Yeah, any spot once Bo crossed half court he needed to be defended. He’s one of those “only if they had a 3 point line” guys.
Yeah, any spot once Bo crossed half court he needed to be defended. He’s one of those “only if they had a 3 point line” guys.
It's interesting to note how people remember the same thing in different ways. This is what I remember. First, "Fred Townsend" is a combination name of two players from that era: Payton Townsend who, it was claimed, could swipe a coin from the top of the backboard, and Fred Saunders, a younger, highly regarded recruit and player. I don't remember any player from that time period named Fred Townsend. Second, it was said at the time that our coaches were looking to sign Ed Ratliff, a teammate of Bo's. Shipley tried to swing a package deal, but Ratliff signed with Long Beach State, which at the time, was coached by Jerry Tarkanian. It sure is good to go down this road.
You are correct. It was Fred Saunders. I knew Fred Townsend wasn't correct but could not for the life of me remember the name. Thanks. (I would blame it on a senior moment, but I've been having those since I was 27.)
And, it is certainly possible that I do not remember the story correctly, either. There have been times when I could have sworn that certain events took place in a certain way, only to find visual evidence that I did not remember correctly. Memories are indeed fluid.
What I remember is Shipley was recruiting Ed Ratliff and when he went to see him, saw Lamar. Ratliff signed with Long Beach State and USL got Lamar. Both became All Americans. Long Beach State actually played USL in the Bayou Classic at Blackham that was covered by Sports Illustrated, I guess the equivalent of ESPN today as a sports authority. 2 All Americans on the same court and former high school teammates. As I recall, USL won that game and was a feature in S.I. Great basketball and great times!
Tens of thousands.
Don’t forget that we had Roy Ebron on the inside and he had to be covered. He was about 6’9” and a beast. If Lamar didn’t make the shot, it was still going in.
Man, we should make a documentary showcasing the rich history of the Beryl Shipley era.
About 25 or so years ago, I was in my early 20's. I played in anopen 3 on 3 basketball tournament here in Lafayette. I was playing with some guys that Ive played with since I was a kid. So we started running through a bunch of teams, until.we faced a team with Bo Lamar. Now, at the time I didnt even realize it was him. Mostly because I never wouldve in my wildest dreams think I would be playing against him in a 3 on 3 tourney. Anyway, first play, kid throws the ball into Bo from half court, he turns and launches it from about 5 ft from half court line.nothing but net. As I turn back to look at this old guy who just drained this shot like it was nothing, I turned to the crowd along the sidelines in disbelief, one of the guys just looks at me and says, "Bo Lamar". I immediately look back at the old guy and realizeholy ____e! It really is HIM! Well, needless to say we lost. Bo literally scored 90% of their points exactly like he did on his first shot. Take the inbound pass, turn, and drain a 3 from half court. Hahahaha! It was freekin ridiculous.
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