Scott Adamson, Author at Adamsonmedia.com

Birmingham, Memphis finally meet again

Birmingham and Memphis have a long-standing relationship in professional sports.

The Birmingham Barons and Memphis Egyptians started the rivalry in 1903 in the Southern Baseball Association, while the Birmingham Black Barons and Memphis Red Sox began playing each other in the Negro National League in 1924. As members of the Southern League, the towns went head-to-head for decades.

**Scott Adamson writes stuff. Follow him on Twitter @adamsonsl**

The cities have also competed in several football leagues. The Birmingham Americans and Birmingham Vulcans faced the Memphis Southmen in the World Football League; the Birmingham Stallions met the Memphis Showboats in the United States Football League; the Birmingham Barracudas and Memphis Mad Dogs shared a division in the Canadian Football League; the Birmingham Bolts and Memphis Maniax opened the 2001 XFL season against each other; and the Birmingham Iron and Memphis Express lifted the lid on the Alliance of American Football campaign in 2019.

And continuing the football theme, Birmingham Legion FC and Memphis 901 FC currently compete against each other in the USL Championship.

Finally, the Mississippi River Kings (located in the Memphis suburb of Southaven, Mississippi) skated against the Birmingham Bulls in the Southern Professional Hockey League up until 2018.

But professional basketball?

I was all set to declare Monday night’s NBA G League clash between the Birmingham Squadron (5-5 in the Showcase Cup) and Memphis Hustle (6-4) a moment of living history, marking the first time professional roundballers representing these great Southern cities had ever met on the hardwood.

But a bit of research reveals that isn’t the case.

In fact, Birmingham and Memphis played each other for the first time in a play-for-pay hoops contest on December 8, 1947.

With player/coach Wheeler Flemming leading the way with 19 points, the visiting Birmingham Vulcans trounced the Memphis Legionnaires, 62-43, in a Southern Professional Basketball League game.

Birmingham never trailed and Flemming – also a minor league baseball player – got help from Bobby O’Brien, who scored 15 points, and guards Manuel Dorsky and Bubba Ball, who accounted for 11 points apiece.

Bob Murphy was high-point man for the hosts and led all scorers with 21 points.

Wheeler Flemming was an all-state product from Ramsey High School and starred at Samford (then Howard) University, and his brother, Frank, was also on the Vulcans’ roster.

Murphy was a Menlo (California) Junior College standout who was one of the most dominant scorers in the SPBL.

According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal the game was played before a small crowd at the Shelby County Arena located at the state fairgrounds, but sportswriter Emmett Maum made it sound exciting – at least for Birmingham fans:

“Birmingham Vulcans gave a basketball exhibition reminiscent of the old New York Celtics last night by passing the Memphis Legionnaires dizzy to win, 62-43.”

That was high praise, indeed. The New York Celtics (also known as the Original Celtics) were a barnstorming team that won championships in both the Eastern Basketball League and American Basketball League.

Ironically, Wheeler Flemming was on the Howard team that stunned the Celtics, 54-43, during a 1943 exhibition played at Municipal Auditorium in Birmingham.

As for the SPBL, it was formed on August 10, 1947, in Birmingham, with the idea of bringing minor league basketball to the Deep South. News reports had player salaries ranging from $400 to $600 per month.

The nation’s major leagues at the time were the National Basketball League, which had been formed in 1937, and the Basketball Association of America, founded in 1946 (the NBL and BBA merged in 1948 and was rebranded the National Basketball Association).

The American Basketball League (founded in 1925) was also still playing, but had been overshadowed by the NBL and BAA.

Yet none of those leagues had franchises anywhere near the southeast, so the Southern League set out to fill that void. The original SPBL lineup featured the Birmingham Vulcans, Gadsden Whiz Kids, Jackson Senators, Memphis Legionnaires, Mobile Bears, Montgomery Rebels and Nashville Vols.

The void would be filled for only two seasons.

With most of the teams facing financial woes and teams playing before miniscule crowds, the SPBL disbanded after its second season.

The Vulcans folded at the end of the 1947-48 campaign and were replaced by the Birmingham Steelers the following season, while the Legionnaires relocated to Mobile on January, 1948.

Before all the drama the Vulcans and Legionnaires played four times, with Birmingham winning three of the four including the last played on January 9, 1948. The Vulcans won that one, 73-71, in front of 400 fans at the National Guard Armory. Frank Flemming scored 27 points for the hosts and Murphy led Memphis with 31.

Seventy-four years and five days after the Vulcans and Legionnaires started it, the Squadron and Hustle continue the basketball rivalry between Birmingham and Memphis Monday at Legacy Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

I’ve gone full Hamilton

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats last played in the Grey Cup in 2019, and I watched every frustrating second of their 33-12 loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Canadian Football League championship game is a big deal to me – arguably my favorite single day event on the sports calendar – and I’ll watch regardless of the matchup.

Still, having “my” team in it made it more special, although the outcome was disappointing.

But the last time the Tiger-Cats won the Grey Cup – well, I just had to hear about it, which was also disappointing.

The year was 1999, and while the world was planning for the imminent disaster of Y2K – food shortages, poisoned water supply, rabid dinosaurs running unimpeded through the streets – United States television networks were not planning for my CFL enjoyment.

The “U.S. experiment” of CFL franchises located south of the Canadian border ended in 1995, and ESPN2’s contract with the league expired two years later.

So Americans like me who still loved the three-down game and wanted to follow the eight-team circuit were mostly out of luck. Sure, the “World Wide Web” existed back then, but it wasn’t nearly as user-friendly as it is today.

Now you can ask Siri (or Alexa … who you’re in a relationship with is none of my business) to tell you results of the full contact Yahtzee competition from the Netherlands, and she’ll share the information immediately. Or you can watch it live on your phone. Back in 1999, about the best I could hope for was a funny cat video that took 10 minutes to download.

There was no Twitter to get instant updates, and no Facebook to provide misinformation about the game.

So I guess I probably just waited until the evening SportsCenter to learn that Hamilton had vanquished Calgary, 32-21, at BC Place in Vancouver. I’m sure I was happy, but not being able to experience it made me sad.

This Sunday, however, that won’t be a problem.

Hamilton gets its rematch with Winnipeg – this time in the friendly confines of Tim Hortons Field – at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.

Unlike last week when the Eastern and Western finals were shown on the network’s version of the The Ocho (ESPN News, which I do not have a subscription), I can experience the event from my futon. Said futon is located roughly 922.8 miles from the game site, but I’ll feel like I’m there.

I’ll be wearing my game-used No. 68 Ti-Cats jersey (Angelo Mosca made it famous, of course, but this one was actually worn by offensive tackle Greg Randall in 2006), along with one of my four Ti-Cats ballcaps. I thought about wearing a different one each quarter, and I still might. With me, I never know.

And of course I’ll enjoy my Grey Cup game day tradition, the “Super Snack.” The simple yet scrumptious dish is made up of sour cream-flavored potato chips, dry roasted peanuts and Chex Mix piled on a plate, covered in Easy Cheese, and microwaved for 12 to 15 seconds. It’s my take on the Canadian delicacy poutine, although poutine doesn’t normally consist of sour cream-flavored potato chips, dry roasted peanuts and Chex Mix piled on a plate, covered in Easy Cheese, and microwaved for 12 to 15 seconds.

For the main course I’ll probably have a black bean patty on an onion roll, which I call a Hamilton Burger (so named as a tribute to the CFL team, not the district attorney on Perry Mason).

But really, the fan festivities started earlier in the week when I renamed our ginger shelter cat “Hamilton.” It’s only temporary, but since he’s a cat who kinda looks like a tiger, he can be a Tiger-Cat for a few days.

In keeping with the all about Hamilton theme, I also staged an in-house production of the musical Hamilton in which I changed the title of the song Alexander Hamilton to East Champion Hamilton and altered the lyrics to better reflect the Grey Cup:

There is no beat, no melody
Blue Bombers, my first friend, my enemy
Maybe the last facemask I ever see
If I throw away my third down shot,
Is this how fans will remember me?
What if this 108^th game is my legacy?

On Friday I’ll listen to the soft rock song Don’t Pull Your Love by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds on a continuous loop, even though I don’t care as much for the contributions of Joe Frank or Reynolds.

And finally, on Saturday I’ll pay tribute to George Hamilton, who not only founded Hamilton, Ontario, in 1816, but went on to star in Love At First Bite and co-host a popular mid-90s daytime talk show with his ex-wife.

My greatest joy, though, would come from the Ti-Cats helping me experience what I couldn’t experience in 1999 by winning the whole dang thing right before my eyes. It won’t be easy – Winnipeg is the defending champ and has the league’s best record. Plus, I can’t expect the Bombers to turn the ball over five times (six if you count the turnover on downs) like they did last Sunday against Saskatchewan.

And if Mike O’Shea’s club comes out on top, I’ll congratulate a great organization and their wonderful fans, because us CFL folk – even the ones living in the Lower 48 – have to support each other.

But there’s always the chance for an upset.

And if the home dogs prevail, the only thing that’ll be upset around 8 p.m. on Sunday night will be my stomach. Those Super Snacks can lay kinda heavy.

Winning atmosphere in losing effort

BIRMINGHAM – Until today, a Birmingham-branded NBA affiliate hadn’t bounced a ball in the Magic City since March 25, 1992. That’s when the Continental Association Bandits fell to the Quad City Thunder, 116-109, in a playoff game at Bill Harris Arena.

Nearly 30 years later, 4,972 fans warmly welcomed a new team in a new league to a good-as-new arena.

The Birmingham Squadron, G League partners of the New Orleans Pelicans, tangled with the Mexico City Capitanes at Legacy Arena today. After 48 frenzied minutes it was Mexico City who earned the spoils in the Showcase Cup matchup, taking control in the second half on the way to a 123-114 victory.

Alfonzo McKinnie paced seven double digit scorers with a team-high 30 points for the winners, while Justin Reyes added 20. McKinnie also grabbed 11 rebounds and helped his team take command over the final 24 minutes.

Jared Harper led the Squadron and all scorers with 35 points, and Malcolm Hill and Joe Young each tallied 19 points with Zylan Cheatham adding 15 points and 12 boards in recording his third consecutive double-double.

Although the outcome wasn’t what the players wanted, the atmosphere certainly was – and ultimately what “opening night” will be judged by.

“It was great, especially me having played college ball here in Alabama (at Auburn),” said Harper, who also dished out eight assists. “It was good to have a home game and a home crowd. The arena is beautiful. It really has an NBA feel.”

University of Alabama product and Huntsville native John Petty Jr. scored 11 points in a losing effort and wished the home state debut had been just a bit happier.

“It was amazing … I feel like we saw the bright lights and all the fans, and it instilled energy in us,” Petty said. “We just have to have that kind of energy the whole game. The fans were great and all the guys were pumped up coming in. Emotions were high, and everybody was locked in.”

The win snapped a five-game losing streak for Mexico City while Birmingham has now lost five in a row.

The contest was the first event staged at Legacy Arena following extensive renovations, and professional basketball game hadn’t been played in the venue since the Houston Rockets and Memphis Grizzlies met in a 2018 exhibition.

Birmingham’s last foray into second-tier pro basketball was a one-and-done season for the Bandits, who were affiliated with the Atlanta Hawks and San Antonio Spurs.

Birmingham finished 27-24 and was eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs. Two months after their final game, the Bandits were relocated to Rochester, Minnesota, and renamed the Renegades.

But while low attendance plagued that team for its entire brief existence, the nearly 5,000 who showed up tonight were engaged and excited.

“Having our fans here is so important, and having family here for the first time is so important, too,” Birmingham coach Ryan Pannone said before tip-off. “John Petty’s a rookie, he’s playing his first pro home game, and he gets to have his kids here to watch him. There’s something special about having your fans here and something special about your family being here – and not just in any gym, but in an arena that’s so well done.”

Birmingham hit its first three shots of the game – including 3-pointers from Hill and Cheatham – and stayed in control for most of the quarter until the Capitanes rallied to cut the Squadron’s lead to 31-26 after 12 minutes.
Mexico City heated up in the second frame and managed to move in front, but Birmingham fought back, getting a huge boost from three consecutive treys courtesy of Petty. Things stayed close, and as time ticked down McKinnie drained a long 3-pointer for the visitors to knot things up 61-61 at intermission.

Mexico City came out smoking in the third as the Squadron had trouble finding the range, and the result was a 95-83 advantage for the Caps with one quarter to play.
Harper singlehandedly helped Birmingham make a run, scoring eight consecutive points during one stretch. But the guests always had an answer, and it was just a matter of keeping the Legacy Arena tenants at arm’s length for 12 more minutes.

“We didn’t do a really good job of controlling the game, and a lot of our turnovers came from carelessness,” Pannone said. “We weren’t really forced into it, we were just sped up and didn’t make the right decisions. But overall I thought our team fought hard and as a competitor, that’s what you like to see.”

The Capitanes are the G League’s only Latin American club and are as yet unaffiliated with an NBA franchise. Due to COVID restrictions they’re playing a limited, all U.S.-schedule in 2021-22, with their games coming in the Showcase Cup – the league’s in-season tournament played before the start of the 36-game regular season.

“It’s amazing how much the G League has grown from when I was first in it in 2014-15 until now,” Pannone said. “My path fortunately has been global and to have the G League somewhat global now, with a team in Canada and a team that will be in Mexico City, is excellent for the G league, for the game, for the growth of the game and the growth of the game in Mexico. There’s a lot of potential there. Playing our first home game against this opponent is really a cool experience for our guys.”

Birmingham is 2-5 in the eight-team South Pod of the Cup and Mexico moves to 3-6. While the pod winners and next four teams with the best record will advance to a single elimination tourney during the G League Winter Showcase December 19-22, all team records will be reset once the regular season begins on December 27.

Today was the first of a six-game homestand for the Squadron. Birmingham faces Mexico City in a rematch here Tuesday, and hosts the Lakeland Magic on Dec. 9 and Dec. 11. The Memphis Hustle comes to town for a two-game set on Dec. 13 and Dec. 14.

All games tip-off at 7 p.m.