Spring Madness erupted in a double header bonanza Wednesday night at Shad as the seemingly never-ending tough environment continued for the MBA Class of 2002 as both their A-League and B-League teams were boxed out from capturing the 2002 HBS IM Basketball Championship. While in the B-League Championships the HBS Staff team captured their first Championship title in Harbus recorded history, the tenth ranked Section NG won the Cinderella match-up in the A-League against Bobby Dixon and his OE squad.
Section OI seemed to be surfing towards capturing its second A-League Championship title this year, even ending one game at half time as its lead was so pronounced. But when star forward Jake Capps suffered a season ending post-Spring Break Surf Camp injury, the keys to the victory gate were passed on to its OI B-League hopefuls and the A-League playing field opened once again. However, the resilient Staff team was determined to show the MBAs that the teamwork that keeps the HBS program ticking translates into some Dr. Funk specials on the court. Captain Feliciano’s masterminded recruitment of the nearly 7ft. former Brown University basketball titan, Director Todd Mulder of Restaurant Associates, was a classic Christensen strategy win. With Supervisor Gustavo “Goose” Villatoro and Staff Assistant George “Feel my Guns” Dominguez adding 10 points each to Todd’s 23 point crusade, OI began to notice why Shad Dining Hall’s shelves have been missing its Wheaties for the past couple of months as the Staff team clenched the title and bragging rights till next year.
The A-League saga was one of upsets and brutally intense competition. Yet, after watching his baby-blue alma mater crumble this season failing to even make the NCAA tournament, Charlie McNairy, the former University of North Carolina basketball player, buried the “Chapstick Hill” talk on campus Wednesday night as he did everything but a reverse jam to lead the first years and NG to clench the A-League title. Arriving in his 70s hip-hop maroon Falcon’s warm-up suit, Charlie managed to knock away 22 of his team’s 53 points to clench the title. Bobby Dixon’s twelfth ranked OE Cinderella hopefuls put up a strong fight, but came up just short of reaching the stars without their star point guard, Lance Ward, who was on a recruiting trip in the Caribbean considering his NBA options post graduation. OE’s tradition of excellence runs deep though as a teary Captain Samir Kaul summed up their 2-year journey, “As a team, one of our fondest memories of HBS will be the 2 seasons of IM basketball- last year the Final Four, this year the Finals. It has been a lot of fun and it was great that even as 2nd years we kept the passion.”
So the lights in Shad will dim for some months as the seasons pass and a new journey begins. To the refs, captains, scorers and section groupies that made the season a success, we thank you for a welcome distraction and many terrific memories. As John Lennon put it, “Life is what happens when you’re making other plans…” and you can be sure the courts of Shad will be full of life soon again…Game on!
