Andrea Malloyd
Journalism 210 A
October 22, 2009

Crowd Pleads Insanity at Midnight Madness

College basketball fever has struck the nation and San Diego Mesa College is no exception. Over 100 fans came out to support the Olympians basketball teams during Midnight Madness on Oct. 16.
Midnight Madness began on Oct. 15, 1970 when Maryland head coach Lefty Driesell rallied his team for practice at 12:01 AM; the earliest time allowed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Driesell was attempting to give Maryland an upper hand over the competition. Coincidentally, Midnight Madness became a national phenomenon that would signal the beginning of the college basketball season; it would also give fans the opportunity to be introduced to the team members and coaching staff.
Men’s coach Ed Helscher was skeptical about bringing Midnight Madness to Mesa.
“Coach Mike Hootner and [Assistant Coach] Dan Bruton convinced me that we should do it. It’s been a real pleasure working with them. They’re conscientious about what needs to be done,” said Coach Helscher.
Tessa Spence, a forward for the women’s team is excited to participate in a traditionally DI and DII occasion.
“I think it’s awesome that junior colleges are doing it now. It’s awesome to get the recognition and support,” said Spence.
The Midnight Madness event kicked off with an introduction of the teams and coaching staff as the crowd danced along with the music blasting in the gym.
After the introduction of the men and women’s teams, the three-point contest took place between members of the women’s team. As the crowd cheered, wing and forward Angela Eley stole the spotlight sinking nine three-point shots in a period of one minute, ultimately winning the contest.
The men’s basketball team followed with a slam-dunk contest. Power forward and center Broxton Dawson easily towered over his competition at 6 feet 6 inches. In the first round, there were four competitors and each had two attempts to impress the crowd with their dunking skills. In the final round, Dawson was pitted against teammate Jeremy Ralph. Ralph flubbed his first dunk, but made his second. Dawson achieved two dunks awarding him the win.

“It felt great to be with the team, have a great camaraderie between us and do something together that we’ll always remember,” said Dawson.
The final event of the evening was a scrimmage between the men and women’s teams. The scrimmage was meant to give the teams practice in a non-competitive environment. The final score was a tie of 18-18. Women’s guard Shelby Watson and forward Brittany Smith each scored four points.
Bridgette Palmer, a center for the women’s team got to participate in the scrimmage for the first time this year.
“It was fun. I’ve never done it before. The men and women got to run offense and defense together, which was nice,” said Palmer.
Head women’s coach Mike Hootner had his team scrimmage the men two weeks prior to “midnight madness” to see where they were at in preparation for the showcase.
“The girls were intimidated and speed caused some issues. I wanted to see them more confident and aggressive, and they showed it [tonight],” said Hootner.
The madness continued well into the early morning when students stayed in the parking lot dancing and partying until 1:00 am.
With the beginning of the season in progress, both coaches expect great things from their teams, especially the women.
“We [the women’s team] played eight scrimmage games during the summer and based on what I saw, I see real potential,” said Coach Hootner.
The men’s first game is on Nov. 11, hosting Barstow College at 7:30 p.m. in Mesa’s gymnasium. The women’s team opens against Irvine Valley College at Mira Costa College, Nov. 13 at 5 p.m.