Valley, Carver ousted from playoffs after fight

MONTGOMERY — Valley and Carver-Montgomery have been ousted from the boys’ state basketball playoffs due to their role in Tuesday’s fight, Steve Savarese, executive director of the Alabama High School Athletic Association, said Wednesday.

In a statement, Savarese said both basketball programs have been put on “restrictive probation,” which prohibits them from participating in postseason play, until the matter is resolved.

The fight occurred with 6:23 to play in the Class 5A Central Region semifinal at Alabama State’s Acadome. Carver was leading 52-37 at the time of the fight.

The ruling moves Talladega, the winner of the other 5A semifinal, through to next week’s Final Four in Birmingham.

“We’re very disappointed for the student-athletes of our state,” Savarese said in the statement. “This is not what we’ve taught and stressed in our sportsmanship emphasis over the last three years.”

The statement said the investigation is ongoing and there could be more penalties in the days to come.

Valley football coach and Athletic Director Roger McDonald said the ruling was fair and “very lenient.”

“It was horrible what happened, and every time you see it, it gets more embarrassing,” he said. “They could have hammered us a lot worse.

“We were guilty. We admit responsibility. We’re sorry and we’re ready to accept full responsibility. We’re behind whatever the AHSAA says 110 percent.”

George C. McCulloh, assistant superintendant for Chambers County schools, told WRBL that he met with state officials, security personnel and representatives from Carver and Alabama State on Wednesday morning, and his office’s investigation is still ongoing.

“We watched video of the incident so we can identify all that were involved in the situation and determine how we are going to deal with it,” he said. “At this point we have identified several people. We talked to basketball players this afternoon, and let them know what is coming down the pipeline for them.

“We are going back to Montgomery (today) so they can talk to the AHSAA; they want to talk to them as well. We also have identified some fans that were engaged, and anytime I see a fist swinging, you are engaged.

“The punishment will stem from suspensions, to alternative schools, and, if warranted, expulsion. The extreme case is expulsion.”

McCulloh said punishments for athletes involved would also range from suspension from their sport to expulsion.

The fight started among players on the floor after a hard foul and soon involved both benches and fans from both sides that spilled onto the court. After police and security cleared the court, fighting broke out in the stands, forcing an evacuation of the arena.

The fighting lasted almost seven minutes, and there was an almost 45-minute delay before the tournament resumed.

McDonald, who was at the game with his 8-year-old daughter, said the incident was “deplorable.”

“We’re going to do whatever it takes,” McDonald said. “And it ain’t going to happen again at Valley High School.”

dmorrison@oanow.com | 737-2568

Shawn Skillman of WRBL contributed to this report