It’s all about the numbers
Basketball is a game that’s all about the numbers, so here’s a few for you . . .
3-141-186-64-164-94-12-5
No, that’s not a complicated safe combination, but just some random numbers coming out of last week’s Best of the Lakes Holiday Tournament hosted by our Clinton County Lady Bulldogs at the Castle.
Here’s a breakdown:
3-the number of overtimes it took to determine a winner in the game between Butler County and Marion County.
141-total score at the end of regulation in that triple overtime game.
186 – total number of points for the two teams in that triple overtime game.
64 – the number of personal fouls called by the three member officiating team working that triple-overtime game.
164 – the number of field goals attempted by both teams in the triple-overtime game.
94 – the number of free throws taken in the triple-overtime game.
12 – the number of individual players who earned “Player of the Game” honors during last week’s Best of the Lakes Holiday Classic – with four teams each playing three games, not a single player earned the honor more than once, an indication of just how close the competition was throughout the event.
5 – the number of three point baskets sank in back to back to back to back to back fashion by Lady Dawg Makayla Smith in Clinton County’s Thursday night game against Butler County.
All in all, the Lady Dawgs, coaches and support staff did a nice job of playing hosts and hostesses last week with Marion County, Butler County and Berea coming to Albany three consecutive days to participate in the tournament, and for the most part, from the fans I spoke with, everyone was pleased and impressed with the event and the hospitality .
Well almost everyone was pleased – there was that one fan, obviously a mother of a player from one of the schools that I won’t name here, who wasn’t pleased with any of the calls made by any of the officials working the tournament, on either end of the floor.
Of course she was sitting directly behind the Official Table (where I sit for each game), and her loud, shrill voice carried throughout the gym throughout every game her daughter was involved with, and never was there a good word.  I guess there’s one in every crowd.
As I said earlier, all in all, the Best of the Lakes Classic was a success all the way around, so congrats to the staff who organized it and made sure everything was in place for every game.
Three players from each team were named Players of the Game last week, and as I noted earlier, it seldom happens this way but none of the awards were duplicated by going to a player who had earned the honor in an earlier contest.
From Clinton County, congrats go to Lady Dawgs Makayla Smith, Landree Moons and Sadie Ipock for earning Player of the Game honors last week.
Both the Lady Dawgs and Bulldogs are enjoying a trip to Tampa, Florida, and a southern holiday tournament this week, but when they return and we head into the 2024 part of this roundball campaign, things get busy and stay that way for a couple of months.
Safe travels to both squads, down and back, and to all of our readers of these musings – Happy New Year!

Landree Moons

Makayla Smith

Sadie Ipock