Predators receive forfeit after opponents don't show

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wasteland
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Predators receive forfeit after opponents don't show

Post by wasteland » Mon Apr 29, 2013 4:30 pm

http://www.saukvalley.com/2013/04/28/se ... w/ak1cxea/

STERLING – There was basketball played on Sunday afternoon in Musgrove Fieldhouse, but not quite the kind the paying customers were expecting.

The Sauk Valley Predators were set to take on IBA-PBL Central Division rival Kenosha, but there was a major problem: Nearly two-thirds of the Ballers were initially no-shows, resulting in a forfeit for the Predators.

Instead, a bizarre, 40-minute scrimmage took place, with lots of dunks, little to no defense and Predators owner Brad Grenoble suiting up for the opposition.

The fun began at precisely 2:32 p.m., when Grenoble received a phone call informing him a van containing seven Ballers had broken down near the DeKalb Oasis. Meanwhile, four Ballers (two from Evanston and two from Chicago) traveling on their own made their way to Musgrove, and using Sterling Golden Warriors practice gear, were going through pre-game drills.

“We pulled up to go to the gym and we saw that the team van wasn’t here,” Kenosha player Mahlon Thomas said. “We were like, ‘Oh wait a minute, what’s going on here?’ “

Grenoble initially set out to retrieve the missing players, but when he reached Dixon and punched in the mile marker where they were located, he turned around and headed back to Musgrove Fieldhouse. They were more than an hour away, by Grenoble’s GPS estimate, meaning they were closer to Aurora.

“It would have been a 6 o’clock tip,” Grenoble said. “Nobody was going to hang around for that. I’m surprised this many fans hung around for what they had today.”

The game was declared a forfeit, leaving the Predators at 9-1 and firmly on top of the Central Division standings. They were coming off a 91-89 win at Bloomington on Saturday night in which they erased a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit.

“When you have a good game like that, you want to come back and have good back-to-back games, and have a complete weekend,” Predators coach Ryan Vasquez said. “It is what it is.”

It was decided to have a scrimmage between the teams, but the Ballers only had four team members. Cody Behrens, a former Newman and Sauk Valley Community College player in attendance as a fan, was asked if he wanted to round out the squad. He did, but first had to go home to retrieve his sneakers.

Behrens, who will play next season at Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa, also checked with his future college coach, Oliver Drake, to make sure there were no eligibility issues. There weren’t, and he played part of the first half with the Ballers.

When Behrens wasn’t on the floor, his spot was taken by Grenoble, the Preds owner who noted he hasn’t played an organized game of basketball since his days with the Marine Corps in 1994.

He mostly deferred to his new teammates, but did have a few wide-open shots that merely drew iron.

“I missed my open jumpers,” Grenoble said. “I guess I should have dunked it.”

Early in the second half of the scrimmage, a weird afternoon got a little weirder. The missing Ballers strolled into Musgrove Fieldhouse, thanks to the kindness of an unidentified woman from Rock Falls.

According to Grenoble, she saw the seven stranded players and offered a helping hand.

“She was like, ‘Where are you going?’ Grenoble said. “They said, ‘The Sauk Valley Predators.’ She was like, ‘Oh, I know where that’s at. I’ll take you.’ That says something about the good people of our area.”

Fans who attended Sunday’s game will have their tickets honored for the Sunday, May 5 game against the Kankakee County Soldiers.

LR Lightning
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Post by LR Lightning » Sun Jun 02, 2013 1:55 pm

To call that a no-show would be embelishing the truth.The team van broke down and instead of pushing back tipoff, the owner kept the show going,but the rest of the ballers did eventually arrive shortly after halftime. It is exactly what it is.They would be considered tardy but did call.That circumstance clearly wasnt intended to sabotage the preds,that was a S#!t happens situation, not a no show! overexaggerating!
Is this situation intended to make kenosha and "the other league" side look bad?

on the flipside...

That was good composure and leadership on the saulk valley front office.Technically,his back was against the wall and he played the hand he was dealt. He could have thrown his hands up and said oh well,but he kept the show going.Besides, what if he did go get those other guys and they beat the preds? He'd be kicking himself"shoulda left them on the side of the road!"
:infun:

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Post by ThreePop » Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:49 am

There were two other no-shows the following that weekend, IBA teams not showing up to play PBL teams, and several other threats of not showing up. I agree, Brad did a great job putting on a show. But that shows the "semi-pro" nature of the IBA--taking a crappy van with only half the team in it. Between the no-shows and the IBA thinking a "s#!t happens" situation is perfectly acceptable, along with a laughable jamboree to determine a league champion, that's why the PBL split.

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Sam Hill
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Post by Sam Hill » Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:49 pm

[quote=""LR Lightning""]To call that a no-show would be embelishing the truth.The team van broke down and instead of pushing back tipoff, the owner kept the show going,but the rest of the ballers did eventually arrive shortly after halftime. It is exactly what it is.They would be considered tardy but did call.That circumstance clearly wasnt intended to sabotage the preds,that was a S#!t happens situation, not a no show! overexaggerating![/quote]

Did they show when they were supposed to?

Don't care about how or why.

But your apologizing for them and your lax standards of what constitutes professionalism points out pretty readily why you were with an ABA team that was half-assed and why you couldn't even last there.
Old enough to remember when bashing the ABA was fun.

Anonymous Spectator
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LOL Sam Hill LOL

Post by Anonymous Spectator » Mon Jun 03, 2013 8:48 pm

[quote=""Sam Hill""]But your apologizing for them and your lax standards of what constitutes professionalism points out pretty readily why you were with an ABA team that was half-assed and why you couldn't even last there.[/quote]

Above comment makes me LOL while looking at the Little Rock Lightning admission ticket tacked on my office wall and thinking about the Little Rock Lightning t-shirt I bought for my brother. That was some game I witnessed in that nearly empty high school gym (against a team from Memphis). Hopefully, that older halftime show dancing man found another gig (like LR Lightning). Maybe THAT WAS LR Lightning?????

LR Lightning
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Post by LR Lightning » Thu Jun 06, 2013 11:47 pm

@ sam hill and anonymous spectator

The Lightning never no-showed an opponent! We got screwed around but we showed up for every team we had scheduled on the road! we didnt have four players driving in the same car and everybody else split up.Actually, the only semi premadonna we had that didnt travel with the team was cameron butler, and he drove himself. I dont think he got along with the others anyway. And Coach Clark is too fat to be suiting up because of lack of bodies,and "the man" sure aint gonna suit up! And the Lightning folded after I was gone, and "the man" has the money to burn! So who cares why he packed up? Im trying to figure out why you guys brought up the Lightning?

Back to the point at hand...if Kenosha were smart,five would have rode together instead of four. If kenosha-iba were trying to sabotage the weekend,then they woulda strung Mr.Grenoble along with"we stuck in traffic",or "a player got sick so we had to keep pulling over" for up to an hour before tipoff,then tell him they cant make it! OR...quit answering their cell phones! but, they didnt do anything like that to that magnitude.
Hell,those four players wouldnt have shown up to begin with if that were the case!

I cant speak on the other games scheduled.I dont know if the iba were purposefully screwing over the host PBL teams.Im not saying its cool to show up after halftime and waltz in like everything is okay.but reading the article, Im just glad Mr.Grenoble didnt take a loss by closing the gym. The fans showed their loyalty and he kept the show going for them!

Was their an arraingement on travel when the leagues merged?
Last edited by LR Lightning on Fri Jun 07, 2013 12:08 am, edited 2 times in total.

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