Any time you have a high school basketball game, especially a hard-fought game between two evenly matched teams, the crowd is loud, raucous and half of it agrees with the referee's calls at the same time the other half is ready to call for an investigation.
It was that way the night I sat in the Joplin Memorial section at a tournament final at Neosho High School, but with a few notable exceptions.
Memorial fans never argued with the referees- they had loud conversations with them.
Extremely loud conversations...and incredibly funny.
Extremely loud conversations...and incredibly funny.
"You couldn't have seen that one, ref," one would say and another helpful fan would make an offer of his glasses.
If a call went Memorial's way, the referee would be congratulated. "You finally got one right, ref," with a note both of congratulations and sheer disbelief.
When a time out was called, the conversation would continue, often eliciting smiles from the referees, and once or twice they even joined in on the conversation.
I am guessing it would have been different if the game had been closer and that was what surprised everyone in the gymnasium, except for the Memorial fans.
This was supposed to be a showcase for McDonald County legend Charles Harvey, one of the best big men southwest Missouri had ever seen.
Instead, it was two different brands of basketball.
Harvey was a tough, agile center who hustled on both ends of the court. If he missed a shot, he invariably grabbed the rebound and nailed the putback.
I remembered a game in a tournament at Mount Vernon when the East Newton cheering section decided to verbally harass Harvey whenever he went to the foul line. He missed several free throws that night, missed more easy shots than usual and we thought we had played a key role in cutting down on the Mustangs' victory margin by neutralizing Charles Harvey.
The scorebook told a different story. Harvey scored 42 points that night.
Harvey played his usual game that night in the Neosho High School gymnasium, but his Mustangs did not claim the tournament championship.
As good as he was, and he was good, Charles Harvey appeared to be in slow motion when he was matched up against Joplin's 6-5 center Notie Pate. Pate's strength and quickness were too much for Harvey on the offensive and defensive boards.
And while Harvey was not the only good player McDonald County had, his teammates were no match for the Eagles, especially the Eagles point guard.
It was the first time I ever saw Cat Johnson play and well over 40 years later I can still see it in my mind.
If memory serves correctly, he was a sophomore at the time, but there was no doubt who was in charge.
Even at that point, he was a coach on the court and if someone guarding him let his attention slip for even a fraction of a second, Cat was past him and on his way. No one could keep up with him.
Unfortunately for the Mustangs, even if they did not let their guard down, there was no stopping this perpetual motion machine. He knew where his teammates were on the court and he knew how to get them the ball where they could do the most damage, especially Pate.
What was worse for his opponents was that Cat Johnson was not just a ballhandler and a passer. He could also score, often by winding his way through much taller players and kissing it in off the glass.
When those Memorial teams played, it was a social occasion for the fans. Everyone was there and everyone had a good time. It is hard not to have a good time when your team is winning state championships.
Cat Johnson continued his basketball career after graduating from Memorial in 1978 at Oral Roberts University, then played professional basketball for eight years overseas before returning to the community he loved and becoming a successful businessman.
High school basketball careers have a short shelf life, but the love affair between Joplin and Gary "Cat" Johnson, whose style of basketball brought both joy and championships, never faded.
That is why the news that after months of failing health, Cat Johnson died today at age 58, brought an overwhelming grief to the thousands whose lives he has touched.
His time at Joplin Memorial was a thing of joy, but the true measure of Cat Johnson was how he continued to build on that joy and share it with the community he loved- a community that also loved him.
9 comments:
I was at Memorial at the time he played there. It is sobering when someone younger dies. Bucket-list time.
I knew Cat. I graduated in '77. Hell, I even bought a truck off him once. Will we ever hear what REALLY happened here?
Thanks for sharing your memories, Randy. A while back I drove by the car lot and restaurant and was surprised to see an empty lot. I had been wondering for the past few weeks what happened. Now I know. Cat Johnson was just a couple of years ahead of my son in school, and everyone knew who he was. My sympathy to his family and friends. The community will miss him.
I met Cat in '72, at East Jr High and we became friends. I was the yearbook (Talon) photographer and also provided photos to Spyglass in '77-'78. I attended all the sporting events and shot photos at every one of them. The privilege and joy I felt while photographing the basketball games was immense, it was wonderful to have a court-side view of that state championship team during those years at MHS. The best part was the trips to Columbia for the State Finals and to be on the court shooting and focusing mostly on Cat Johnson. I was fortunate to be able to document this athlete and the other fantastic team mates in '77-'78. I recall watching him through the lens after a winning game and he was always a rockstar at holding a pose for me. It was one of the best times of my young life.
Cat and I remained friends throughout the years. He was a kind, sweet man. Sending my sincerest sympathies to his family and friends, he will long be thought of with a smile and fond memories.
He had a illness for many years. Prayers for his wife and family.
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future
click to play>>> Midnight Special-Steve Miller Band "Fly Like An Eagle"
rest in peace
I was at that game against McDonald County as well. As I remember it, McDonald County was good, very good that year thanks to Charles Harvey. If I recall that Mustang team was undefeated, or very close to it. I also remember Memorial pulling away quickly and I was thinking at halftime, just match them basket for basket in the second half, and we had that game in the bag. Memorial did just that, and even added on to the final score, somewhere in the 90-71 range or so. It was a great night. It was a great run. It will always be a part of my memories of enjoying Memorial basketball, and watching Cat and Coochie, Moose, and Chuck, Mike and everyone else play ball and win state championships.
After many years of wondering what ever happened to Calderdale Explorers fulcrum of the late 80's BBL scene in Halifax, sadly tonight I found out.
RIP Gary "Cat" Johnson who I hold in the fondest of my memories from my mid to late teens.
We watched"The Cat fly over the Byrd", Alton Byrd in this case with whom Cat had a great rivalry, 2 small guards battling it out regularly on numerous occasions at North Bridge Leisure Centre in Halifax Yorkshire over here in the North of England.
What a wonderful player. What a team he coached and spearheaded to some success, and attracted crowds regularly over 1000 spectators which when compared to the local football team achieving a similar number at the time was in no small part down to Cat.
Thanks for the memories
Cat and I were teammates two years at ORU and starting gaurds on teams that beat ku Marquette Georgetown back to back. We have stayed in touch for 37 years and I still feel like I lost part of me. We talked 4-5 times a week and he never had a bad day. The greatest teammate and friend a guy could have. My sincerest sympathy’s to Wendy and the boys. Job well done here on earth my man. May u rip big fella. Much love and respect. Steve Bontrager
Post a Comment