Hoops Odds And Ends

I was reading the latest issue of ESPN Magazine and came across a couple notable blurbs.

1) Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are producing a movie about DeMatha HS basketball coach Morgan Wootten. Wootten is recognized almost unanimously as the best high school basketball coach ever. I won't disagree. Wootten's stats as a coach are silly. Five national championships, 31 conference championships, 1,274 wins and 192 losses.

Wootten actually coached briefly at my high school during the 1950's under the tutelage of legendary St. John's coach Joe Gallagher (himself a winner of over 800 HS basketball games). He also graduated from the University of Maryland, a fellow Terp. And he's a wonderful human being.

That being said, I hate DeMatha. DeMatha is like the Duke of DC basketball. They always win. Wootten's Stags regularly captured the Catholic league hoops title in DC. My alma mater usually put up a good fight, but the trophies were rare. DeMatha wins in everything else: football, baseball, hockey, you name it. They are an area powerhouse in sports, and rarely have a down year in any of them.

So I'm pretty ecstatic about this new Affleck/Damon venture. Considering the Affleck reverse Midas Touch, I expect the movie to be pretty awful. And anything stupid with DeMatha's name attached is alright by me. Sorry, Coach.

2) I may not agree with former veep candidate John Edward's politics, but I can't argue with this exchange regarding Duke's Coach K:

Edwards: He's a really good coach.
The Mag: Better than Roy Williams?
Edwards: Nope. Or Dean Smith.
The Mag: Matt Doherty?
Edwards: He's not better than any of the above.

It could be tough to vote against him next time.