Anyone who has been attending Maine's high school basketball tournaments for any amount of time knows there's something truly special about the energy that is generated during each game. The excitement is palpable, and the sense of community is unmatched.
We asked BDN readers to share with us some of their favorite memories of tourneys past. There are too many to post here, so we picked some of the most descriptive and from the widest array of years, towns and eras in Maine high school basketball. Want to continue the trip down memory lane? Share your thoughts in the comments.
"A long time ago, let's say 1980 or 1981 or thereabouts, we'd hike to the summit of the Bangor Auditorium, the mile high seats and toss ice cubes from our drinks as far as we could down on unsuspecting fans. At the time we thought we were hell raisers, but in retrospect, I don't think a single ice cube made it past the lowest row of empty seats. We were there to watch our home town Mt. View Mustangs with Emily Ellis (Throckmorton) leading the charge. We were young, no more than 9 or 10."
Fred Berry, Bucksport
"Jason Leighton beating the buzzer for Brewer in the late '90s. And Joey Campbell with [an amazing lay up] to win the state championship [for Bangor] in 2001."
Edward Louis, no town given
"2001, when Boothbay Region High School won its only gold ball by defeating an undefeated Piscataquis Community High School. Thrilling from start to finish."
Wayne Hardwick, Boothbay
"I believe it was the 2001 state championship when Bangor defeated Deering. Zak Ray stole the ball at the last second but came up short with a three pointer which Joe Campbell (who had fallen down) put in at the very last second. I went to Brewer so definitely not a Bangor fan, but that was certainly an incredible moment!"
Anastasia Sawchuk, Windham
"1983. Eastern Maine Class D boys final. Bangor Auditorium. Southern Aroostook coach, Jesse Bedwell, takes his glasses in hand and snaps them in half as his top seeded Warriors are upset by the Royals of Jonesport-Beals, 76-54."
William Zachary, no town given
"Allagash Girls Bobcats basketball team winning the 1976 and 1977 back to back state championships in the largest arena any of us had ever been in."
Darlene Dumond, Allagash
"It was as a coach waiting with the team to go on floor at the Bangor Auditorium. Then entering and hearing and feeling the crowd erupt; it brought the hair on the back of neck right up. Exhilarating!"
Douglas Libby, Ellsworth
"My favorite was in 2014 when the Old Town boys beat Caribou! I was pregnant with my son and my husband thought I would go into labor... a real nail biter! So proud of my dad, coach Brian McDormand."
Kerry Chasteen, Hampden
"1997ish at the Mecca -- the Bangor Auditorium. Bangor versus. Mt. Blue boys. Mt. Blue was ahead, it was wicked close, like single digits and down to the final seconds. Mt. Blue scored and put them ahead by 2. The kid that scored came over to our [Bangor] student section and started taunting us.
Guy was not so cocky when the ENTIRE student section ran down the bleachers to the court. Team sideline chairs went flying. He ran for safety into the crowd from Mt. Blue that had followed Bangor's lead onto the court. I don't remember how the floor got cleared after that. I do remember Mt. Blue winning by those two points and Bangor losing the sportsmanship banner also for that year. Go Rams! Man, the 90s were wild."
Jill Rambo, no town given
"Mine happened in the late '60s. It was the very first time my parents allowed me to go on my first date ever and you guessed it: I went to the tourneys. I don't remember who was playing the evening I went, but I do remember my date had terrible BO and I did not enjoy my time there. Needless to say, that was my only date with him and my only time going on a date to the tournaments. Oh well."
Susan Goetze, Exeter
"My most memorable tourney moment happened during my brother's senior year in 2001. The recording for the national anthem didn't work (no singer or band either), so a few of us in the Boothbay section started singing. By the third or fourth line, the whole ACC crowd had joined in. It was a very powerful moment. The announcer thanked us the night of the regional finals for helping them out."
John Deetjen, Jr, no town given
"Joe Campbell's half-court shot that won the state crown for Bangor a number of years ago! I was watching the game in my apartment and was celebrating the fact that "my team" had gone to the state championship game -- and then Joe gave us a win!
The year I graduated from Bangor High, the boys team set a school record that has never been broken. The team lost every game they played (1968). In fact, the only games that Brewer won that year were the two against Bangor. That's funny now; it wasn't at the time."
Anne Kenniston, Warwick, Rhode Island
"In 1988 I was a freshman manager for the Brewer boys varsity basketball team and that year we went in at number seven and beat Bangor and Waterville, and eventually beat Presque Isle for the Eastern Maine championship. I had grown up watching the tournament and getting to be a part of a team that won it all was one of the most exciting things that happened in my adolescence. Since I was a freshman, when Norris Nickerson announced the team members, my name was mentioned first and hearing him say my name to an auditorium full of people just made that moment even better. On top of that, being the first Brewer team to win something in almost 30 years, I had a sense of being a part of history.
The other best memory is watching Jason Leighton hit a half court shot to beat Mt. Blue in the 1995 quarterfinal game. That was Brewer's first tourney win since we had won in 1988. To this day I don't know how he made that shot."
Kevin DeBeck, Castine
"Besides witnessing Orono win back to back state championships at the Portland Expo and at the Cross Insurance Center in the last two years, along with many others, it's just the opportunity to witness great basketball."