East closes…
All year long in the 1981-82 season that I was involved in, there had been a shadow hanging over everything. The Phoenix Union High School District had decided to reorganize and sell off some properties that were problematical, with Phoenix Union and East High being put on the chopping block. Phoenix Union sat right downtown in an area that had become increasingly valuable as real estate and contained fewer and fewer residents. It had been a terrific looking campus for many years, with a huge in-the-round gymnasium and magnificent football stadium- Montgomery Stadium. It was so big that the Rolling Stones played their first Phoenix concert there. But with a declining enrollment and a city on the rise, it began to look like the district had lost interest in it’s future and it was gradually falling into state of disrepair. Argie Rhymes was the basketball coach in 81-82, as he had replaced the legendary Gerald “Wimpy” Jones. East High, on the other hand, was still almost brand new by school standards- only 17 years old and in great shape. It also, however, had an enrollment problem- it sat at the corner of 48th Street and Van Buren, which was becoming more of an industrial area than a residential area. From a real estate point of view, it was not in the same ball park as Phoenix Union, but the enrollment was definitely falling. There was also an underlying racial issue at play- Phoenix Union was mostly African-American and Latino, whereas East was mostly white. That issue is never far from the surface in America and it was certainly discussed in this context. I remember a lot of the East High people feeling like they were being sacrificed on the alter of politics. They felt the closing of Phoenix union to be justified, and that East’s enrollment would benefit from the closing of the downtown school. It was in the newspapers and it became an ugly issue. Several times during 81-82, it looked like the district might save East, but in the end they didn’t. Both East and Phoenix Union had powerful sports programs and legacies, but those things are shoved aside when it comes to money and politics.
That situation had an affect on Coach Youree during the season. He had given East High and the district all he had, but it didn’t seem to matter. That situation is what made the final season all the more memorable. Each game seemed to draw us closer to the end of something that no one wanted to see gone. As I mentioned, we lost three games- all by one point. One loss was to Argie and Phoenix Union in that old palace, but then we routed them in the finals of the Phoenix Union Holiday Tournament. We lost at home to Casa Grande, by a shot that was debatedly at or after the buzzer. After that one, Coach Youree told me to go get one of the referees from their dressing room, because he wanted to talk about the ending. Obviously, that is not something that is readily done- going to fetch a ref after a game, that is- so I said “are you sure you want me to go get him?” In no uncertain terms, he told me to go get the guy- I will not use his name here. So, off I went and knocked on the referee’s dressing room door. The one guy Coach Youree wanted was sitting down and I told him that Coach wanted to see him. He said “no way am I going out there!” Awkward. We played Casa Grande later in the year at their place and smashed them pretty good.
We went into the Metro Region tournament as the top seed and won the first two games to set up a final with South Mountain, who we already defeated twice during the season. By getting to the finals, Coach Youree had made it 13 consecutive years to the state tournament in the state’s toughest conference, hands down. No power points in those days- you had to win your way in against teams who could win the whole thing. The championship game was at Brophy and the place was packed on both levels, both sides. There was just barely enough room for us to sit on the bench, which was part of the bleachers. We were down 51-50 with three seconds left, when LeRoy Dean drove the right side of the lane. Everyone knew he had to shoot it- everyone but LeRoy that is. It seemed like South’s entire front line rotated over to block his attempt, so being one of the smartest players I’ve ever been around, LeRoy passed the ball off the backboard to Uvonte Reed who was coming in unguarded from the other side. Uvonte caught the ball in the air and laid it over the rim as time expired. East 52 South 51. As the gym exploded, I looked at the ref, Jerry Steitler- a very courageous man- and he signaled that the basket counted. Coach Youree grabbed me and told me to double check with the scorer- and as I got to the table, I was immediately pinned in by the South coaches, players, and God knows who else. Another very brave man, “Dub” Davis, the scorer, said the basket was good. As I got down to the locker room, and went by the referee’s room, I saw that Don Petroff, the South coach had gotten in there and was letting Jerry Steitler have it. Jerry was just sitting there, with his feet up on a chair saying, “Don, it was good. I saw it all the way”.
Our third loss would be in the state quarterfinals against St. Mary’s. We led by 5 with 43 seconds left, but would lose by 1. A lot of people naively think running a four corner offense is easy, but it is most definitely not when people come after you with traps and fouls. You have to be able to handle the ball when trapped and make good decisions. You also have to make free throws. We did neither in the last 43 seconds. Even at that, we led by one with 5 seconds left, when there was a classic block-charge scenario on the baseline. The baseline ref called a charge, but was overruled by the senior official who huddled with him after the call. The call was changed to a block and the St. Mary’s player, to his credit, made both free throws. We missed a final attempt and East High’s illustrious basketball program came to an end.
Right after the season, both Arizona and Arizona State had openings for a head coach. Word had it that Ben Lindsey, the successful coach at Grand Canyon College, was going to get the Arizona job- which he did. The ASU job seemed like the perfect fit for Coach Youree. He was a great player there where he had played for the retiring Ned Wulk, was nationally known, and was a popular choice from people all over the valley. Radio talk shows and op-ed’s in the Republic said it was a no-brainer. Ned Wulk came out and said that Coach Youree should be the choice. After Ben Lindsey got the Arizona job, he called Coach Youree and begged him to take an assistant’s position with him. I was in the office when the call came in. Coach said he was in the ASU process and could not do it. It was really a heady few weeks in the midst of a very sad situation with the impending closure of East High. It came down to Coach Youree and Bob Weinhauer, the coach from Pennsylvania University, who had just taken them to the Final Four. In the end, Dick Tamburo told Coach Youree that he just couldn’t pull the trigger on a high school coach. His quote was “how would I look if you didn’t win?” to which Coach Youree responded “how will you look if I do win?” I have no doubt that Coach Youree would have taken ASU places it has still never been. And I would have been right there with him.
Next…A Roughrider…
All year long in the 1981-82 season that I was involved in, there had been a shadow hanging over everything. The Phoenix Union High School District had decided to reorganize and sell off some properties that were problematical, with Phoenix Union and East High being put on the chopping block. Phoenix Union sat right downtown in an area that had become increasingly valuable as real estate and contained fewer and fewer residents. It had been a terrific looking campus for many years, with a huge in-the-round gymnasium and magnificent football stadium- Montgomery Stadium. It was so big that the Rolling Stones played their first Phoenix concert there. But with a declining enrollment and a city on the rise, it began to look like the district had lost interest in it’s future and it was gradually falling into state of disrepair. Argie Rhymes was the basketball coach in 81-82, as he had replaced the legendary Gerald “Wimpy” Jones. East High, on the other hand, was still almost brand new by school standards- only 17 years old and in great shape. It also, however, had an enrollment problem- it sat at the corner of 48th Street and Van Buren, which was becoming more of an industrial area than a residential area. From a real estate point of view, it was not in the same ball park as Phoenix Union, but the enrollment was definitely falling. There was also an underlying racial issue at play- Phoenix Union was mostly African-American and Latino, whereas East was mostly white. That issue is never far from the surface in America and it was certainly discussed in this context. I remember a lot of the East High people feeling like they were being sacrificed on the alter of politics. They felt the closing of Phoenix union to be justified, and that East’s enrollment would benefit from the closing of the downtown school. It was in the newspapers and it became an ugly issue. Several times during 81-82, it looked like the district might save East, but in the end they didn’t. Both East and Phoenix Union had powerful sports programs and legacies, but those things are shoved aside when it comes to money and politics.
That situation had an affect on Coach Youree during the season. He had given East High and the district all he had, but it didn’t seem to matter. That situation is what made the final season all the more memorable. Each game seemed to draw us closer to the end of something that no one wanted to see gone. As I mentioned, we lost three games- all by one point. One loss was to Argie and Phoenix Union in that old palace, but then we routed them in the finals of the Phoenix Union Holiday Tournament. We lost at home to Casa Grande, by a shot that was debatedly at or after the buzzer. After that one, Coach Youree told me to go get one of the referees from their dressing room, because he wanted to talk about the ending. Obviously, that is not something that is readily done- going to fetch a ref after a game, that is- so I said “are you sure you want me to go get him?” In no uncertain terms, he told me to go get the guy- I will not use his name here. So, off I went and knocked on the referee’s dressing room door. The one guy Coach Youree wanted was sitting down and I told him that Coach wanted to see him. He said “no way am I going out there!” Awkward. We played Casa Grande later in the year at their place and smashed them pretty good.
We went into the Metro Region tournament as the top seed and won the first two games to set up a final with South Mountain, who we already defeated twice during the season. By getting to the finals, Coach Youree had made it 13 consecutive years to the state tournament in the state’s toughest conference, hands down. No power points in those days- you had to win your way in against teams who could win the whole thing. The championship game was at Brophy and the place was packed on both levels, both sides. There was just barely enough room for us to sit on the bench, which was part of the bleachers. We were down 51-50 with three seconds left, when LeRoy Dean drove the right side of the lane. Everyone knew he had to shoot it- everyone but LeRoy that is. It seemed like South’s entire front line rotated over to block his attempt, so being one of the smartest players I’ve ever been around, LeRoy passed the ball off the backboard to Uvonte Reed who was coming in unguarded from the other side. Uvonte caught the ball in the air and laid it over the rim as time expired. East 52 South 51. As the gym exploded, I looked at the ref, Jerry Steitler- a very courageous man- and he signaled that the basket counted. Coach Youree grabbed me and told me to double check with the scorer- and as I got to the table, I was immediately pinned in by the South coaches, players, and God knows who else. Another very brave man, “Dub” Davis, the scorer, said the basket was good. As I got down to the locker room, and went by the referee’s room, I saw that Don Petroff, the South coach had gotten in there and was letting Jerry Steitler have it. Jerry was just sitting there, with his feet up on a chair saying, “Don, it was good. I saw it all the way”.
Our third loss would be in the state quarterfinals against St. Mary’s. We led by 5 with 43 seconds left, but would lose by 1. A lot of people naively think running a four corner offense is easy, but it is most definitely not when people come after you with traps and fouls. You have to be able to handle the ball when trapped and make good decisions. You also have to make free throws. We did neither in the last 43 seconds. Even at that, we led by one with 5 seconds left, when there was a classic block-charge scenario on the baseline. The baseline ref called a charge, but was overruled by the senior official who huddled with him after the call. The call was changed to a block and the St. Mary’s player, to his credit, made both free throws. We missed a final attempt and East High’s illustrious basketball program came to an end.
Right after the season, both Arizona and Arizona State had openings for a head coach. Word had it that Ben Lindsey, the successful coach at Grand Canyon College, was going to get the Arizona job- which he did. The ASU job seemed like the perfect fit for Coach Youree. He was a great player there where he had played for the retiring Ned Wulk, was nationally known, and was a popular choice from people all over the valley. Radio talk shows and op-ed’s in the Republic said it was a no-brainer. Ned Wulk came out and said that Coach Youree should be the choice. After Ben Lindsey got the Arizona job, he called Coach Youree and begged him to take an assistant’s position with him. I was in the office when the call came in. Coach said he was in the ASU process and could not do it. It was really a heady few weeks in the midst of a very sad situation with the impending closure of East High. It came down to Coach Youree and Bob Weinhauer, the coach from Pennsylvania University, who had just taken them to the Final Four. In the end, Dick Tamburo told Coach Youree that he just couldn’t pull the trigger on a high school coach. His quote was “how would I look if you didn’t win?” to which Coach Youree responded “how will you look if I do win?” I have no doubt that Coach Youree would have taken ASU places it has still never been. And I would have been right there with him.
Next…A Roughrider…
