November 28, 2011 at 2:46 p.m.
Smith, Flory & Co. win alumni basketball tournament
Smith, Flory & Co. win alumni basketball tournament
Jesse Richter hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in the second overtime of the semifinals and drained six triples as part of a 20-point performance in the finals as the Smith, Flory and Co. (SF&C) team defeated the class of 2001, 29-26. The team is the tournament's fourth different champion in as many years.
"Who needs Jake?" Richter playfully asked after the tournament.
It turned out that the team comprised of Richter, Ryan Kelly, Jim and Drew Flory, Matt Huebner, Josh Smith and Rich Anderson was able to win the title without UW-Superior's all-time leading scorer. But things were a lot easier before Smith, now the JV boys' basketball coach at Superior High School, had to return to Superior for a team practice.
It was Richter that came up huge in the championship game. Up 19-17 midway through the second half, Richter connected on a pair of triples that gave SF&C an eight-point lead with 3:50 to play. Richter, who showed some prowess from beyond the arch in his high school days, showed that he still has a golden stroke.
"There were just playing a 2-3 zone and leaving our shooters wide open and I had a lot of good looks," Richter said of the class of 2001's defensive strategy in the championship.
The class of 2001 really had no other choice but to play zone. With RHS boys' basketball coach Derek Lemmens knocked out of the tournament because of illness and a couple other players bowing out because of work commitments, the champions from three years ago were left with five players for their final two games.
"It was tough going, especially losing a couple of guys," noted 2001 player and tournament director Brandon Karaba. "We played the easiest way that we could and that was slow. It worked for us and (we) hung in there, but just couldn't get it done, but it was a lot of fun."
Both teams had challenging routes to the title. Jake Smith led SF&C to a pair of easy wins in pool play, scoring 41 points in the two games he played. But with Smith gone, the team got a major challenge in the semifinals from the defending champs, the class of 2008.
SF&C had chances in regulation. With the game tied 27-27, Huebner missed a pair of free throws with 1:02 remaining. Then, with a second remaining Kelly was fouled by Charlie Grill while driving from the top of the key. Kelly missed the front end of the one and one bonus, sending the game to overtime.
Each team exchanged two points in the first OT before Richter's three with 47 seconds left in double overtime gave SF&C the lead for good.
The class of 2001 lost to SF&C in its first preliminary game and rallied from a point down in the final minute of their second game in pool play with the class of 2011 to win 28-26. Karaba converted a 3-point play in the final minute of a game that 2001 needed to win just to advance to the championship bracket.
In the semifinals, Chris Cook stepped up. The former Olympic skier showed that he is not that bad of a ball player either, scoring eight of his game-high 12 points in the second half to knock off the class of 2004, 30-24.
The class of 2008 won the third place game, 33-31, over the class of 2004. The class of 2005 took fifth and the class of 2011 rounded out the field.
The teams played a lot of basketball Saturday as the majority of the squads played four games. But the switch from 20-minute halves to 12-minute halves seemed to help keep the players fresher, even at the end of the day.
"I didn't know it would work out this well," Karaba said. "It kept everyone competitive. Even the younger classes liked (the format). I think it's something that we'll definitely stick with."
But at the end of the day, the tournament was still about reuniting with friends and former teammates in the name of a good time.
"It's awesome to see everybody because I don't get a chance to see them (often) because we all go to different schools," noted Richter. "The alumni tournament is a good time to get together."
"It was great to see everybody," added Karaba. "We still had a great crowd. We still had a good ball players come out and definitely got some good, competitive basketball."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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