    There were also two e-mails supporting me for wondering what's taking so long for the school district to either conduct an investigation or at least issue a statement of some sort.    The two other responses were essentially neutral, asking about the role of the NYSSWA as a media organization. I wrote a quick response, but I should probably come back and elaborate on the subject down the road. The short version, though, is that I am under no obligation to remain neutral on issues affecting scholastic sports and participants in New York. Fort Edward coach George Conley followed through on his threatened protest prior to the Class D game with Martin Luther King from Section 1.    Thankfully, the basketball committee looked at it and then tossed it aside because it was invalid in any number of ways. It's my hope that Conley will now take the time to begin working though proper channels rather than grandstanding.		Mistakes happen, so I was happy to see that the NYSPHSAA basketball committee quickly saw the light and admitted making one yesterday on the issue of accrediting photographers.    Upon arrival at the arenas, photographers for newspapers (though, curiously, not TV stations), were being told they had to sign a release that said they agreed not to sell or distribute photos taken and would give copies of all photos to the NYSPHSAA within 72 hours under threat of expulsion from future tournaments.    There was also some boilerplate language about granting the NYSPHSAA permission to use the photos in a commercial or non-commercial capacity, which translates into them mooching off the media's work.    Once some photographers began to balk, tournament official Doug Kenyon stepped in and waived the requirement for this weekend and next week's Federation tournament.    Kenyon said the intent was to stop "pirates" who sell photographs on a private basis to parents and fans. That concern has some merit to it, but everyone will be better served when the NYSPHSAA gets some input from the working media, which will probably happen later this year.

Friday, March 17
I think I'm about to receive a pile of nasty e-mails from people around the state, but I also suspect that most of them will be written with crayons. You know, that whole "juvenile minds using juvenile tools" thing.    OK, so here we go: I hope Martin Luther King clobbers Fort Edward at 10 a.m. today in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association boys Class D basketball playoffs.    Yep, I'm looking for nothing less than a 25-point margin of victory at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Winning by 30 or 35 would be preferable.    Writing that goes against every principle of sportsmanship that I've stood for these many years and makes me a hypocrite. But that hardly makes me unique. Because if there's a lot of paperwork involved in becoming a hypocrite, then the folks in Fort Edward are going to need several boxes of new No. 2 pencils.    The Journal News is reporting this morning that Fort Edward coach George Conley told a Glens Falls reporter he will file a protest prior to the Class D semifinal against MLK because he "has a problem" with that team being allowed to play in Class D since it includes students from different parts of the state.    "Section 1 won't clean up their act," Conley told The Post-Star. "Those residential treatment centers have kids from all around. I have kids whose grandfathers played for Fort Edward. I'm willing to bet no MLK kid's grandfather played for them."    By and large, Conley is making a fair point. I'm not crazy with the way residential treatment centers (RTCs) are classified, somewhat similar to concerns I have about some of the private and Catholic schools.    But -- and this is a "but" the size of Jennifer Lopez -- you don't wait until the day before the state semifinals to make a grandstand play like this one. Conley's beef shouldn't be addressed to the state basketball committee or even the state association. He should have started his crusade last summer with Section 1, which has the authority to handle classification issues and has begun to do so with other teams.    Or he could have gone to Section 2 administrators and asked them to raise the issue on behalf of Fort Edward and other legitimate Class D programs across the state.    It would have looked somewhat like sour grapes in light of the fact the Tigers beat Fort Edward in last year's state championship game, 76-57. But it would have at least raised the issue at an appropriate time and through the proper channels.    Instead, he waved the proverbial red flag in front of the bull just hours before tip-off. Bad move. Very bad.		"I'm not sure where Fort Edward is coming from," NYSPHSAA assistant director Walter Eaton told The Journal News. "It's news to me, and I'm not really sure why they are protesting. As long as (MLK is) a bona fide educational institution, Fort Edward does not have a leg to stand on."    I've known Eaton for years. He's a stand-up guy. Bring a legitimate question to him and he'll look into the issue and give you a legitimate answer.    I can't say the same for the administration and school board at Fort Edward, which has been throwing its dirty laundry down into the basement for weeks now to keep it out of public view.    You see, there's a potential disciplinary issue going on there that should have been addressed long ago. But the way it's being "handled" leaves some people -- myself included -- under the impression that perhaps the school board wants to wait until after basketball season before having to consider measures that might include suspensions.    Sharpen those No. 2 pencils and let the hypocrisy begin. Read the first sentence of The Post-Star's story:    "Nearly the entire Fort Edward school board either refused to answer a reporter's questions or could not be reached Thursday about allegations made by parents that students -- including some athletes -- can be seen in Internet photos associated with alcohol use.    Critics wonder why the school district won't investigate photos of Fort Edward students holding alcoholic containers posted on Web sites such as www.webshots.com. They said the school district has been aware of the photos for months.    That's right, months.    The newspaper reported that one photo included a star player who also happens to be the son of a senior administrator in the district. The player was pictured next to a girl who held what appeared to be a beer bottle. The athletic conduct policy requires Fort Edward students to refrain from using alcohol or illegal drugs and to avoid loitering where those substances are being used.    Irate parents spoke up again at a board meeting on Monday. School officials responded that they could not investigate the photos without knowing when and where they were taken. They also said the photos could have been manipulated.    Oh, yeah, there's manipulation going on.    It darn well better end a day or two after MLK kicks Fort Edward's butt in Glens Falls.    Am I an idiot? Send your comments to my e-mail account.

Sunday, March 12, 2006
Nice work by St. Anthony's junior Walter Henning, who set a national record in the weight throw Saturday during the Nike Indoor Nationals track meet.    Henning threw 83-0.25 in Landover, Md., to beat the 2004 mark of Lief Arrhenius of Utah by 2.5 inches.    In the rival National Scholastic Indoor Championships meet at the New York Armory, Suffern's girls went 11:35.74 and nearly broke the national mark in the distance medley, falling short by .31 seconds.    As you might imagine, the splits were outstanding: Shelby Greany 3:34.3, Deanna Vinson 58.4, Caroline Heidt 2:11.4 and Kara McKenna 4:51.2. The New York State Public High School Athletic Association will offer webcasts of the five boys basketball finals next weekend in Glens Falls.    The audio webcasts can be heard live or archived for $7.50 per game by		going to www.nysphsaa.org or www.nysibn.com.    Matt Ryan of Albany's Fox affiliate will do play-by-play for all five finals. Binghamton's Press & Sun-Bulletin reported last week that the $3.18 million reconstruction of Dick Hoover Stadium is far behind schedule, so Vestal will play its entire football season away from home.    Soil samples taken in December found the ground was too saturated to support the artificial turf field, requiring the replacement of much of the dirt.    That's the bad news. The worse news comes from a friend of mine in the construction business. Though he doesn't have first-hand knowledge of the Vestal project, he tells me that replacing the dirt may not be a definitive solution, meaning that the foundation may crumble beneath the rug and force additional repairs down the road.

Saturday, March 11
There is no shortage of candidates for the men's basketball job at Canisius following the dismissal of Mike MacDonald this week after four 20-loss seasons in the last seven years.    Canisius women's coach Terry Zeh is sure to get an opportunity to talk about the job if he's interested, and ex-coaches kids Bob McKinnon Jr. (a Marshall University assistant) and Nick Macarchuk III (Iona assistant) will probably at least get courtesy calls. The Buffalo News also identified two other possible candidates.    Unmentioned thus far has been Syracuse assistant Mike Hopkins, who lacks head coaching experience at any level but has been a successful recruiter and would have valuable name recognition across the state, including New York City, that could gain him access to prospective recruits.    MacDonald started at Canisius in 1988 as a graduate assistant under Marty Marbach, replaced John Beilein as head coach in 1997 and assembled a 108-153 record. The long-awaited documentary about former NYC schoolboy star Sebastian Telfair, big on personality but short on success thus far as a pro, finally makes it to the tube Sunday night on ESPN.    "Through the Fire" is worth a look according to TV critic Alan Pergament of The Buffalo News, who says the piece deals with the positives and negatives of NBA eligibility rules that all but prevent high school players from following Telfair's footsteps by bypassing college for the pros. The film was shot from spring 2003 to June 2004, and Pergament says there is tape of some amazing on-court moves.    Telfair had his shoe deal in place by the time he entered the 2004 NBA draft rather than honoring his commitment to Louisville coach Rick Pitino, and he went to the Portland Trail Blazers as the No. 13 pick. The Camden (N.J.) Courier-		Post reported Friday that Clarence Turner's career as boys' basketball coach at Camden High might be over.    Turner, though, denied having submitted his retirement papers, and it sounds as though school officials may be trying to push him out the door.    Turner is the winningest coach in South Jersey history with 746 victories, and he possesses seven state championships. He has coached a long string of Division I recruits including Milt Wagner and Billy Thompson. Many of Camden's most memorable tussles over the years have been against NYC foes, including epic battles with Boys High during the Pearl Washington era. I somehow missed Rick Carpiniello's column in The Journal News two weeks ago, but it's a great read about the brewing controversy about residential treatment centers such as Leake & Watts, Lincoln Hall, Clark Academy and Martin Luther King.    In Rick's words, "There is a percentage of the basketball population, however small, that believes the area's residential treatment centers (RTCs) shouldn't be competing with the public high schools for championships."    If the Catholic/private issue is "touchy," then RTCs are a potential powder keg as critics point out that RTC teams load up with players from outside -- sometimes far outside -- the geographic area. For instance, Ricardo Pierce of Rochester was Lincoln Hall's star last year during its run toward a Section 1 Class C championship.    That doesn't sit well with the locals, who watch their kids work their way up through rec center leagues, CYO and junior varsity ball and then get smoked by 20 or 30 points in sectional finals.    Rick's piece covers the issue from several points of view, and it's a worthwhile read.