ECC basketball, deservedly so, has caught state’s attention again
N ot to quibble with the great Springsteen, of course. There's no denying glory days, they pass you by, in the wink of a young girl's eye.
It's just that The Boss left no possibility for what happens if they happen to return.
Glory days, at least in our sporting lore and legend, used to be awash in basketball, circa 1980-1995, from Harold Pressley to recruiting allegations that made statewide news, to Ralph Roggero's juggernauts at New London High to Tyson Wheeler. Big games, big nights, big stories, big crowds.
And now, more than 20 years after Wheeler graduated, basketball has become our marquee sport again. Talent levels aren't near the Pressley days. But the interest sure is.
Example: Last season's ECC tournament championship game at the "X," otherwise known as Waterford's Francis X. Sweeney Fieldhouse, drew the largest on campus crowd in the state (more than 2,000) for any game in 2018. Waterford's state championship game at Mohegan Sun Arena drew 4,000 fans on a Sunday morning, the lower bowl flush with blue, a two-hour infomercial for Lancer Nation, punctuated by a state title.
Crowds were large for several other games last year, too, not to mention how basketball contributed mightily to GameDay's nearly 500,000 web hits (yes, you read that correctly) for livestreaming of high school events and their accompanying video features on theday.com.
It didn't hurt that basketball intensified an already fun rivalry (East
Lyme vs. Waterford) with the Dev Ostrowski vs. Mikey Buscetto story. Two marquee players, two clever student sections, two great games. And for the curmudgeonly: This does not say Ostrowski and Buscetto are headed to the NBA. But it does say that people liked watching them.
Happily, there's momentum from last year carrying into this winter. The ECC, at least for the moment, is among the state's premier boys' basketball conferences.
Schedules alone for the upcoming season suggest its member schools are willing to play anybody anywhere anytime. Some examples: East Lyme, with Ostrowski, a senior guard and among the state's best players, will play Notre Dame of West Haven, Div. II state semifinalist Glastonbury and Weaver, among others. Not to mention Waterford twice during the regular season.
Waterford has added defending Div. II champion Immaculate and Div. I Trumbull, which won 15 games last year and returns most of its team.
Ledyard plays Newtown, Weaver and New Britain, while New London plays Div. III semifinalist Prince Tech twice.
NFA has added Holy Cross of Waterbury, Div. III semifinalist Enfield and East Hartford, among others. All brand names.
The league has some depth, too. St. Bernard, Woodstock and Stonington all return quality players, thus creating what should be entertaining matchups just about every night of the winter.
This shouldn't be understated. Anyone who pays attention to sports in our corner of the world knows the ECC has a self-imposed inferiority complex in most sports. We're tucked away down here in all our bumpkinism and just can't possibly compete with schools from more urbane parts of Connecticut.
Seems that's changing. A tip of the cap to ECC basketball coaches and athletic directors for recognizing the opportunities to go out and schedule big.
The timing is, well, timely. Because this has been a disappointing football season.
League schools have not won enough games in the new scheduling alliance with the Southern Connecticut and South-West Conferences. It's doubtful anyone outside of Killingly will make the playoffs. All the old stereotypes about our shortcomings have flourished. With ample evidence.
Soon, though, comes the winter and the sport that's on the rise again. No longer is the ECC a mid-major. It's right there with all the others, more reason than ever to get out to a game this winter or at least tune in on theday.com.
We can't wait. This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro