I had to reread the article twice as I could not believe it.
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Two Alabama high school coaches combined their strategies to create the most boring game of high school basketball possible on Saturday. In the end, Bibb County (Ala.) held on to an early lead to defeat Brookwood (Ala.), 2-0.
The score ties a national record for the lowest of all time. The last time a game ended at 2-0 was in 1977, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.
Bibb County jumped on the board in the first 15 seconds, when Brandon Rutledge scored off the rebound of a teammate's missed three-point attempt. From there, Brookwood intentionally slowed everything down.
The Brookwood players just held the ball until the end of the first quarter, finally taking a shot at the buzzer. Brookwood coach Thad Fitzpatrick told TuscaloosaNews.com the game plan was to slow down on offense because it was the team's fourth game of the week, and several players had cramped up in the previous night's game.
"We decided, ‘OK, let’s just hold the ball and see what happens.’" he said. "They never came out of the zone. We got a chance to rest, and we thought they might chase us a little bit, so we just held the ball.”
It must have been brutally boring for the players and the fans when Brookwood again held the ball for the entire second quarter, then missed another shot near the end.
Not to be outdone, Bibb County followed suit to start the third quarter. By then the coach had decided that he'd be happy enough going into the fourth quarter with a 2-0 lead, because that would at least force Brookwood to go for a shot before the buzzer.
Yet when Brookwood got the ball to start the fourth, nothing changed. The team waited it out again, planning a final shot that would either force overtime or give them the 3-2 win.
But with 15 seconds to go, Bibb County finally forced a turnover. Brookwood had to foul to keep the game alive.
The teams collectively took seven shots in those final 15 seconds, all of them failing to find the net. And just like that, they put their names in the record books for something either would likely prefer to forget.
When the two teams played earlier this season, Brookwood won 40-36.
It must have been brutally boring for the players and the fans when Brookwood again held the ball for the entire second quarter, then missed another shot near the end.
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Two Alabama high school coaches combined their strategies to create the most boring game of high school basketball possible on Saturday. In the end, Bibb County (Ala.) held on to an early lead to defeat Brookwood (Ala.), 2-0.
The score ties a national record for the lowest of all time. The last time a game ended at 2-0 was in 1977, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.
Bibb County jumped on the board in the first 15 seconds, when Brandon Rutledge scored off the rebound of a teammate's missed three-point attempt. From there, Brookwood intentionally slowed everything down.
The Brookwood players just held the ball until the end of the first quarter, finally taking a shot at the buzzer. Brookwood coach Thad Fitzpatrick told TuscaloosaNews.com the game plan was to slow down on offense because it was the team's fourth game of the week, and several players had cramped up in the previous night's game.
"We decided, ‘OK, let’s just hold the ball and see what happens.’" he said. "They never came out of the zone. We got a chance to rest, and we thought they might chase us a little bit, so we just held the ball.”
It must have been brutally boring for the players and the fans when Brookwood again held the ball for the entire second quarter, then missed another shot near the end.
Not to be outdone, Bibb County followed suit to start the third quarter. By then the coach had decided that he'd be happy enough going into the fourth quarter with a 2-0 lead, because that would at least force Brookwood to go for a shot before the buzzer.
Yet when Brookwood got the ball to start the fourth, nothing changed. The team waited it out again, planning a final shot that would either force overtime or give them the 3-2 win.
But with 15 seconds to go, Bibb County finally forced a turnover. Brookwood had to foul to keep the game alive.
The teams collectively took seven shots in those final 15 seconds, all of them failing to find the net. And just like that, they put their names in the record books for something either would likely prefer to forget.
When the two teams played earlier this season, Brookwood won 40-36.
It must have been brutally boring for the players and the fans when Brookwood again held the ball for the entire second quarter, then missed another shot near the end.
