GAME ON: "Big Dance" Hoop Tourney Hits RI

GAME ON: "Big Dance" Hoop Tourney Hits RI

No movie captures the magic of high school basketball quite like Hoosiers, the fairytale story of small-town farm boys who make an improbable run at the 1954 Indiana State Championship. Generations of players have since tried to emulate Jimmy Chitwood’s picket-fence shot and recreate the same high school hoops glory. While Indiana stakes special claim to Hoosiers, perhaps no state appreciates the essence of an underdog like Rhode Island, the smallest member of the Union.

Hoosiers can be an irresistible fable, but in Rhode Island, the dream is impossible for small-school players like Isaac Medeiros, the senior captain of Johnston boys basketball. Medeiros, currently the leading scorer in Division III for 9-0 Johnston and a Second-Team All-State player last year, has never had the chance to play against the big boys in the post-season: “My team doesn’t get much respect because we are a Division III team,” he says. Since 1965, Ocean State basketball has crowned three separate champions in Division I, II, and III, but has now created a singular cross-divisional tournament, answering the wishes of overshadowed talent like Medeiros.

Underdogs Ready For Opportunity

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In March, Johnston and other Hoosier-esque teams will get their opportunity to challenge traditional heavyweights like Bishop Hendricken, LaSalle, and North Kingstown. The RIIL announced a new playoff tournament calling for a 16-team field that includes representatives of all three divisions, an opportunity Medeiros has longed for: “This tournament is great for our program, so we can show the state how good our team really is.”

Andrew Chrabascz, who played at Portsmouth High before transferring to Cushing Academy, echoes Meideros’s sentiment. Although Portsmouth has moved up to Division I with realignment this year, Chrabascz experienced the same frustration playing two previous seasons in Division II, and endorses the renovation: “I wish they did this type of tournament last year so I could have had the chance to say my team (Portsmouth) was the true best team in the state instead of just the best team in Division II. So I am definitely for the new tournament format.”

Division I Also Onboard

Praise comes from the upper-echelon as well, and many Division I veterans embrace the challenge of a new tournament. Dayvon Heard, a senior leader for the Division I-leading Central Knights, is looking forward to the inclusive format of a cross-divisional tournament: “In the past few years teams from DII and DIII always thought they could compete with DI, so now there is a chance to prove themselves. Also, by crowning one champion will be a better way for a state championship rather then crowning three.”

Jimmy Baron, the former stand-out shooter for Bishop Hendricken and University of Rhode Island, called the amendments “long overdue.” Speaking from Spain, where he plays professionally, Baron said: “I think this is a great change. It's similar to college basketball. You have your conference championships and an NCAA tournament.“ Division I, II, and III tournaments will remain in place, held in mid-February instead of March, to make room for the culminating 16-team tournament set to begin March 3rd.

Anticipating the Event

To replicate the spirit of March Madness, the State Championship Tournament’s “Final Four” – the semifinals and finals – will be held at the Ryan Center of URI, home of the Rams and a place Baron knows well: “The Ryan Center is a great venue…and will give the semifinals more excitement,” he says.

Although members of all three divisions will compete, 8 will be from Division I, 5 from Division II, and 3 from Division III. Despite the disproportionate representation, Michael Cavallaro, who leads Division III Moses Brown with 19 PPG, calls the new event an “equal opportunity tournament,” adding, “its the old format, and then some.”

Only one squad can hoist the trophy like Hoosiers though, and Bishop Hendricken (7-time defending champion in DI) must be considered the favorite until beaten, but the title of State Champions will carry more legitimacy now. Ismael Batista, a sophomore captain for Classical High, best summed up what the new tournament will mean: “ Now we can all find out what high school team is the best in the state.”