Girls Basketball Moves To Winter

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Although faced with tough choices in the coming year, Bobby Samson was all for the recent decision by the Hawaii High School Athletic Association to move its girls basketball season from spring to winter beginning in 2008.

“It’s been a long time coming - I’m looking forward to it,” said Samson who is the head boys coach at Campbell in addition to serving as the Maryknoll girls coach in the spring.

“I think it’s a good thing that we fall in line with the rest of the nation. We’re still one of the last states to not have a shot clock.”

Hawaii had been the last remaining state to play its girls basketball season in the spring. Michigan had also resisted the switch for years, but a recent Supreme Court ruling forced that state to comply. Should Hawaii have held out longer, it is likely the issue would have wound up in litigation, prompting a depletion of HHSAA funds.

“We had no choice in this, so we should all look at the bright side,” said Samson.

“If it helps even one kid, it’s worth it.”

Samson’s own situation is unique. With both the girls and boys seasons set to the same schedule, he would likely have to choose between coaching the Maryknoll girls and the Campbell boys. The Sabers have made the state tournament the last three years since he returned to the program as their head coach. Samson recently completed his 11th season as the head girls coach at Maryknoll.

“It will be hard for me - I may have to make a really difficult decision - because we’ve gotten the ball rolling at Campbell,” he said.

“But all in all, I think it’s best for all involved. I really don’t know what I’ll do at this time.”

Within the prep basketball community, reactions to the change have been mixed, although the HHSAA’s hand had clearly been forced.

On the upside, under the new format, girls teams will be able to travel to the Mainland for tournaments in addition to hosting Mainland foes themselves. Having the girls season in the spring had also raised concerns that players from Hawaii were hurt in the college recruiting process.

Concerns about moving the girls season to winter have centered mainly around gym space, scheduling issues, and the likelihood of diminished media coverage due to having to share time with the boys programs. Basketball has always been the featured girls sport among media outlets in the spring.

Scheduling concerns could be alleviated in part by the girls and boys simply playing at different sites, according to Samson.

“You can talk about gym space, but it’s not like it isn’t possible,” he said. “You could also play the junior varsity season in the spring.”

The HHSAA will also move the girls softball season from winter to spring, while boys volleyball will move from fall to spring. Both changes will also be implemented for the 2008-09 school year.