Thursday, August 21, 2008 11:11 PM CDT
Teutopolis' return may boost changing Charleston tourney
By BRIAN NIELSEN, Sports Editor
bnielsen@jg-tc.com
Looking for ways to save its holiday basketball tournaments, Charleston might be getting a big boost from Teutopolis.
The tradition-rich small-school power with one of the best fan followings and most success in the history of Charleston’s boys’ tournament, Teutopolis is considering a return by 2009 after two years at a Pinckneyville tourney that started last year.
“Pinckneyville has treated us very well and it’s a great tournament,” said Andy Fehrenbacher, who is entering his second season as the head coach replacing IBCA Hall of Famer Ken Crawford at Teutopolis. “It’s a great basketball community. The only problem is the distance our fans have to travel. Looking at Charleston it’s much closer and more convenient for our fans. We’re definitely looking at coming back to Charleston.”
Enhancing the chances of Teutopolis switching back is Charleston’s plans to change from a 16-team bracket tournament to eight-team field for both boys and girls with pool play guaranteeing teams four games each.
“The thing that I like about that is that we could have a four-game guarantee,” Fehrenbacher said. “I like the format. You get the opportunity to play a lot of games.
“I like the field of schools that they’re bringing (to Charleston). With the boys and girls both, that just maximizes your fan base too. I think that would be a plus as well.”
Teutopolis remains in the Charleston girls’ tournament being played at Charleston High School’s Baker Gym the same time as the boys’ tourney at Eastern Illinois University’s Lantz Arena.
The proposed new format at Charleston would have boys and girls both playing at Lantz with as many schools as possible bringing both boys and girls teams.
Changes were discussed at Wednesday night’s school board meeting as Charleston faces trouble keeping enough teams and drawing enough fans to continue is tourneys past this year, which is to be the 32nd year for the boys’ tourney at Lantz and 16th year for the girls at Baker Gym.
“Unfortunately in education dollars do drive a lot of things,” Charleston Athletics Director Jerry Calandrilla said. “We’ve been losing money the last four years.”
Asked how much, Calandrilla said, “It’s a significant deficit.”
School board member Jeff Coon said: “Basically my thoughts are that we need to make it financially solid and it’s not been for the last four years. We need to explore the directions to not lose money or at least as much money. My son plays basketball. I enjoy having it here and enjoy watching the games but you have to find a way to make it lose less money.”
One of those ways might be reducing the number of schools and trying to attract those in closer proximity bringing more fans.
Last year the attendance at the boys’ tourney may have hit an all-time low when Edwardsville and Chicago Vocational played for the championship.
“I think it’s just the reality of the situation,” said Charleston boys’ basketball coach Trevor Doughty, who previously coached girls’ basketball and now also serves as an assistant principal. “To me personally, losing the money, certainly that’s important, but one of the biggest problems we’ve had with the girls is getting 16 teams. Now the information we’re getting from the boys is we’re going to have a trouble getting 16 teams. One problem is whether we can fill a 16-team tournament with 16 teams. We feel we can get eight teams committed and have a tremendous tournament.”
A new Effingham St. Anthony boys’ tournament to start in 2009 could take away from the current Charleston field.
St. Anthony Athletics Director Mike Hoene said the entrants would be announced soon but confirmed the tourney is to begin next year.
“It’s been a fairly long process and finally decided we were going to try it,” Hoene said.
Fehrenbacher indicated Teutopolis would probably not play in the tourney at its neighboring rival Effingham St. Anthony, a team the Wooden Shoes already play in a regular season showdown and often in the National Trail Conference and regional tournaments.
“They had approached us about that,” the Teutopolis coach said. “We decided if we’re not going to stay at Pinckneyville then we’d probably go back to Charleston.
But Calandrilla has been told six or seven teams from the Charleston tournament could be moving to St. Anthony.
Of course, one of those would be St. Anthony, which is making a return to the Charleston tourney this year after taking its strong fan base to Breese Mater Dei the past three years.
Matt Britton, the point guard for Eastern Illinois’ 2001 NCAA tournament team, is coming back to Lantz Arena as St. Anthony’s coach for one year before his own team becomes a host.
“I’m guess when Eastern is in your blood things like that matter,” Britton said. “I’m really excited to be in the Charleston tournament. I think it’s a great opportunity for our team.”
Also moving from Charleston to St. Anthony after this year is Cumberland.
“School size and level of competition,” Cumberland Athletics Director Kevin Maynard said as reasons for the move. “That’s by no means to say the quality of competition isn’t good at Charleston. It’s the school size. But really probably the most important thing was the number of games guaranteed.
“I also understand the tradition involved. I enjoyed the Charleston tournament in our first year. We were treated very well. The hospitality was excellent.”
Brooks Inman, a Bethany native entering his second season as Mattoon’s coach, also spoke of the tradition at Charleston.
“Really it’s kind of a shame that it’s come down to this because when I was a kid this was the tournament to go to,” Inman said. “It’s always about being able to adapt. Maybe before long it may be up to 16 teams again.”
That might not even be in Charleston’s plans anymore.
Sixteen years after what was then a rather new idea of having both boys’ and girls’ tourneys being played at the same time in different gyms in the same town, boys’ and girls’ games could be played at the same floor so fans can see each of both of their teams play in games back-to-back at least on the opening day.
“I think the Charleston Holiday tournament has been innovative with the 3-point arc before it came in and three officials,” Doughty said. “We may be changing tradition but we’re keeping the tradition of being innovative.”
Many of the innovations came during the time former Charleston coach and AD Merv Baker started and directed the boys’ tourney.
“Thirty-one years ago we were a unique tournament,” Calandrilla said. “We want to get back to that.”
Contact Brian Nielsen at bnielsen@jg-tc.com or 238-6856.
Holiday tournament changes
Plans for Charleston tournaments after this year:
-- Invited would be eight boys’ teams and eight girls’ teams, preferable from schools that would send both. “That doesn’t mean Mattoon can’t come but we’re looking at bringing schools with boys and girls,” said Trevor Doughty, Charleston’s boys’ basketball coach and assistant principal recognizing that neighboring longtime boys’ tourney participant Mattoon has its own girls’ tourney.
-- Each team would play one game the first day of the tournament at Eastern Illinois’ Lantz Arena. In the tourney’s second day, each team would play one game at Lantz and one at Charleston High School’s Baker Gym, where new bleachers were installed this summer. “Baker Gym is not the same gym it was last year,” Charleston Athletic Director Jerry Calandrilla said. “It’s not like you’re going to sit on hard wooden bleachers anymore.”
-- On the final day, first-place
winners of each pool, second-place
finishers, etc., would play each other.
n The new format bringing boys and girls’ teams to Lantz and keeping the tourney alive would be welcomed at Eastern Illinois. “Eastern Illinois University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has supported and will continue to support the efforts of our local high schools in their athletic endeavors as long as our facilities are available,” Athletic Director Barbara Burke said.
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