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Jim Kawahito, of "Law 2003," drives to victory past a Scoreboard player in Monday night's IM hoops championship in Pauley Pavilion.
IM hoops players deal with rules, talent in tournament
Rule one: a male on offense may not be in possession of the ball while inside the key.
Exception: A male on offense may rebound, but must clear the ball out of the key by either dribbling or passing before any offensive plays can be made.
Rule two: a male who jumps from outside the key must release the ball before it closes the plane of the key.
Welcome to the rules of co-ed Intramural Basketball. In plain English, guys are restricted from being in the key except when playing defense and getting rebounds. Does this sound reasonable to players in this year’s tournament?
“The rules suck for guys, maybe get rid of them so that the guys can have fun as well,” said Erin Matsushita second-year biology student.
Henry Horton, second-year biology and microbiology student, disagrees.
“The rules are fair, it takes away the physical advantage that guys have … guys that complain are just (weak). If you don’t like the rules then don’t play, there’s an all guys’ and girls’ tournament later on.”
Teams that were not able to figure out the concept of coed rules never made it to the intramural playoffs, which concluded Monday, while the other teams dealt with the regulations of the game and worked their offense and defense around it.
Twenty-eight teams set foot on the courts of Pauley Pavilion and battled for 30 minutes each game for seven straight weeks.
Ultimately, two teams were able to grasp the concept of team ball: Team Scoreboard, comprised of mostly staff members from the UCLA Recreation Department (3-1 in the regular season), and the returning Coed Intramural Champions LAW 2003 (4-0), comprised of current graduate law students who won each of their regular season games by an average of 16 points.
Scoreboard had the concept ingrained so well, they refused to be quoted as individuals.
“We understand that we have to be unselfish. In fact, our girls are our leading scorers,” one team member said.
As for the coed rules restricting guys’ in the paint area, third-year LAW 2003’s Patrick Klein believes it’s the “best solution to an imperfect situation.”
Monday night, the two teams squared off for the championship at Pauley Pavilion. Right from the start, the game was dominated by last year’s champions.
Midway through the first half, LAW 2003 was up 12-2, behind the strength of four baskets by Jim Kawahito, but Scoreboard was able to get back into the scheme of things after Betsey Hillman of LAW 2003 was knocked to the floor.
Agonizing over the non-call and her swollen knees, Hillman limped off the floor to gather herself. With no available substitutes, LAW 2003 had to go five minutes with only four players on the floor.
Proving how integral team ball is, LAW 2003 was outscored for the rest of the half, 6-2, and that lack of offensive production allowed Scoreboard to get back into the game as the halftime score read 14-8.
On the outset of the second half, LAW 2003 was able to work inside and outside as Kawahito, who would finish with 21 points, continued his hot shooting and Mary Klima was able to chip in 6 of her 8 points from the inside.
Throughout the game, Klein had a defensive mind-set, as he blocked six shots and grabbed 15 rebounds.
LAW 2003 started to pull away, but Scoreboard mounted a comeback with tenacious defense and finally found its range from behind the arc. Four different players hit threes to bring Scoreboard within six.
With time running out on the clock, Scoreboard was in a must-foul-situation. LAW 2003 was able to clinch victory by hitting seven of eight free throws, including six of six by Kawahito. The final margin of victory was 37-27.
“I was able to set the table for my teammates, we won because we all knew our role and what we had to do to win,” said Kawahito.
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