3,000 fill Colisee for Harlem Globetrotters
Georgia is as sweet as ever, as the basketball legends bring their game
to Lewiston.
LEWISTON – Though nearly four decades have passed since their last visit, the jokes were the same, Georgia Brown was still sweet, and the Harlem Globetrotters won – again.
Monday’s final score at the Colisee: New York Nationals 44, Globetrotters 66.
Whew. The last time they were here in Lewiston – in 1967 – the Globetrotters won. Of course, they win most of the time.
Over more than 21,000 games, the Harlem team has lost just 336 times. It’s a record to cherish.
“No one wants to be the one to mess it up,” said Otis “Mr. OK” Key, a 6-foot, 10-inch forward who now works as a team “ambassador.”
To the cheers of nearly 3,000 people, the Globetrotters performed exactly as expected Monday.
Players fought with referees. There were slam dunks, half-court Hail Mary tosses and relay keep-away from the befuddled Nationals.
And of course, there was the bucket gag, where water is replaced with confetti before it’s dumped on the crowd.
“I know all the tricks,” said Maynard Rand Sr., a 65-year-old Sabattus man who brought his daughter, Trina.
“I’ve been watching them since I was a little kid,” said Rand, who bought seats near the floor. “I told myself if I ever had the chance to see them, I’d go. I’m here.”
It’s a kind of faith. Like most of the people who buy tickets to the show these days, Rand could not name a single player.
It’s not as though the names were too boring to remember.
Monday’s starters included: Seth “Hot ‘n’ Fresh” Franco, Alex “Big Ticket” Sanders, Kieron “Sweet Pea” Shine, Herbert “Flight Time” Lang and Matt “Showbiz” Jackson.
They were introduced after a pair of Kenyan tumblers in basketball outfits flipped across the stage, after kids ran across the court with flags that read “Bigger, Better and More Fun” and after the Superman theme blared from loud speakers.
In the following minutes, the team shot baskets to the sound of Will Smith’s rap music and a goggle-eyed mascot, Globie, hi-fived the children that lined every path.
But the signature moments dominated.
They were led by “Sweet Georgia Brown,” with the players in a circle and one ball.
Slowly, they passed from one to another, twirling and rolling the red, white and blue ball while wearing the same uniform style the team has worn for decades.
“It doesn’t matter that I don’t know their names,” said Rand. “It’s the Harlem Globetrotters.”
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