Spent most of yesterday(Tuesday) at Gore Mountain covering the Section II Alpine Ski Meet. While I know little about skiing(my wife and kids love it), it sure seemed as if we have some pretty talented skiiers in Section II. Special thanks to Dave Switz of NYSEF and Valerie of Burnt Hills ski program and Bill Rice of the Daily Gazette for the help yesterday.
Anyway, if I wrote yesterday, the end of Siena's game with Loyola would have been the topic. The Saints won the game despite often times sloppy play, getting back on track after the loss at Rider.
Let me first say I was getting ready to do post game standups and turned my back as the game was ending. Mark Cooper, a student from Cohoes High School who covers Siena as part of the Breakfast Club bloggers, was watching and told me what happened.
As Kenny Hasbrouck was running out the clock on the victory, fellow Baltimorian Jamal Barney of Loyola stole the ball away, ran down the court and dunked the ball. The two points did three things:
a)Got Barney to his MAAC leading points average of 19 PPG
b)Changed the outcome of the game for bettors (Spread was 14.5, Barney's basket took it from a 15 point Siena win to a 13 pointer)
c)Infurated Siena Coach Fran McCaffery who was gesticulating wildly toward the Loyola bench. That was short lived as Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos, who gesticulates wildly all the time, offered apologies and an explanation to McCaffery, which he accepted as cooler heads prevailed.
Patsos explanation to the media after the game was that Barney, who is playing his first season of college basketball had no idea how much time was left, that he was following his coaches order to play hard for 40 minutes and that Barney was in tears in the locker room over the incident. He said he explained the situation to McCaffery, spoke to Barney and assured all of us that what was seen as unsportsmenlike conduct would not happen again.
Patsos is a good guy and sure seems to be an honest guy, so I am giving him the benefit of the doubt that Barney just made a mistake.
Kenny Hasbrouck is not.
"He just made their team look worse," Hasbrouck told reporters after the game, clearly angered by Barney's move. "It was a bonehead play. I don’t know why he did it. People say it could have been for his average or stuff like that. I don’t really know why he did it. It’s just an ignorant play."
Immediately after the game, a few fans mentioned the point spread deal. I don't pay any attention to point spreads, so I had no idea what the line was. I do think the budding Oliver Stone's need to settle down. Unless Barney's shot came from the grassy knoll, I think the idea that he stole the ball to impact the spread is ridiculous.
If Barney was intent on affecting the outcome of the game to benefit bettors, don't you think he would have done it in some subtile way? He had 39 minutes, 58 other seconds to do something.
Barney made a bad move, and he looks silly for it. But to me, that's the extend of the deal. I suspect this will come up at MAAC Tourney time should Siena play Loyola. You can bet Kenny Hasbrouck will remind his teammates of the incidcent.
But other than than, can we just consider this case closed. What do you think??? Post your comments here or e-mail me your thoughts at richbecker@fox23news.com.
