Harlem Wizards return to Pine Plains for a slam dunk fundraiser

PINE PLAINS — Presenting the community with a night of comedy and competition, the Pine Plains school district welcomed the famous Harlem Wizards back for another game against the Pine Plains faculty and staff on Wednesday, March 26.

Sponsored by the Stissing Mountain High School Class of 2021, the Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School doors opened at 6 p.m. to a massive crowd of students, families and local spectators. Harlem Wizards merchandise was sold in the main lobby of the high school, and before long, there were clusters of children in the Stissing Mountain Senior High School gymnasium sporting Wizards jerseys.

The roster of Pine Plains teachers, administrators and staff members was announced with gusto, sparking bursts of cheers, screams and applause from the crowd as the players bounded onto the court in navy blue T-shirts. Set to the opening chords of “Welcome to the Jungle,” the Harlem Wizards made their appearance on the Stissing Mountain High School basketball court where they jumped right into a well-coordinated routine for the crowd’s entertainment.

As the Bombers and the Wizards stepped onto the court, the Wizards had their fun in teasing the teachers with one Wizard picking up Stissing Mountain Principal Tara Grieb and tossing her into the air.

With Superintendent Martin Handler and Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center Physical Education teacher Jeremy Weber as the night’s referees, the game was set in motion with the crowd clapping along to the music streaming into the gym. The Wizards demonstrated their prominent athleticism by scoring the game’s first few points in just seconds, but the Bombers were quick to step up their game.

Whether he was badgering the Bombers into scoring a basket or snatching the shoes off of spectators’ feet and tossing them into the air, King Arthur, one of the Wizards’ celebrated players, brought his familiar brand of mischief into the game. 

By the end of the first period, the Wizards had the lead at 18-9.

Trading his silliness for a more somber stance at intermission, King Arthur thanked the crowd for its support.

“Without fans like you, we wouldn’t be here since 1962,” he said.

Pausing the main game for a game of “Tic Tac Toe with a Twist,” the emcee called out for the most excited boy and girl for a chance to win a free Harlem Wizards basketball, resulting in a surge of screams from the children in the crowd. With everyone cheering them on, the chosen students raced up and down their half of the court to score baskets and mark the blanket at center court with X’s and O’s.

Following another period on the court, the Wizards maintained the lead over the Bombers at 32-23. At halftime, the Wizards came onto the court to take photos and autograph merchandise. Youngsters sporting jerseys collected signatures across their backs and shoulders while others tucked brightly colored signed basketballs in the crook of their arms. 

Before the second quarter, the emcee called for the two loudest boys and two loudest girls to volunteer for a quick game; when the game called for two mothers to participate, the children were quick to shriek and point. With two children and a mother on each team, participants were tasked with putting on a Harlem Wizards uniform and racing to score a basket. 

Next, all the children in the audience were invited to abandon their souvenirs in the stands and come onto the court for a dance off. With the minute ticking down, the children moved their limbs in a dancing frenzy.

All proceeds raised at the game were directed back into the Pine Plains school district to benefit the students’ academic growth.