March 29, 2024

The basketball rush

I love watching good basketball. It has never been my “favorite” sport, but the game has been in my blood thanks to both of my parents.

My mom grew up in Montezuma and was part of the glory days of 6-on-6 basketball. She loves talking about her time on the team and about the quality coach she had in Mr. Rugland. Free throw shooting is a big topic for her. She talks about Sandy Van Cleave in her senior year. With the game on the line, she was fouled with no time left. She had to make two free throws to send the game into overtime and continue her senior season. Oh by the way, it was in the state tournament; and they were on a win streak of 89 straight games. Of course, she made them both.

Mom has found several of the state championship games and watched them on YouTube. It was fascinating to see the game in motion. We spent a night a few years ago huddled around her computer screen relieving some of her favorite memories.

Mom carried basketball into her career. She was one of my coaches in junior high and high school. She helped me learn the 5-on-5 game and encouraged me throughout my playing years. I tried to be my best for her.

I could tell the 5-on-5 game would never hold the same place in her heart as 6-on-6 does. The game could never be replaced for her. There is a part of me that wishes I could have played, just to experience what my mom did in her high school days.

My dad also played with some good basketball players while he was in high school. He still talks about Coach Peterson and wearing the orange converse shoes “before they were cool.” He still has his pair, though they have quite a bit of dust on them and hardly look the bright orange they once did.

Dad talks more about baseball than basketball, but what little he does share paints a picture of a very talented team which was competitive and have the hardware to prove it.

The difference with dad’s experiences was I went to the same high school he did. So the memories he shared, I witnessed in the trophy case every day. Instead of being removed from his experiences, I was immersed in them.

Besides my mom, I was coached by two of his former teammates and played with their daughters. While we were the GMG Wolverines instead of the Garwin Roughriders, the hallways and gymnasium were the same.

There will never be trophies depicting our time on the court, but my time of playing high school basketball will remain a treasured experience. I have shot a few hoops since my high school days; and after the rust wears off, it is still fun to make a few baskets. I always end up at the free throw line, just like my mom taught me.

When the Newton boys made it to the state tournament, I jumped at the chance to see them at Wells Fargo Arena. The state tournament brings the top teams from Iowa all under one roof, and it is my chance to see what I love — good basketball. I get a rush when I see it, and I don’t realize how much I miss it until I experience it again.

The Newton boys played one of the hardest fought games I have ever seen. There was never a moment when I counted them out. Even though they lost by six points, the game could have gone their way if one or two shots would have fallen or a few more calls went their way. It was a great game, and I’m glad I got to see good basketball in motion.

The basketball rush is back for me right now. Maybe the next time I’m in Garwin, I’ll sweet talk mom into letting me shoot a few at the school.

Contact Pam Rodgers
at prodgers@newtondailynews.com