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By BEN MCCARTY
News staff writer
February 8, 2008
How
do you cover a team that you can’t find?
That question ran repeatedly through my mind as I wondered
through the innards of the Rose Garden trying to find the
Horizon Christian School boys’ basketball team.
I
had arrived at the Rose Garden a few minutes later than the
12:30 p.m. time that I was supposed to thanks to my quest for
cheap parking (I failed, and wound up settling for a $13 Garden
garage) and was desperately following a few Rose Quarter
representatives and a gaggle of Horizon fans to try and find out
where the team was located.
After a journey through several food and promotional item
storage areas -- “Wow, this is really the inner workings!” one
fan remarked – I finally found the team getting ready for their
game.
A
nervous energy permeated the room, with many of the players not
sure whether it would be better to sit still or try and find
something- anything- to do with their hands. Guard Philip
Stenberg was about the only one not looking nervous, and that
was mainly because he was too ill to change his slumped posture
in a chair.
Neither the Hawks or the South Wasco Redsides could seem to
shake much of that nervousness early on as both teams had
difficulties hitting their shots.
But
while both teams struggled to get used to the floor, I was just
struggling to get to it.
I
had climbed to the upper levels of the Rose Garden seats to get
a picture of the tip-off (which can be seen on the front of the
mid-week sports section). After snapping the shot and praying
that it turned out, I tried to get down to the court to get the
action from a closer vantage point, but found myself unable to
remember which way I had taken to get to the upper levels.
Eventually I found my way and managed to get plenty of decent
photos from seats that are way outside my income bracket.
When the game finished, it was off into a scramble to grab
quotes and get a few last pictures before players and fans all
left the Rose Garden.
It
was a little bit different than usual having to compete with an
actual media gaggle. Cory Eldridge from The Dalles-Chronicle
made the trip out to cover South Wasco, and a pair of reporters
from a certain large daily newspaper that shall not be named
also were there.
Despite rallying in the second half to get a win on the same
floor the Blazers play on, some Horizon players did have a few
regrets.
“I’m disappointed I didn’t get to try my NBA three pointer!”
Hawks post Josh Larson said.
Even though he never got to hit one from downtown, Larson did
plenty to help the Hawks get the win, finishing with five points
and getting a key blocked shot down the stretch.
Even though the win came on a much bigger court than usual,
Horizon coach Ron Haynes said nothing much changed in how well
the two teams competed against each other.
“This was your typical Horizon-South Wasco game,” he said. “Its
been this way for the last three years.”
With quotes and photos in hand, I dashed off to my car to trim
down the amount of stuff I was carrying in advance of the
Blazers game later that night, and then dashed down the street
to find the team eating at a nearby Burgerville.
They knew they had to be back the Rose Quarter by 5 p.m., what
they didn’t know was why. School administrators and the Blazers
had set up a tour of the behind the scenes set-up for an NBA
game, complete with another surprise at the end.
After being guided through the production studios for the
Blazer’s pre-game show, Blazers’ Vice President Jack Bradley led
them to courtside seats for the team’s pre-game shoot around.
Fingers pointed and eyes bugged out as they watched players they
normally only get to see on television fire up jump shots just a
few feet away.
Then three of them got to go into the Blazers locker room and
came back with plenty of stories for their teammates.
“That was amazing,” Stenberg said.
After all that excitement it was up to the 300 level for the
game. But my job was far from over.
I
found myself a spot in the corner of the media workroom to start
working on my story (which can also be found on the front of the
mid-week sports section). Then it was back upstairs to sit
against the wall at the very top of the arena for more pictures
and to continue writing.
Some writers like to cover games from a court side seat, but
being a man of the people, I actually prefer writing from the
nosebleed seats.
It
looked like it was going to be a blowout early, with the Blazers
falling behind by as much as 17 in the first half only to rally
and have a lead heading into the final minutes. But poor free
throw shooting and a last second jumper by Allen Iverson
ultimately doomed the Blazers to an overtime loss.
As
the clock wound past 10 p.m. and I headed down to the parking
garage to negotiate post game traffic, I was just glad the I
didn’t have to cover the Blazers as well, or what had already
been a long day, would have become even longer.
But
in the end, with two fantastic games to watch in one day, what
more could a sports writer ask for?
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