you're correct, the coach of the "victor" is a total asshole.

the subs should have started and if necessary, they could have played a girl down.

WTH?

I would be shocked if the 2nd stringers weren't in.

But to play a "man" down? Crazy. If I were the losing coach, that would make me more pissed than the score. That would be the insult of all insults.

It sounds like the victorious team was pressing the entire time. At a certain point, I would call off the press and tell the kids to pick up the opposing players at the 3-point line.

This does hit on what is the purpose of sport. Is there anyone upset at Bolt for winning the 100m by too much? No. We expected him to run as hard as he could, no matter what the others were doing. Do we expect these girls to slow down and not give 100%, because the win is assured? Perhaps. But then that means winning is more important than exertion and playing at your best. Or rather, "winning with class" is more important than exertion.

What is "winning with class"? Is that where you keep the score close so the other team isn't embarrassed?

My high school bball coach related to us that before one of the district games with one of the worse teams in the league, the opposing coach approached him and asked him to "take it easy" on his team. My coach found this to be disgraceful and gave no such assurances. I think he said "we're here to play our best. That's how I coach my kids."

Now I didn't read anything about the losing coach whining. Good for that person. I can't imagine a worse job, in many ways. Coaching kids, in a competitive environment, that can't do the very basics. That would be tough. It's like taking kids to a high school math competition who don't know the multiplication tables.

I would have called off the press. Maybe even told my players to not guard them so close that they couldn't get off some shots. If I got really crazy, I might tell my players not to run the break, and to work on half-court sets and outside shots. But again that would risk making the team look even worse. "Wow they think the team is so bad, they are passing on layups to practice 3-pointers." But no way I go to four players.

They would be classified as special ed in the public schools. That's all I meant.

I would resort the methods you stated first, but if necessary, I'd play players down.

If you and I were to play a bunch of NBAers, they could beat a bunch of wusses like us, with only three players, and all of us would get a work out.

Insult is in the eye of the competitor. It's obvious, except for league association the kids didn't belong on the same court. You don't press and you pass up shots if you have to.

Last night in our stake basketball game, we played a team that we were much better than. We won about 70 to 30. We didn't let up. At all. We're there to get some exercise and play hard, outcome doesn't matter. To just walk the ball up the court and let the other team score seemed like a waste of time.

Now, did I take it easy on one particular player who is rehabbing a blow ACL, and was out there 3 months prematurely with no brace? Yes. I essentially just stood next to him, so I wouldn't end his career, because of his own stupidity and foolhardiness. Did it in some ways make it less enjoyable for me, because I had to account for his stupidity? Yes, a little bit. That's his selfishness, in a small way. But at the same time, he knows the risks, and if one of my boys had hit him, well those are the breaks, and he knows it.

I don't feel bad about blowing out that team last night. They are grown men.

It all depends upon one's purpose.

And I don't know if any one perspective is correct, but where kids are concerned, the adults should take measures to make these experiences potentially positive.

Have you ever been at the receiving end of a blasting? It's not particularly fun and requires a lot of mental discipline to continue trying. Not everybody can do it.

Yes.

Most of the time, I don't consider it my job to make the experience for the other team positive, outside of manners and civility. My job is to make the other team shoot 0%, score as few points as possible. And for me and my teammates to score as many points as possible. When you don't play hard, that's also the time you can get hurt.

And there were a couple of numbskulls on the other team that were playing dangerously.

Btw, that girls team did let up. They just didn't let up until the 4th quarter. I think it was 88-0 after the 3rd.

In a fair fight I agree with you, but when it's evident the fight is no longer fair, I respectfully disagree. There is no benefit to me, if I humiliate an obviously inferior opponent. So I can fashion ways where I will still get a workout without rubbing the opponent's nose in it. I don't make my living at these games.

This is from another article on the subject.
Sounds like the players were also egged on by the spectators, maybe the prospect of reaching 100 points. They finally eased up when they reached 100 points, with 4 minutes left in the game.

Everyone seems to be talking about this, including at the gym this morning. A personal trainer there is also a HS b-ball coach, and has competed against the winning team's coach before. Evidently Coach Grimes has a rep for having very poor sportsmanship. The trainer also said the losing team has been invited to watch a Mavericks game and meet the team. The story is getting a lot of attention, and it sounds like the losing team would rather just move on.

Once in Church ball we played this team full of younger kids, many of them nerds, and we scored like the first 20 points. During a timeout someone said let's shut them out and everyone but me agreed. They disregarded my objection. Anyway, the point of my story is the opposing team was terrible but they still scored a bunch of points despite our best efforts (okay, I was a bit lazy on defense, in protest). No one is saying that winning 100-0 is really hard to do. But it is!