Back in the day I was a Ram and there was no greater rush of adrenaline than leading the team out on the floor as the band played and the crowd cheered. It still gives me goose bumps to remember back to those days as a player (a long time ago 1981 and '82). The pre-game warm ups were more to get the adrenaline under control and keep the fire stoked for the actual game action. To be a player in this game is something the players will remember for a long time, win or lose. The fact that it is a rivalry game makes the win/loss record for each team irrelevant. It doesn't matter who is favored or what people think, it comes down to who can control their game the best and channel the energy of a packed house into execution on offense and poise in the face of relentless defense. Both teams always bring their best game and it's about who can get the other out of rhythm and cause the most disruption that end up winning the game. When I was blessed to play if you didn't get into the gym before half-time of the jv game, it was usually sold out and the fire marshal wouldn't allow more tickets to be sold. Great times being a high school basketball player.
Tonight was really no different. A Huge shout out to the Viking student section for showing up early and doing a great job of cheering on their team. A full lower bowl and nearly full upper deck made for a very hot gym to play in. Sitting in my seat at half court at the scorer's table doing the public address gives me a unique perspective of the action on the floor. As I said, I have been looking forward to this game for a couple of months now and I was fired up and ready to go after the jv game where the Vikings won 61-51 and set the tone for the varsity. If you don't follow high school basketball in the South Puget Sound League, both teams came in tonight with identical records 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the division. Puyallup with a big win over #2 ranked Curtis before the Christmas break, were coming off a fairly easy 34 point win over Graham-Kapowsin. The Rams only division loss coming at the hands of Curtis in early December as they lost 69-67, were geared up as they were coming off a good home win over Federal Way by 15
Tuesday night.
The crowd was hyped, the band was jamming and the stage was set for a great head to head match-up. I'm having a little bit of a hard time bringing my emotions to task and not shouting out about my personal reaction to the night. Both teams started out with an over abundance of adrenaline flowing and it took a few minutes for the players to settle into the game. Puyallup had a hard time converting on the offensive end and finished the first quarter down by 5 as the Rams lead 15-10 behind the 6 points of Keylin Huddleston and the 5 from reserve Spencer Hanson. The Rams continued to maintain control of the game in the second quarter as they out scored the Viks 18-11 to lead by 12 at the half 33-21. The third was a back and forth affair as the Vikings came out and cut into the lead behind a couple of 3's from Dalton Daniels and another from Dom Holub, but when all was said and done with the 3rd quarter both teams had put up 17 points and the Rams held onto their 12 point lead 50-33. The energy in the gym was still high with the expectant Viking faithful cheering on their team and the guys responded with a 8-1 run to open the 4th quarter cutting the Ram lead to 3 and 48-51 Jay Balmer with a couple of clutch threes to really get the house rocking. Unfortunately, that was as close as it would get the Vikings failed to convert on 3 consecutive possessions and the Rams went back to their big junior Keylin Huddleston who was able to score 7 in the quarter. Huddleston finished with a game high 21 points. Dalton Daniels had a great game as he finished with 18 points 11 of those in the second half three field goals from beyond the arc and a couple of free throws. The Rams did a good job of defensing Balmer who wasn't able to really find his rhythm until late in the game when he put up 10 points in the fourth quarter, dropping a couple of rainbow threes, a nice left hand in the lane and a couple from the line. In the end the 12 point deficit was just too much for Puyallup to overcome, missed opportunities and untimely turnovers cost the Vikings down the stretch with the final score ending up 63-55.
From my public address position, the clinical description of the game and how it went down is pretty straight forward. As a fan of the game the Rams played hard and showed more poise in a hostile environment where it's difficult to come away with a win. Emotionally and personally, from my own selfish perspective I was deeply disappointed. Although for a few minutes in the 4th quarter the game came close to matching the energy in the gym, the 12 point margin by the home team made for a somewhat dry and difficult game to call. For regular season games at PHS the visiting teams get NO love from the public address announcer. Hence, when Huddleston was in front of the pack in the 4th quarter and scored on a two handed dunk, my call was just a plain "huddleston" no inflection, no enthusiasm and no love for the visiting team. It's hard for me to keep the excitement level at a peak when my home team is down and not playing very crisp. Unforced turnovers and missed lay-ins don't really lend themselves to much passion and enthusiasm from the PA guy.
Consequently, a great game and solid win for the Rams, coupled with a great crowd and come from behind effort from my Vikings made for me a disappointing night overall (that's an internal perspective, which I hope I was able to keep inside and was not apparent to those in attendance). The game is about the players and their efforts on the floor and I strive to always maintain that level of enthusiasm for their sake. In a general sense, I really or rarely care about the outcome of a game I am calling or who wins or loses. But from my selfish perspective, in a big regular season situation, I prefer a close game with my home team on top and ultimately winning.
Tonight will be a memory for a lifetime for the boys who played and it was awesome to be blessed to be on the mic and provide something to overall event. I am proud of the effort the Puyallup team put out on the floor and the Roger's team showed great discipline and deserved the win they went home with tonight. It's only a few short weeks before these two teams match up again to end the regular season at Rogers. Hopefully both teams with remain as solid as they were tonight and represent the SPSL South in the playoffs come early February. It's a tradition in Puyallup and if you have the time put it on your calendar to come watch the Rams and Vikings mix it up on the basketball floor!
Have I mentioned, I love high school basketball and Thank God daily for allowing me to be part of so many great games. Until the next game, " I'm Nic Beckman, play fair, play hard, have fun! Let's play Vikiiiiiiing basketbaaaaalllllll"
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