PCTI Lasting Memories

Lasting Memories and Indelible Impressions

Like many of you, PCTI has occupied a special place in my life for the past few years and will continue to do so with the upcoming PCTI 3 weekend and tournament. As we draw closer to the weekend itself, I can’t help but think of some of my fondest memories from PCTI 1 and 2, as well as the lasting impressions I have from on and off the court action. For example, one of the enduring memories I have from PCTI 1 is the Game 4 cramp game when Dawson, Abe, Bruise, and myself among others were snipered through the calf and went down for the count. And then Dawson sprinting to assist the injured PCTI brother with a giant 2 gallon milkjug of water which only made the cramping worse by further diluting the player’s electrolyte store. From PCTI 2, I’ll always remember the individual battles that were waged against the blue by the likes of BC, Bruise, and Ben among others. No matter how many times the blue took them down, they continued to throw themselves at the blue with reckless abandon. I admired the courage these players displayed while lamenting the lack of discretion these warriors showed. As such, it gave rise to the thought that I have lasting impressions and memories for each of you that I will always treasure and remember.

Part 1: Breaking Bad

BC: Many of you know by now that BC is one of my favorite guys in this thing, if not my most favorite. Since I didn’t know BC before PCTI 1, I clearly came away impressed with him as a basketball player after slapping up 15-10 for the tournament on 51% FGAs. So I have always loved his PCTI hoops game. But my favorite memory of BC is his PCTI 2, Game 5 post-game rant about getting his numbers in a losing effort. The line that always cracks me up is “Since I really wanted to play tomorrow, I’m glad you guys won while I still got my numbers. This just proves that when my team wins, I go for 4 and 5. But when we lose, 21 and 10!” I’ve watched that rant probably 6 times, and it just gets better with each viewing. Shades of comedy genius.

Hops: Hops and I got to know each other when he lived in Dallas briefly. He was a valuable addition to my pick-up game and I always enjoyed playing with him or against him. I hated it when he moved away, but such is life. My lasting takeaway of Hops is pretty easy. In PCTI 2 Game 2, Hops sensed that our team was not together or cohesive at halftime. Facing the prospect of going down 0-2 and without the services of revered captain Eskildsen, Hops stepped up at halftime, rallied the troops with a terrific motivational speech, and spurred our team to victory. He both played great basketball and demonstrated a sense of the leadership moment. This shot in the arm helped our team to stay alive when we were fractured and torn. The 23 points and 9 boards were big, but the motivation was what helped us get to the finish line in that opening session. Great moment in PCTI lore.

Eskildsen: Although B-EZ and I have morphed into rivals in the offseason, I think everybody knows how much respect I have for him as an individual and as a baller. B-EZ occupies two favorite memories for me: one, PCTI 1 Game 1, I guarded him on the first several possessions. Since I was not familiar at all with his game previous to those possessions, I had limited understanding of what he could do with the rock. Dude then proceeds to cross me over as badly as Starbury crossed Yao, then proceeds to make the reverse layup. At that moment, I thought to myself “What the hell have I gotten myself into?” Two, in PCTI 2 Game 2, Esk catches an elbow or bodyblow from Abe while both were chasing a loose ball. Esk gets cut, knows how bad the damage is, and stalks the blue to the water fountain. With the action stopped and the gym silent, B-EZ lets out a “F*ck!” that could be heard from Lexington to Stanford. He then scarily paces the gym wanting to get back in the game. Discretion prevailed and he went to the hospital. But at that moment, the PCTI warrior and badboy was born. A scary and vivid memory that is hard to forget.

Abe: Unfortunately, Abe and I don’t know each other all that well and probably haven’t spoken 10 words to each other in PCTI outside of a few email exchanges. But I will tell you that nobody has more respect for the physical freak that this guy is than me. Some of you know, I try to take care of myself physically by working out, hooping religiously, in bed at 10PM every night, no drinking, no smoking, or drugs. I say that because, as a guy who takes care of himself, playing 27 MPG for 7 games in PCTI is grueling and exhausting. But this guy Abe can stay up all hours of the night, slay multiple cougars in succession, drink until he is sweating alcohol, show up to the next PCTI game with 25 minutes of sleep, and then play 34 minutes while dropping 20 and 8. I don’t say any of those things with disrespect. I have an ungodly amount of respect for somebody who can do that because, simply put, I cannot. Not enough credit is given to him for this ability, nor is that ability discussed enough. This ability remains one of PCTI’s mysteries and my lasting impression of Abe.

Joe: Some of you know that JT and I were introduced to each other when he lived in Dallas. He became an integral part of my pickup game and one of my pickup players even went so far as to lovingly nickname him “The President” for his uncanny resemblance to George W. The Show and I prepped for PCTI 1 by using my church gym for some hour-long shooting sessions that, in hindsight, did not produce the intended effect for either of us in Lexington. One of the things that Joe mentioned to me in those shooting sessions is that he wanted to get the first technical foul in PCTI history. I found it a curious goal as it typically costs a team points, but I shrugged it off as a bit. But I’ll be damned if JT didn’t come through on his bold claim and register the first T in Game 5. What made it better is that Joe was unrepentant afterwards, claiming that the “trailer park” ref earned it. To this day, that technical foul is the only one that has been awarded in PCTI history, and likely will remain a mark that is unbroken indefinitely, the likes of which we have not seen since Wilt’s historic 100 point game. Deuce even juiced up the moment by putting it on perpetual repeat in the DVDs. A classic moment that should live on in PCTI lore.

Donley: Straight up, nobody loves the Donley as much as me. I trained religiously for PCTI 2 and felt like I had enough strength coming in to be able to compete with some of the bigger fellas on Team BC. But the first time Donley guarded me in PCTI 2, I tried to go by him, bounced off of his body, and had to pass the ball before falling out of bounds. At that moment, all I could remember thinking was “Oh my God this guy is cockstrong.” And of course, from that moment on and the ones that followed, the greatest nickname is PCTI history was born. It is no coincidence that my improved play in the back half PCTI 2 happened when Donley left on his excursion for Canada. So clearly the guy can hoop, is devastatingly good-looking, and can drive the hell out of a car, but I will always remember him for our first physical confrontation when he embraced his alter ego Cockstrong and announced his presence with authority like Nick LaLoosh from Bull Durham. I regret not having him on my team this year in the worst way, but I’ll look forward to competing against him anyway. Respect. And you’re damn right I was alive when that movie came out!

Higs: Unfortunately, Spotlight and I do not each other outside a few failed trade attempts in our fanstasy basketball league. I have heard great things about his fit for PCTI by the organizers, so I trust he will be. I love that he has garnered so much press and notoriety for doing nothing except having his name attached to an email chain that referenced “Spotlight”. I also love the fact that he did not shy away from the newly bestowed nickname but ran with it until it has become a full-blown phenomenon. I can tell you this…nobody, and I mean nobody, has entered PCTI with as much pomp and circumstance as this guy. As a guy who likes positive publicity, I can appreciate that. Regardless of his upcoming performance in PCTI 3, dude has made major contributions to the offseason by embracing the moment. Looking forward to meeting this guy.

Pitto: Yo, Pitto has been much maligned this offseason, much like myself and a few others. Pitto has received love from a few and criticism from others. And regardless of the fact that he has posted the #sabinsucks hashtag 67 times this offseason (no, really, I counted), I still have a soft spot in my basketball heart for this guy. So instead of my favorite memory of Pitto, I’d like to offer to replace Eskildsen as Pitto’s father figure. I mean, when you think about it, I’m the right guy for the job. Need career advice? Mildly successful banker, check. Need school advice? MBA, check. Need love life advice? Married 12 years, check. Need financial advice? I like money, check. I mean, at the end of the day, what has Eskildsen done to deserve the title? So I extend the offer and anxiously await your response.

I’ll get the Wolfpack up this weekend.

Sabin