Hoyas at Yates Field House

[wrestlemania]

From time to time you see them in pickup games there. I never was in one (thank God), but I watched a few and it was amusing watching sedentary guys from the dental school try to guard Eric Floyd. Anyone else have any stories they'd like to share?

[madgesiq92]

Imagine the same guys trying to score against Dikembe in Intramurals in 1988.

[prhoya]

Jan 29, 2020 19:21:51 GMT -5 madgesiq92 said:

Imagine the same guys trying to score against Dikembe in Intramurals in 1988.

I did. Freshman-yr intramurals at Yates. Dikembe was eligible because he was JT2’s project and not on the team. IIRC he played for one of New South teams. I stole a pass and shot over Dikembe for a 3. His team won something like 36-16. I fouled Dikembe several times by hanging from his arms to not let him reach the rim.

[grokamok]

In the late 80s/early 90s, some members of the team would come down together to play during the off-season (sometimes sneaking in during the season, too) in addition to the aforementioned intramural participation. With the height advantage they had, they usually set up opposite each other. I'd say most of the late-80s rosters played with us on occasion, but it wasn't a regularity. Some soon-to-be grads (post-tourney) and team alums would play.

There were some walk-ons/managers that were fantastic players, the kind that would have excelled in D-1 if they were 4 inches taller. Chip Simms was among the very best to ever play at Yates, as was Kayode Vann. There were a lot of good street ballers at the time who would come to Yates, along with really good grad school athletes, supplementing the undergrads who were athletes from other sports and gym rats of all types. It might not have been Rucker Park, but I haven't seen that level of play at any of the several other school gyms I've visited over the years.

A personal highlight was outrebounding Ed Spriggs, who I had liked as a kid following the Hoyas as I grew up. Of course, he was over 30 by that time with limited lift and I was maybe 18, but, still, he was 6-9 & the strength coach, and I wasn't quite 6-1 & a stick (before the Domino's & Blue Diamond deliveries got to me). He corrected my notion about his brother being a bodyguard for Muhammad Ali that I'd heard on some early broadcast of a game -- it was his cousin. Though he was a genuinely nice guy, Patrick could use somebody like him back on the bench to address the toughness/edge we've seemed to have lost; not only did he bang, his bark commanded instant attention.

Sometime in the mid-90s, they cracked down on admitting those not affiliated with the school. I also stopped seeing most of our team's players a few years earlier than that. I expect the Rayful Edmond thing had something to do with that, along with gradual increases to campus security postures, both at GU and nationwide.

Jerome Williams was fun. Stayed out on the perimeter at Yates, though (probably promised this to Thompson as a condition for being allowed to come play). Had great handles from playing more guard in his pre-second-growth-spurt years.

I played against AI before Thompson restricted his activity. He was amazingly fast. A bit of a jerk (to the request of the OP: he argued that a call I made against him on a clear foul on a made basket should discount the basket, not because it wasn't a foul or that I wasn't in the act of shooting, but because I'd said "Ball" instead of "And-1" during the shot; he kept at it until everyone but I capitulated, and that wasn't the only instance where his ego got in the way); however, that could have been said about a quarter of the guys playing on court 1. It was really labeled court 4, the one you see in front of you when you start down the stairs, but called court 1 because it was the first to fill up and because the best played there (not that I could count myself among those), even when the new floor was installed and the far courts were reoriented so that a true full-sized court was available; I imagine playing in front of the girls on the treadmills placed on the mezzanine at the time had something to do with its popularity.

I miss playing there. Much as it was nice to get a wood floor when it was donated, and much as I expect they've finally addressed the leaks from the field, above, I'd love to go back to the days of three millimeters of rubber coating the concrete floor pad...

[ColumbiaHeightsHoya]

Played a couple times with a few players. The biggest grouping however was me, a friend, Othella, Arnette Jordan who was a walk on and we had one other, maybe John Jacques. We played against Don Reid, Duane Spencer, Irvin Church & two other players. We got up early with some surprising buckets by me and my friend and then the tide turned. I was guarding Spencer. He was every bit of 6'10, I am 6'4. Rebounds were hard to come by.

Also remember playing against Victor in a game. He was borderline unstoppable.

[reformation]

Hit a couple of jumpers in a row over David Dunn before being shut down--definite highlight of my Gtwn experience

[thedragon]

I scored on a pump fake, up and under on Demetrius Hunter who was not trying very hard on defense. The next 3 possessions I was on defense - a walk-on guard named Trenton Hillier carved me up like a Thanksgiving turkey.

[Healy]

Yes. Had the court and both teams saw Reggie Williams, David Wingate, and Victor Morris lined up for next, next. Game got fierce just to hold court to play against them. Matched up with Reggie. Scored once against him. It was enough. We were jacked and they were not playing full speed at first, so we were up like 9-2 (play by ones then). Lost 11-9 as they got serious.
Wingate was amazing, so quick. Reggie was much stronger than he looked and so skilled.
Found a pay phone after we finished to call my girlfriend - so excited.
Was late spring if I recall correctly.

[Nevada Hoya]

Agree with Ed Spriggs and Jerome Williams being good guys. I had met them both in Las Vegas. Ed, when the team under JTII was practicing at the UNLV North gym. We had a nice conversation. I met Junk Yard Dog at Nordstrom and again we had another nice conversation, and I convinced him to come to our GU Club activities. I met "Chico" Church on occasion as he attended many of the GU Club activities.

Not Yates, but McD, where we had intramurals and open bball. I once played 2 on 2 halfcourt with Pete Rickert on my team. He was pitching for the Senators at that time and was working out at GU during the off season. He and I killed our opponents.

[miracles87]

Great stories! I tell ya, apropos of nothing, just thinking of these guys showing up at a random gym to ball, I would take the all-time Hoya team against any other school's squad in any venue. UNC, UCLA, Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, whomever....good luck!

[EasyEd]

Not Yates, but I recall watching the Washington Capitols NBA team work out in Ryan Gymnasium in 1950. Was the last year for the Capitols, who were coached by Bones McKinney. Tommy O'Keefe was on that team, along with Bill Sharman of later Celtics fame and Ed Mikan, brother of the great George Mikan. In Ryan the walls were, it seems, about three feet from the court boundaries. We played our home games at Uline Arena, the Armory, or Fort Meyer.