161-2

Read this story on ESPN.com yesterday.
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- A Southern California high school basketball coach has been suspended and faces accusations of mercilessly running up the score after his team won a game 161-2, one of the most lopsided scores in state history.
Arroyo Valley High girls' coach Michael Anderson was suspended for two games after the victory last week against Bloomington High.
Anderson said that he wasn't trying to run up the score or embarrass the opposition. His team had won four previous games by at least 70 points, and Bloomington had already lost a game by 91.
"The game just got away from me," Anderson told the San Bernardino Sun on Friday. "I didn't play any starters in the second half. I didn't expect them to be that bad. I'm not trying to embarrass anybody."
He says if he had it to do again, he'd have played only reserves after the first quarter, or, "I wouldn't play the game at all."
But Bloomington coach Dale Chung says Arroyo Valley used a full-court press for the entire first half to lead 104-1 at halftime.
"People shouldn't feel sorry for my team," Chung said. "They should feel sorry for his team, which isn't learning the game the right way."
Anderson has served one game of the suspension, a game his team won 80-19 with his son Nick at the helm. He'll return after sitting out one more.
"He's a great X's and O's coach," Chung said. "Ethically? Not so much. He knows what he did was wrong."

I love the quote from the losing coach who says, people shouldn't feel sorry for my team. They should feel sorry for his team, which isn't learning the game the right way.
Really?
If a group of players lose 161-2, I'm going to say that group hasn't learned the game in the right way. What lesson is he teaching his team?
You know, there was a time when a person had to be qualified to participate. People who couldn't sing, didn't get to join the choir. Girls who couldn't do a flip, didn't get to be cheerleaders. Kids who couldn't play basketball, didn't get to be on the team.
It's not that way anymore. You don't have to be qualified to play. It's your right to be on the team.
Back when I was a kid, we played pick-up ball. The games were to 15 or 21. If you could win the game 21-0, you did it. You never thought about whether you were embarrassing the other team. Hell, you wanted to embarrass them. That was the goal. Beat them 21-0 and then laugh at them for losing 21-0.
I don't remember many 21-0 games. Know why? Because everyone knew what would happen if they got skunked so they showed some backbone and fight and made sure they didn't get beat like that. Or, if they weren't good enough to compete, they kept their butts off the court.
If you lose 161-2 and lose another game by 91 points, the primary lesson you should've learned is you're not basketball players. Am I saying they shouldn't play? Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. Not competitively, anyway.
"Oh, but they love the game and have every right to participate as anyone else," you say.
First of all, if they loved the game, they wouldn't get beat 161-2. Second, when you compete, you run the risk of getting embarrassed if you're not prepared.
It's not your opponent's job to boost your self-esteem. My job is to score. Your job is to stop me. It's called competition, matching my skills against yours. That's why it's fun. If you don't have any skills, why are you on the court?
Please, stop saying it's your right.
I can't swim. So, why don't I go join a swim team? It's my right.
By the way, since I can't swim but it's my right to be on the team, I'm going to need you to take all the water out of the pool so I can compete. Or, at the very least, give me some of the floatee things so I don't drown. And, in a show of good sportsmanship and to avoid embarrassing me, you have to dog paddle so you don't beat me too badly.
Should a team beat another team 161-2? Personally, as an adult, I wouldn't try to humiliate children. But, as an adult, if I had a team so inept, I would spend more time practicing and less time seeking pity. If his girls like to play but don't have the time to practice and become competitive, perhaps a competitive league isn't for them. They can still play on their own in the backyard or at a local gym. Pick-up games are fun.
At least on the playground, you'll only lose 21-0.