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Mike's BlogDude, whatever I want to talk about
January 10, 2013 | 09:24 PM
Oh, what a difference a year makes.
Back in February, the East Troy boys basketball team put a beat-down of epic proportions on Big Foot, 116-40. Not only that, but the Trojans left their starters in for almost the entire game and continued to full-court press with a 78-point lead in the fourth quarter.
East Troy coach Darryl Rayfield (pictured above) showed no mercy, and his players ended up apologizing after the game. It was a dark night for the East Troy boys basketball program.
I wrote two blogs basically ripping Rayfield's actions, which he defended to myself and various media outlets. The controversy spread like wild fire, and parents and fans alike were outraged at the unfortunate example of running up the score.
Fast forward to Thursday night and the rematch, this time in East Troy.
The Trojans, ranked No. 6 in the state in Division 3, were red hot.
They shot 64 percent for the game and canned nine 3-pointers in a lopsided 90-34 victory.
Six Trojans scored in double figures, led by Brett Prahl's 18.
Big Foot gave a solid effort for four quarters, but the high-powered Trojans were too much.
"East Troy is one of the best teams in the state, and we shot 20 percent," Big Foot coach Tim Collins said after the game. "We can't beat a bad team shooting 20 percent."
With three Division 1 recruits in 6-foot-9 twins Alex and Brett Prahl and guard Nate Dodge, there's no denying East Troy is a level above Big Foot and just about every other team in the area.
But Rayfield and the Trojans blew out Big Foot Thursday night with a lot of class. Is it possible Rayfield has turned over a new leaf?
Consistently throughout the game, Rayfield, a Lake Geneva resident, utilized a 10-man rotation. The same full-court press that was indicative of unsportsmanlike conduct last year was graciously stopped in the third quarter with East Troy leading by 40 points.
East Troy was up, 48-20, at halftime, and Rayfield made it a point to call off the dogs in the second half. The starters sat almost the entire fourth quarter. The bench was cleared with 6:30 remaining to be exact.
Rayfield even listened to the fans. The East Troy student section chanted loudly for at least five minutes to get the last guy on the bench, Tim Farmer, in the game. With 1:30 to play, Rayfield obliged and called a timeout to make the substitution.
Despite holding at least a 30-point lead the entire second half, the Trojans never once showed any signs of running up the score.
It was an exercise in class and sportsmanship that, quite frankly, I didn't think was possible after last year's egregious debacle.
East Troy has blown out three lesser opponents this season by 40 or more points, but in each game everyone played and contributed. For Rayfield, progress has been made and fans are focusing on East Troy's stellar play instead of concerns with sportsmanship.
At 10-2, the best basketball squad in Walworth County is winning big and doing it the right way.
Collins, who was downright appalled at Rayfield's actions back in February, sang a different tune Thursday night.
"Live and learn," he said with a smile.
Mike Ramczyk
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