After a 74-45 upset victory over 31st seeded Roosevelt Educational Campus on Tuesday, February 26, the Runnin’ Rebels, Stuyvesant’s varsity boys’ basketball team, was set to play the second seeded Seahawks of High School of Food and Finance. Previously, Food and Finance defeated Stuyvesant two times by an average of 19 points. The Rebels, seeded 34th, did not have the highest of hopes for winning.
On Friday, February 29, the Rebels exceeded expectations. They stayed close to Food and Finance throughout the entire game and even led sporadically. They were down by only three points at half time and a basket after the third quarter. It was at this point that the game began to unravel. However, it was not the Rebels who let the Seahawks swoop down and steal the game, it was the score keepers and Public School Athletic League boys’ basketball commissioner Mel Goldstein.
At the end of regulation when the scoreboard read 40-40, the referees checked the books and saw that Stuyvesant had only 38 points. They then declared the Seahawks the winners. However after reviewing the game on video, it was apparent that the Rebels had in fact scored 12 points in the final quarter, not 10 as was written down. The scoreboard was right.
The Rebels lost 40-40 and it was the commissioner who dropped the ball. [Despite a protest on part of Runnin’ Rebels Coach Phil Fisher and Assistant Principal Health and Physical Education Martha Singer, Goldstein was determined not to change the outcome of the game.
How is it that such a hard fought season could end so abruptly and obscurely? It was not that the Rebels’ defense collapsed, their shooters missed their shots or that they were unable to create turnovers. They scored as many points as the opposition. What more can you ask of a team to avoid losing?
There is no logical explanation for their elimination from the playoffs. Never, to my knowledge, has a playoff game ended before it was finished and resulted in a tie. It is ridiculous that the Rebels lost because of a mistake made on the part of the score keepers and not the players.
While it was the mistake of the score keepers who misreported the number of points, it was Goldstein who really let the team down. It was his decision not to play the four minutes of overtime that were taken away from Stuyvesant. He decided not to push back the second round playoff game against Julia Richmond Education Center on Tuesday, March 4.
Although it was not ultimately up to Goldstein to disregard the visual evidence, it is an error on the part of the PSAL not to consider video after the incidence occurred. Because there was no discrepancy in the score books at the time of the infraction, Singer said, the game was called.
The Rebels were never given the opportunity to lose or win properly. His decision will not only affect the outcome of the future playoff games and the integrity of the PSAL, but also Stuyvesant’s individual players. For most of them, they can come back next year and have another chance.
But for eight seniors, this was the end of high school basketball and perhaps the last competitive game they will ever play. To exit in that manner – not knowing what you did wrong or how to fix it – is rough, which is why I would like to end their season on a different note. Not one of remorse or hopelessness, but one of appreciation.
They have been a pleasure to watch, both on and off the court. The Rebels’ talent, heart and respect for the game are attributes that the often packed stands worth of spectators would agree they exemplify. In my nearly four years at Stuyvesant, I have not witnessed a team that has been able to fill the gym at nearly every home game, motivate students to paint their chests or give me such a thrill that rivals that of SING!.
From all your fans, thanks for a great season.