Second thoughts

A bat flew over the court at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee during Saturday’s game between Providence and Marquette.
A bat flew over the court at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee during Saturday’s game between Providence and Marquette.

— Fans, refs players go bat crazy

A bat caused some anxious moments during Saturday’s basketball game between Providence and Marquette, sending coaches, players and referees scrambling and delaying the game on a number of occasions at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

The bat first appeared with about 11 minutes left in Marquette’s 81-71 victory, as it began flying near the court and circling over the crowd of 15,140. At several points, it swooped near the court, sending referees and players scrambling - while the original Batman theme played on the loudspeaker.

The game resumed after a 4-minute delay, but play was stopped again seconds later as the bat nearly flew into the side of Providence center Sidiki Johnson’s head, sending him to the court.

“Crazy, it was crazy,” Marquette point guard Junior Cadougan said after the game. “Everybody was scared the bat was going to bite them. We were all scared, even the refs were scared. The commentator had a towel over his head.”

So did Providence Coach Ed Cooley, who was frustrated with his team’s performance, although he did find the bat-dance amusing.

“There wasn’t one bright spot in the game other than Batman and Robin flying around the damn building,” Cooley said. “That actually was pretty funny. That was really comical. I think the officials were more afraid than anybody. It was a momentum breaker. I think Batman took their crowd out of the game a little bit. I think that helped us there.”

With 7:36 left, arena officials turned off the lights to try and “get rid of the bat,” public address announcer Bob Brainerd told the crowd. The lights stayed out for several minutes, and hundreds in the crowd waved their mobile phones in the air, like a concert, as Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” played over the sound system. That seemed to do the trick, as the bat was not immediately seen again.

Four minutes of clock time took nearly a half hour to complete.

“It was funny to begin with,” Marquette Coach Buzz Williams said. “But after a while, it was, ‘Damn the bat. We have to win.’ There is going to be a winner and a loser. There’s not going to be an asterisk that said a bat was in the building.”

It wasn’t the first time a bat has shown an interest in basketball.

In 2009, a bat at the AT&T Center sent San Antonio Spurs and Sacramento Kings players scattering until Manu Ginobili came to the rescue and swatted the bat away with his bare hands.

It’s a good thing no one tried that Saturday. Ginobili needed rabies shots afterward.

Sharpshooter

Miami Heat forward LeBron James finished Friday’s 110-88 victory over the Detroit Pistons with 23 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds and a tackle.

The first three stats came during the game, but the last came after Michael Drysch, a 50-yearold computer technician from McHenry, Ill., made a hook shot from half court to win $75,000.

The long shot was a long shot, especially given Drysch’s shooting form.

“When he wound up I was like, ‘Oh no, there’s no way,”’ James said. “When it dropped, that was awesome. I would have probably air-balled that one in that situation.”

James watched from the bench, and when the shot swished in, he happily sprinted toward Drysch and embraced him, and both tumbled to the court.

“Nice way to meet somebody,” Drysch said. “I can’t believe it.”

Word is, the New Orleans Saints are considering offering James a spot at linebacker.

Quote of the day “We got lucky.” South Carolina women’s basketball Coach Dawn Staley after her team’s 43-40 victory over Arkansas on Sunday in Fayetteville.

Sports, Pages 14 on 01/28/2013

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