San Jose basketball team makes a stop in Alberton
San Jose State basketball crew members set up a screen to watch film in the Alberton gym on Tuesday before their game against the Montana Grizzlies on Dec. 7. (Photo by Kathleen Woodford/Mineral Independent)
The boys Clark Fork Mountain Cats basketball team and coaches watch as the San Jose team practices for their game against the Montana Grizzlies on Wednesday, Dec. 7. (Kathleen Woodford/Mineral Independent)
Alberton’s Athletic Director, Kyle Fisher, offered the Alberton gym to the San Jose basketball team to practice in before their game against the Montana Grizzlies last week. (Kathleen Woodford/Mineral Independent)
The Clark Fork Mountain Cats boy’s basketball team was in for a treat on Tuesday, Dec. 6 when they relinquished their gym to the San Jose Spartans. The Division 1 team played the University of Montana Grizzlies on Dec. 7 and found themselves without a gym to practice on the day before their game.
Alberton Principal Kyle Fisher quickly stepped up and offered the school gym to the team.
“I heard that they needed a place to practice and volunteered ours,” he said.
The team pulled up in a large coach bus and piled out at around 4 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon. Within minutes the crew had set up a table in the entry way to the gym with a table for water and Gatorade. Inside the gym they set up chairs for the team, along with a screen and projector where they could watch game film.
After around 15 minutes of film, the team lost their blue warm up jerseys and hit the floor in their yellow uniforms. The sight of a full-team-topping out at nearly 7 feet for number 41, Ashtin Chastain, was something the gym has never seen before.
Alberton players and coaches sat on the bleachers as head coach, Dave Wojcik, called out plays and practice drills.
“There was a gym available at the University of Montana, but not until 7 p.m.,” said Scott Shaw, the San Jose State director of sports medicine. “We wouldn’t get out of practice until 9 and then we would have dinner. It gets to be too late since there’s a game the next day.”
Once the team left Alberton at 6 p.m., they headed into Missoula for dinner and stayed the night at The Doubletree Hotel. Their game against the Grizzlies was on Wednesday evening at the Dahlberg Arena in Missoula, where they lost 81-62.
After the game, they flew home to San Jose, Calif. Their next game was at home against Life Pacific College on Dec. 10, and then Oregon on Tuesday, Dec. 13.