martini man

Fri, Feb 22, 2013 : 1:38 a.m.

Even the Ann Arbor liberals aint buying into this nonsense. In some PRO sports there are penalties for grandstanding . Maybe there should be such penalties in all sports. Celebrating and grandstanding aren't exactly the same thing.

15crown00

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 11:49 p.m.

it seems to me that neither side should be proud of how anybody reacted.fans get heated up and say and do things they shouldn't.this kid never heard a racial slur before if indeed one was spoken? i highly doubt that.so he feeds the frenzy by taunting.

Parent Speaks

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 10:25 p.m.

Another sporting season. Another Pioneer athletic issue. First it was Huron and now it's Bedford. Anyone else see a trend?!? Yes... It's PIONEER. This needs to STOP! Their new Princ needs to get control of her AD. The AD needs to get control of her coaching staff. Their Coaches need to get control of their players. Are Coaches even supposed to be talking to the media? Isn't it AAPS policy to not talk to the media when situations like this occur? Isn't that why Test was fired? And now the Pioneer HC publicly states that Bedford: used racial slurs, is uneducated and are basically hillbilly's that don't live in the real world because of a lack of diversity. Really?!? He should be fired and/or atleast suspended for his comments about Bedford. You would think that AAPS has a policy in place for this since the last Pioneer incident that occurred in the fall. Wonder what the consequence will be for their HC? Should be an interesting upcoming meeting with the AAPS Super, new Princ and the AD....

runnergirl

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 6:30 p.m.

I have personally attended several Bedford v Pioneer athletic events both as a coach and as a fan. I do not want to pile on Pioneer, however altercations with Pioneer are a common occurance. I am completely insulted as an educated, open-minded person that the Bedford community is being characterized as never interacting with people of different ethnic backgrounds and when we do we can not control ourselves. Funny how we do not have issues playing Skyline, Huron, Dearborn Fordson, Toledo Whitmer, Toledo Catholic Centeral and Monroe just to name a few ethnically diverse schools. I was at the home Pioneer v Bedford game and was sitting directly behind the student section and heard NO racial slurs. I would like to elaborate on that game though. During the JV boys basketball game the coach did not like a call made by the refs so his response was to flip off the ref, then a player did too. Then at the end of the game one of his players made a bad shot and the coach began absolutly degrading him in front of the team, fans, and coaches! There is NEVER a reason to humilate a kid in front of everyone. Then at the end of the varsity game when a Pioneer player began to taunt the Bedford student section (after loosing) our PA announcer made an attempt to call over the varsity coach and he waived him off and headed to the locker room. He could not be bothered. Last year during the home game a Pioneer fan sat next to me and continued the whole game to railroad the team (Bedford) and the school as being a bunch of idiots for stopping the game and honoring a player who scored his 1,000th point. The Pioneer coaches and administration knew of this before the game, gave the go-ahead and said they would do the same. I finally explained this nicely to the gentleman, it didn't help. So please, Pioneer, quit trying to come off as the poor victims of a bunch of uneducated south Monroe County people who have never seen or interacted with ethnically diverse people.

Ricardo Queso

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 4:13 p.m.

Win without arrogance, lose without alibi. - Knute Rockne

101pride

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 3:03 a.m.

I just wanted to inform people of Bedford's extremely sportsmanlike moves against pioneer. In the freshman game a technical was given to a Bedford player along with one of the punching a pioneer player. I also wanted to give a shout to the Bedford player who got a technical in the first matchup of the varsity teams in Bedford. People were also very pleased with Bedford having two school officials by their students. The reason for this is because they know that their students become rowdy and cause problems. So keep up the great work Bedford.

Jay Allen

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 2:26 a.m.

I am not involved with AAP Basketball nor am I involved with Bedford basketball. I have done announcing when BOTH schools have been involved. I have spoke to parents today who were at the game. And, to just get it out there now, I do not condone racial slurs. If a Bedford student or parent did something such as that, that was more low class than the events that led up to the altercation. First, the game was in hand with under 10 seconds to play. Everyone admits that and that was reported by Pete as well. So let's first focus on that. Why would a coach direct his players in a direction OTHER than don't turn the ball over? Instead no one has mentioned that a dunk was attempted at the buzzer and missed. There was NO reason to pile on. NONE. In this regard and this regard only, that is poetic justice. Next, the player in question runs over to the student section and is taunting them. I can assure you that if the tables were turned Jackson Lamb would NOT have ran over to the AAP student section and done that. So now we have a coach who obviously has no control over his athletes and we have an athlete with an ego bigger than the dunk he missed. Still does NOT make racial slurs ok in any event, but there is MORE than enough blame to go around. AAP does seem to lack institutional control over its players. While I don't know the specifics first hand, from 10,000 feet looking down, it doesn't look good.

TheTruth

Thu, Feb 21, 2013 : 1:36 a.m.

For everyone who would like to actually hear what the alleged "racial slur" was, that only Hussein heard.. After Hussein missed his at the buzzer dunk, he went up to the Temperance Bedford student section and pointed at his jersey and yelled at the student section. The teenagers in the section were obviously upset and told Hussein to "sit down". As it was loud and a high energy environment, it is believed that Hussein heard them call him "Saddam". Not one person I have spoken with heard him or his family being called anything else. The student section at Bedford is usually very spirited and may take it too far occasionally, but there were two Bedford officials within 15 ft of the student section the entire game and after the game. Maybe something racists was thrown out there by a Bedford fan, but that does not excuse what the varsity coach of AA Pioneer said about the entire Bedford community. Besides that, him and the AA Pioneer AD did nothing but watch the "altercation" ( AA attempts at attacking Bedford fans). Please also note, the Bedford Varsity Basketball team had no part in this situation. Also, I was at the game where Pioneer visited Bedford, a Pioneer player took off his jersey and pushed up against Jackson Lamb after shaking hands while Jackson was about to be interviewed.. Again, nothing was done by the Pioneer coach and a Bedford principal and cop had to pull York off of Jackson. Only stated facts. Please do not call an entire community "ignorant" and "uneducated" because of an alleged comment without hearing the facts, and also to report a story about this without knowing the facts is pathetic. I know it's a story that sells, clearly but to be so biased against a community is sad.

Mike

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:56 p.m.

Stanczak's comments were juvenile, inflammatory, and completely uncalled for. Nothing teaches tolerance like insulting the education of an entire city, right coach? Pot meet kettle. It's really a shame that the Pioneer coaches in football and basketball this year have set such poor standards for the athletes. I'm not willing to say it's a systemic problem yet, but it's getting there.

Kyle Austin

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:55 p.m.

We've posted an update to this story after speaking to Bedford principal Scott Stalker, who was at Tuesday's game. http://www.annarbor.com/sports/high-school/bedford-principal-says-he-didnt-hear-any-racial-comments-after-pioneer-game-and-fans-were-under-cont-1/

John of Saline

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:48 p.m.

Where's the video? Someone has it. Pioneer must record games for future reference. I think that would be very interesting.

Ann Arbor Red

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:35 p.m.

Why are stories like these even necessary? I mean the writing was fine I'm not hating on the journalistic aspect of it, but before there was an Ann Arbor.com and people couldn't share their opinions about incidents unless it was in person. These incidents with sports have happened in the past and WILL happen in the future. But look at this article on what something was written about a problem dealing with a SPECIFIC player and CERTAIN fans has turned into on the comment discussion.. I mean for crying out loud I may as well be looking at dissertations on why Pioneer high school is the worst school in the world when it comes to the kids that go there and their fans and players etc.. goodness gracious. I cannot believe Ann Arbor.com even allows comments to be quite honest. All it does is give people in the middle ground not knowing which way to take a side on---inevitably choose sides! I'm not speaking for everyone, but I'm just speaking in general. It all just feels so negative towards some of these kids - they're still learning and growing up and no matter how old you get you're always learning. Why nail them into the ground while they're trying to flourish? The bedford fans possibly said something, and then the player probably reacted - was the fans saying something a result of because of what the player did before hand? Possibly yes. All these possibilities and maybes have just driven people mad and we see it here posted. Since we are all ASSUMING for now, lets just tell the bedford fans to not say racial slurs, and ask the pioneer players to show some composure and not let the best of things get to you. It's simple. It doesn't single anyone out. It is just straight forward and you can take it or leave it. Lets make this a learning experience not an argument.

A A Resident

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:35 p.m.

" One year at a wrestling match, I didn't even hear it, I looked over at my beautiful (biracial) girl with TEARS streaming down her face." RuralMom, I hope, in the future, you will do a better job of preparing your children for life's realities. People will say mean, meaningless things, just to be mean (with no basis in fact or actual belief). You might also teach them that although they should strive for fairness, they shouldn't expect life to be fair, because it isn't. I have biracial grandchildren, so I'm not just some redneck racist trying to bring you down. You really have some serious work to do, both on yourself, and your children.

Rake2204

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 10:01 p.m.

Perhaps this is but a small detail, but the use of the word "showboated" in this story feels a little subjective. Was the showboating merely the pointing at the team name on one's jersey? Or were there other actions? Reading through, labeling something as showboating felt a little arbitrary for a news article just because there are so many interpretations and different opinions of what showboating entails. That's all not to say he didn't partake in what I'd define as showboating. It just felt like most news articles would have stuck to specifics and avoided such a general term in this case, as it sort of seems to insinuate something that may have not actually occurred. If the showboating was just pointing at a player's own jersey in celebration, then why not just describe it as such, without one's interpretation of the action?

umxwolverines

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 9:41 p.m.

Seems to me the Pioneer coach thinks his school and town are better than everywhere else.

AsItIs

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 8:20 p.m.

Funny that there is no mention of the Bedford player striking a Pioneer player in the face at the end of regulation in the Freshman game. The result was a technical foul on Bedford with no time on the clock. To me this incident combined with the on the court trash talk when Pioneer played in Bedford just confirms that this behavior is approved of down by the border.

chapmaja

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 7:51 p.m.

The question I have is Was the Pioneer player given a technical and possibly ejected by the officials for taunting the Bedford student section. I am not in any way condoning the use of racial slurs, but when you go and showboat in front of the visiting teams fans you are asking for something to be said in return. The officials likely already split from the gym prior to the showboating, which is the regular practice, but also lends itself to situations like this occurring.

Bulldognation

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 7:27 p.m.

Dare I say A2 Pioneer recruits for their athletic programs?

Bulldognation

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 7:18 p.m.

Weather things were said or not, as an athlete you just have to live with it. As a Bedford alumni, I can say that this article is speaking for a small minority of a very large student population. I am sure Ann Arbor is this terrific fantasy land that has aboslutley NO rascist individuals, but in reality it is anywhere you go, so deal with it. In high school, I competed against many Ann Arbor area schools and the ego of these guys is outrageous. Although, Ann Arbor is a very culturally diverse town, it is also extremely wealthy, which is where I believe this "were better than you" attitude comes from. In my days at Bedford students who were rascist were often the ones who had few friends because they were usually intolerant to many students. Coach Stanczak is a prime example of the ignorance that comes out of Ann Arbor and I feel as if the whole town has a bag over its head.

Kyle Austin

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:45 p.m.

An update: we've been reaching out to Bedford officials who were present Tuesday night, but in the meantime the school's athletic director talked to the Monroe Evening News. He says the school is seeking information about the incident. http://www.monroenews.com/news/2013/feb/20/bedford-officials-address-alleged-basketball-incid/

harold treeton

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:40 p.m.

As someone who has been around the Pioneer sports program for years I can say that my least favorite game to attend is the one @Bedford. Aside from the consistent yelling and whining of parents in the crowd, I have to watch the young men from my community get harassed. One of the greatest qualities of the Pioneer sports program is the diversity, and I think I can speak for a lot of people when I say that I am proud of the way these young men and women come together and play, yet year after year of going to Bedford I watch this great quality get insulted and disrespected. I am truly saddened to see Bedford ruin yet another great competitive game by bringing up race. The problem here is not sportsmanship, its our young men getting attacked for the color of their skin, and Bedford fans thinking that a simple celebration of a victory gives them an excuse to yell racial slurs at a high school student. Embarrassing for Bedford, but a great representation of their community.

EyeHeartA2

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:38 p.m.

"Samaha said his team has not had any type of similar incident with Bedford in the past." Wait, WHAT? Only Pioneer has these alleged incidents. Odd. Very, very odd. I wonder if Waleed lets his kids taunt the fans down there. I'm guessing not, since Waleed is a class act. ------- I also like Stanzek's attitude: "It's not like that everywhere in the world, and you just have to understand that. Ignorance is a tough thing." Painting the whole area with a broad brush. 'You know those hillbilly redneck rubes in Shelbyville' - of course nobody is saying if it was one kid or the whole section leading a chant. Since nobody actually HEARD it except Hussein, I'm guessing one kid. - Which, since we are try this in the court of AA.com makes me ask - What IS the definition of hearsay anyway?

tolfb

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:37 p.m.

Pioneer coach has to be one of the worst examples of sportsmanship I have ever seen at a high school sporting event. He is a poor example to his players. I went to see a good game, and it was an excellent game. The Bedford coach and players were under control and left immediately after the game for the locker room. Pioneer parents, fans and 1 player almost caused a real unfornunate seen. If a racial slur was used by a Bedford student, that is also unfortunate. The fact is, there should have never been an opportunity for that if Pioneer coach had any type of control or discipline with his team.

harry b

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:19 p.m.

"After the horn, Hussein approached the Bedford student section and showboated, pointing at his jersey." The title of the article should have been. "Hussien tries to incite a riot at basketball game" Any name calling is secondary to the low class act. Why isn't Hussein suspended? My coach would have never let that go.

YouLookDumb

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:16 p.m.

Wow seems as though Bedford is a little salty about their first SEC lost - sorry not everything is perfect for you and King Jackson Lamb

RuralMom

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:11 p.m.

As a parent of biracial children, and one who has been in the stands hearing the opposing teams PARENTS & Fans due this kind of thing, with NO REPERCUSSIONS for the offender, I find it stunning the amount of comments about how "very surprising" this is. NO IT IS NOT. All you have to do is sit in the stands, have your team winning, and the comments start. One year at a wrestling match, I didn't even hear it, I looked over at my beautiful girl with TEARS streaming down her face. The ADULTS doing this were sitting under a banner that read "Sportsmanship Begins at Home", which explained a LOT. I didn't handle it very well that day, the insults weren't even for our team or about my Son who was a participant. When I say I didn't handle very well, I invited the other Mother to take a big step off the bleachers with me, passed the other parents who didn't like her mouth either! This isn't new, its just reach a point where people don't feel the need to filter how they REALLY feel. Which at least you know where you stand with them, however making anyone feel as if they are inferior due to their race is wrong wrong wrong!

Tim Hornton

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 5:48 p.m.

That's right coach. We are a progresive, highly educated, enlightened, liberal group of great human beings. Who cares if your player taunted the other team after the game and a pioneer football player is getting charged with an assault charge for try to bash people with his crutch after an after game fight. Pioneer coaches are a joke. No humilitybut just self important smug people.

iCraig

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 5:23 p.m.

Kumbaya... Please don't blame Eve for the lack of home-training on an individual students part whether it be Bedford or Pioneer. In this day and age when pro athletes dance in the endzone or pose after a dunk how do you expect young adults to not emulate their role models. This is not a post racial society either. We are taught to be tolerant of those that look different but they also become easy targets in a fit of rage. No excuses. You don't find it possible to turn the other cheek when you are on the receiving end of that comment but we all should learn to walk away and pray for our aggressors. That's right pray for them...

snoopdog

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 5:08 p.m.

Quoting the A2 coach, " You have to understand you come from Ann Arbor which is a highly educated town" I never did equate being highly educated with starting to incite acts of potential violence, hum ! Good Day

Hmm

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 5:03 p.m.

I am not surprised by what I'm reading in this article nor am I surprised by these comments I'm reading either. As if someone allegedly showboating on a basketball court means they deserve to be called racial slurs. For all we know he was being abused throughout the entire game and at the end was getting a little bit of payback. Pointing at your chest as you win the game is far from the worst thing a player can do, and it certainly doesn't deserve racial insults. Of course he should have been the bigger man and walked away once the game was over but in the heat of the moment he let his emotions get the best of him. He is after all still a teenager, a kid, and they are prone to making mistakes. He will learn from this incident and hopefully get the point that you can't do certain things when you're on the road. Racial epithets have NO EXCUSE in any of this story period end of story and if you are trying to say otherwise you are a sad person.

EyeHeartA2

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 4:15 p.m.

"After the horn, Hussein approached the Bedford student section and showboated, pointing at his jersey." Perhaps there is a lesson in there? Nah.

Hoops101

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 4:14 p.m.

First of all, this article is taking away from what really took place last night at Pioneer. It was a great game that was won and lost by the kids on both teams. It is being overshadowed by an incident that took place between parents and fans (yes it was parents and fans and that started and could have easily diffused this incident and I will get to this later). The game itself was back and forth and a hard fought 32 minutes of great high school basketball. If you were at the game, you saw that Jackson Lamb is an incredible talent and it's hard to believe he is a better baseball player than basketball...wow, does he have a bright future. Emotions were high because Bedford comes in ranked #7 in the State in Class A, and Pioneer lost by 2 in a tough game at Bedford a month ago. That being said, I'll lead you through a series of events that took place last night and enlighten you all. The Freshmen game - Pioneer was up by 20 with time running off the clock. A kid on Pioneer (who may have only played a total of 6 minutes the entire season) took a shot at the buzzer. Should he have taken that shot? No, but again, this is a kid who rarely gets minutes and could have taken the same shot with 4 seconds left but held on to the ball until the final buzzer. Once he released the shot he was shoved and received an elbow to the throat from a Bedford player. COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY! You talk about Pioneer not having class??? Show some class, even in defeat, Bedford. The JV game - I heard some players calling other Pioneer players the "N" word throughout the game. Pioneer's JV won that game as well. Again, lose with class, Bedford. Varsity game - Bedford fans refused to leave the court and diffuse the situation after an adult 2 hand shoves an 18/19 year old Pioneer fan/sibling of a player. This was Parents v Kids. Let the kids have their moment and celebrate a big victory. I'm not justifying anything, but adults need to act like adults. Finally, lose with class, Bedford.

kdadnick

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 4:11 p.m.

"You have to understand that you're from Ann Arbor, which is a highly educated town, which is liberal-minded and people understand that the color of someone's skin doesn't matter," Stanczak said. "It's not like that everywhere in the world, and you just have to understand that. Ignorance is a tough thing." Ethnocentrism at it's best? I am not excusing the racial issue.... but this comment implies that being from Ann Arbor makes one superior. It implies that being "highly educated" is synonymous with being "liberal minded", and it implies Ann Arbor has no racial issues. Ignorance is a tough thing.

Kronoberger

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 4:11 p.m.

There are lines that just shouldn't be crossed. Ignorance is not an excuse. The league should discipline Bedford or at least make clear that disciplinary action could follow any future racist comments.

genetracy

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 3:36 p.m.

And I suppose in the history of high school sports in Michigan, a black athlete or a black fan has never uttered a racial slur towards a white person during a sporting event.

Rob Pollard

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 3:23 p.m.

Kyle, could you please follow-up with Coach on this part of the story: "Stanczak said a Bedford fan directed a racial slur at Hussein, and that Bedford fans previously used racial slurs during Pioneer's game at Bedford earlier this season and during Tuesday's junior varsity game." Later in the story it said he did not personally hear the alleged slur towards his Hussein. Did he (or his coaches) personally hear the other previous slurs? If so, what if anything did they do about it (e.g., notify T Bedford's AD)? Also, did the coach give a reason for why he let his player "after the horn, approach the Bedford student section and showboat, pointing at his jersey"? Did he lose track of him? It sounds like it was a contentious game even previous to the interaction with the fans at the end - does the coach & his asst make sure to get his players to the locker room in such a situation? Thank you.

northside

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 3:18 p.m.

It is stunning that the author of this article finds the use of racial slurs to be an appropriate, deserved response to the showboating. In a response to a comment by Craig Lounsbury, Kyle Austin writes: " ...some of the onus is on the players to avoid putting themselves in situations where this can happen." If the players had been booed for showboating, that would be perfectly understandable. The use of racial slurs against the players is about racism, not about showboating. It is stunning that the reporter assigned to this article does not grasp that.

Dennis Allman

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 3:04 p.m.

There is no excuse for either teams actions. However, the coaches are suppose to take the high road and diffuse the situation. All coaches are to adhere to MHSAA guidlines. If not those guidelines, what about common decentcy, tolerance, respect and civilness? Let's not engage in perpetuating social discourse. Let the kids play. Coaches are to mentor them, not infuse them with slanted views. Where is the social progress in all of this. Let level headed people discuss and resolve this.

vida

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 3:01 p.m.

Of course, the Bedford people are wrong for their racial slurs. This article does create the atmosphere for discussion regarding Pioneer's lack of leadership in the area of sportsmanship. I find the comments disturbing from the people trying to shut down discussion because they see some sort of political disrespect in it.

sheepyd

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:49 p.m.

This isn't an issue of a taunting player deserving to have racial slurs yelled at him. People in this liberal educated city need to be able to seperate the issues as they are two seperate problems. First, no one unless they are a racist ignorant backwoods degenerate should conndone the use of racial slurs for any reason. Second, there is an in issue of sportsmanship and entitlement culture and Ann Arbor Pioneer; notice I didn't say Ann Arbor Public Schools, I've always found the fans at Skyline and Huron to be on par with the rest of the schools in south-east Michigan. So while everyone on this site loves to play stump the chump and play devil's advocate just make the choice to see these as two problems that need to be fixed. Ignorance and racism shouldn't be tolerate but neither should an out of control athletics program. Pioneer is a well respected school that many parents in this state could only hope their children could attend and receive the type of quality education they offer; the athletics program should reflect the same values and prestige, as of now it does not and hasn't for a very long time.

sports

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:44 p.m.

The Bedford Coaches and Players were in the locker room after the game. While the Pioneer basketball team was on still on the court talking to Bedford Parents and Students. Things were said by both sides and it escalated quickly. Pioneer players were being held back because they wanted to start trouble. It's odd how this Ann Arbor article is so one sided and nothing was mentioned about the Pioneer players trying to fight parents. Great job Bedford Basketball Program for keeping your kids out of it.

lindor

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:43 p.m.

It looks like racial slurs were used in previous meetings between the two teams. Here's my take from reading about the game itself. Pioneer is losing and Jibreel single-handedly turns the game around in the closing minutes. Previous article "Hussein scored the game-tying and go-ahead buckets with three minutes left, then recorded a game-sealing steal with three seconds left as Pioneer upset Temperance Bedford, 64-61, Tuesday night at home." So a 16/17 year old kid helps upset a highly ranked team and he's pretty excited. He secures the game with a steal and tries to dunk, big deal. I'm not going to blame a teenager for a little over exuberance in a what sounds like a huge team win. The racial slurs are a bunch nonsense and a highly excited (young kid), reacts. And the article points out it isn't the first time it happened between the two teams. Ask me where the problem is, it's with the coach. Control your players. Then he makes some idiotic comments about "knowing where you're from". If I had a choice, I'm blaming the coach and not some teenager that probably had one of the largest moments in his high school career.

ekimecir

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:40 p.m.

Just wondering...would the word "alleged" had a place in the headline?

lindor

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:32 p.m.

Hussein scored the game-tying and go-ahead buckets with three minutes left, then recorded a game-sealing steal with three seconds left as Pioneer upset Temperance Bedford, 64-61, Tuesday night at home. Not sure he was showboating, looks like he was trying to seal the win.

Shawn S.

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:31 p.m.

I love how an article about Pioneer basketball becomes Ann Arbor is liberal elite's. Give me a break!! This is a journalist giving you facts. This is not Fox News or MSNBC that gives you what you want to hear. Do you think a Temperance fan who did hear the slur is going to admit to hearing it? Sure was this young man showing extremely poor sportsmanship, absolutely. I happen to think someone did say something. Sure he was going over to show boat but something made him get angry. I am sure as a young mulim AMERICAN he is sick and tired of being called names. I hear responses say what does this kid expect when you taunt a crowd, are these the same people who say if a girl dresses provocative she deserves what might happen to her?

TheDiagSquirrel

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:29 p.m.

You don't get to provoke people (in this case, sports fans) and then take the stance of a victim. It doesn't work in real life, and it doesn't apply here. No matter what school you are from.

you can't handle the truth

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:25 p.m.

How out of control must you be to try to dunk at the buzzer while up 3 and MISS then go running at the student section to taunt them after that embarrassment? Sounds like there is a school that needs to do less whining and start teaching some sportsmanship.

mlivesaline

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:15 p.m.

Let me get this out of the way first...shame on Bedford for the racial slurs, shame om their athletic director for not policing his/her fans better as it sounds as though it's not the first time this has happened. But I will point out the similarity to this event and the infamous Pioneer/Huron football brawl. Let's see the common threads, Pioneer involved...check, Pioneer wins...check, Pioneer taunting...check. Lucky this did not get out of control into a full fledged brawl like the last incident did. It certainly could have. It would seem to me that the Pioneer administrators still have some work to do in educating their players and COACHES about acting responsibly and showing good sportsmanship. Some Pioneer players still has no idea what this is and their coaches aren't teaching it either. A dunk at the buzzer up three? Give me a break. Show some class Jibreel and just hold onto the ball. I'm shocked that this story did not criticize the taunting angle of the issue. I fault Kyle for not discussing both sides of the issue here. Unless Pioneer takes strong steps to educate all student athletes about how to behave in games when winning and when losing, this will not be the last story told about Pioneer players involved in a fight after or during a game.

you can't handle the truth

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 2:02 p.m.

If you go taunt opposing fans, especially opposing student sections, you have things like this coming to you. Nice sportsmanship, buddy.

IBleedPioneer

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:59 p.m.

Also let me add, I've been a big fan of pioneer sports for along time. This year could possibly be the worst year I've seen the students act. Don't forget about what happened when we played Huron this year and there was a brawl. Shows that pioneer hasn't shown good sportsmanship the whole year and something major needs to be done.

racerx

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:55 p.m.

Maybe having a student, who might had directed the racial slur towards the player, get his butt kick would eventually solve the issue of a fan ever saying something again. There is a point and time where being a minority and constantly having racial slurs flung at you on a constant basis just wears on you. If this hasn't ever happen to you then you probably wouldn't understand this. Sure some might say getting into a fight won't solve anything and its not the correct way to solve the problem. What? "Sensativity Trainging" will? Please! People have already developed their racial attitudes and not much is going to change them ever while being a teenager. Slap him across the jaw and I bet that kid will think twice before ever mouthing another racial slur towards an minority again.

bagelbros

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:47 p.m.

I was not even at this game, and reading this article I would be completely embarrassed if I was the reporter. But, everyone should remember this is the LIBERAL media at its best!! Come man really?? Make this player some sort of victim when he taunts a crowd, and does not expect words back at him? Right or wrong by the Bedford fans this player did light the match! I can tell you this much reading the article, and the words from this coach I would be the first to have my son going to a different school. Coaches like this are exactly what is wrong with the student athletes today. "They do as they see" and "Say what they hear" So this AA player acts like a child in front of the crowd, and his coach responds like a child!!! it sounds like this school needs a new babysitter!

DonBee

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:22 p.m.

This is sad, so sad. After listening the NPR commentary on athletes this morning and then another story about athletes, this one close to home.

Craig Lounsbury

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:17 p.m.

"After the horn, Hussein approached the Bedford student section and showboated, pointing at his jersey." Not to condone what may or may not have followed but if someone taunts a large crowd and gets a negative result one shouldn't be overly surprised. What does one expect under the circumstance? Let that be included in the "lessons" to be learned.

IBleedPioneer

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:16 p.m.

Ive not missed a game this season, and for some reason this season our team (pioneer) always has to get the last word. Coach Stanczek was out of line the whole game and so was Hussein's family. If Jabrill walks off the court none of this happens. I witnessed myself Jabrilly father tell his son to come and give him a hug right in front of the Bedford fans. Totally unclassy.

sheepyd

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 1:15 p.m.

I've personally worked hundreds of high school football and basketball games in southeast Michigan over the last 20 years and one thing is obvious, Pioneer High School is the worst behaved group of fans and student athletes outside of Detroit. This in no way excuses what the Bedford fans did or said. It is however an observation made after consistently viewing what has to be one of the most disfunctional athletics programs (Pioneer) in the state. It's true that Pioneer has some good kids, and its true that it is a good high school but for some reason the athletic events are a circus. The problems run the gamant from rowdy fans, players who start physical altercations before during and after games. I've personally sat in on conversations where the behavior of the Pioneer student section has been discussed and condemned to the Pioneer athletic director and year after year the students and fans of Pioneer are the most disrespectful out of control in the area I work. Think about this for a second, Students and fans at other places with much higher crime rates/poverty like Ypsilanti, Romulus, Ecorse, River Rouge, Melvindale etc.... Dont behave in the manner that Pioneer fans, parents and coaches do. I'm not dillusional enough to believe that my comments here will change anything but at least others should know the way Pioneer is viewed by those in the MHSAA. The athletic director at Pioneer has been informed of such problems, especially with their student section and yet nothing has been done. This is the problem with entitlement culture at Pioneer where the students/ faculty and parents believe their kids should be treated to a different standard. Like I said earlier this doesn't excuse the Bedford fans but if you think what ever they said was bad go sit by the Pioneer student section when they play Huron and listen to the vile things said to Huron players.

Billy

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 12:52 p.m.

Looks like it's early in the morning any pretty much ONLY bedford fan's have read this story....

Billy

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 12:46 p.m.

Sigh....you know all you had to do was get that "fan" to throw a punch.....INSTANT HATE CRIME.

Doug

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 12:44 p.m.

It looks like Pioneer assistant Matt Felicia is the most rational person of the entire story: a story that should not have been sensationalized to begin with.

smokeblwr

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 12:25 p.m.

Mr. Hussein should have subscribed to the "Haters gonna hate" theory and confidently walked off the court.

A A Resident

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 12:19 p.m.

As far as the comment being a "racial slur" (which seems to engender special sympathy): Sometimes people will blurt whatever comes to mind to be hurtful, and it's not necessarily any indication of the person's true sentiments. If someone insults your wife or girlfriend, you can just walk away. If someone insults your race, you can just walk away. One doesn't need to give another person power over them by handing over control of their emotions and actions, due to a spoken insult. I hope these are some things the Pioneer coach will emphasize.

A A Resident

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 11:58 a.m.

People say stuff. Moving that in the direction of a physical confrontation is hardly evidence of being better educated, or morally superior, so I'm sorry to hear that the Pioneer coach implied superiority. At least he seemed to be urging tolerance.

Alan Goldsmith

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 11:51 a.m.

"You have to understand that you're from Ann Arbor, which is a highly educated town, which is liberal-minded and people understand that the color of someone's skin doesn't matter," Stanczak said. "It's not like that everywhere in the world, and you just have to understand that. Ignorance is a tough thing." It sure is Coach.

Youwhine

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 7:49 a.m.

So after he tells the kids all about how they are better than people from other places, does he plan to touch on the subject of sportsmanship at all? There is no excuse for yelling racial slurs... if that is actually what happened and not just the kid's excuse for poor behavior. But there is also no excuse for taunting fans or other teams. It makes Pioneer (and Ann Arbor) look bad. This coach clearly has no control over his team if he doesn't even recognize that he should address showboating and taunting by his players.

bbb

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 7:37 a.m.

So, according to the Pioneer coach, people in Ann Arbor are apparently educated and enlightened while people in Bedford are just backward and stupid. I think that "most educated town in america" title is going to his head. To use such a broad brush to paint a community isn't teaching his players acceptable life skills. And apparently, according to the coach, not being liberal is to be ignorant. If a classless player, who comes over to taunt the opposing fans after a win, says he then heard a racial slur, which no one else heard, I wouldn't give him the benefit of the doubt. I wouldn't have the headline state it as fact. A better headline would have been, "Conceited Player Alleges Racial Slur and Starts Fight".

Bedfordfan1

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:23 a.m.

What an irresponsible piece of sensational journalism. The coach said he "heard" from a player that he "heard" a single racial slur coming from somewhere in the Bedford crowd? Let me set the stage. It was a very loud environment and there were hundreds of people. Young Mr Hussein was finishing up shaking hands with the Bedford players, and instead of joining his team in the locker room, he chose to stay on the court. And amidst all of the noise, he heard a racial slur. A slur that no one else heard. A slur that he heard, despite being 75 feet away from Bedford's fans. And better yet, he heard it so clearly that he knew it was also intended for his family as well? Jump ahead to the Pioneer players and fans then rushing Bedford's stunned students and parents. Where was Coach Stanczek? Probably with his back to the situation, much like he did when Several of his other players and others went after Jackson Lamb while he was being interviewed after the game at Bedford. Coach Stanczek runs a completely classless program. It is evidenced by his theatrical ranting and screaming on the court, as well by the display his players put on during and after games. Bedford is situated 1 mile from Toledo. We are pretty well educated in diversity, so your attempt to discredit our highly-educated community is baseless. And classless. Thank you for at least taking the time to interview Coach Sameha, who runs a class organization, as does Nick Lowe at Bedford. Perhaps Pioneer should watch seek to emulate one or both of these fine schools instead of disparaging Bedford in a pathetic attempt to cover its own blatant deficiencies.

boo

Wed, Feb 20, 2013 : 6:23 a.m.

there seems to be a fundamental problem with sportsmanship at Pioneer. Their coaches don't set a good example and their players spout off and misbehave. The Pioneer AD seems completely overwhelmed and lacks control of her coaches. Being competitive is one thing, but doing it with class seems to be lost on Pioneer. So what if someone from the bleachers is being a jerk. You don't try and dunk the ball as time expires and you certainly don't confront the fans by taunting them. Coaches and players need to keep self control. I doubt the Pioneer AD will do anything to discipline her coach or the player.