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SUNNY Temp: 67 °F Wind: NNW at 8 mph Sunday, June 9, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Cyberchef E The People Golf Job Network Headbone Zone Wellness Connection Movie Times Newspaper in Education Oregon CarZone Outdoor Journal Personals Prime Times Real Estate Tempo A & E TV Times W3 Magazine CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Destinations Automotive Communities Employment Entertainment Publications Real Estate Recreation Shopping Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Jobs @ Mail Tribune Email Story to a Friend May 27, 2002 Players square off in the annual Southern Oregon Slam Saturday at the Rogue Valley Mall. Nearly 100 teams competed in this year�s Slam. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Age is only a number in the Slam Competitors of all ages come out to compete in the annual 3-on-3 tournament By KRIS HENRY Mail Tribune The scene is a familiar one for Central Point’s Jim Albright. A smattering of friends, old and new, on an outdoor basketball court. A rim slightly undone by wannabe slam-dunk artists. A gleam in his eye to make the game-winning shot. It was that way in his teenage years, and it’s still that way now. Of course, these days, the body isn’t as willing, but the mind sure is able. "They don’t think an old man can play anymore," the 38-year-old says while overseeing action at the 11th annual Southern Oregon Slam 3-on-3 basketball tournament, "but they find out quick we still can." That’s the beauty of the Slam, which moved this year from Ashland to the parking lot of Medford’s Rogue Valley Mall, age is only a number. "It’s just a great basketball atmosphere," the 6-foot-7 Albright says as he adjusts his 2-foot metal knee brace. "This is what we used to do as kids and we don’t get an opportunity to do that anymore. The kids do, but we don’t, so this kind of brings it all back." That’s exactly what event organizer Stan Talbott had hoped would be the reaction in 1992 when he brought the notion of a 3-on-3 basketball tournament to Ashland. "In this kind of atmosphere you can be 72 years old and still hang out with people and play ball," says Talbott, 38. "It doesn’t have to be that you never got over your playing days, it can be just about playing ball." Playing off an idea generated from a 1986 Sports Illustrated article on the hugely popular Gus Macker Tournament in Lowell, Mich., Talbott staged his first 3-on-3 tournament while living in Lebanon. A move to Ashland a couple years later meant a change of venue, but not attitude. "It started out as an excuse for friends to come to Ashland, hang out, play some ball, eat some food, drink some beer, whatever," laughs Talbott, who now calls Portland home. "It just kind of took off from there." Considering the smiles seen surrounding the nine makeshift basketball courts during Saturday and Sunday’s event, it’s not hard to see why the Slam has come so far. "It’s driveway basketball," says Talbott. "The rims aren’t straight, the courts aren’t level and everybody’s loving it. It’s just great to watch 8-year-old kids and really high-level college kids playing side-by-side out here." For players like Medford’s Mike Ragan, it’s an opportunity to put his competitive streak to work while spending quality time with family and friends. Also on the 33-year-old’s team, dubbed "Raganomics" a few years ago when no one provided a better option, is his uncle Kelly Ragan, 37, of Lebanon, and Nick Matsler, 24, of Salem, who is the cousin of Kelly’s wife. Rounding out the five-man squad is Albright and 21-year-old Medford resident Eric Shull. "Competition and fun is what it’s all about," says Mike Ragan, who has played in the Slam for the past six years. "My whole family is here and we just have a good time and make it a weekend thing. Instead of going camping, we come here." Kelly Ragan agrees. "I love coming down here," he says. "It’s fun to get out and play and see all the competition and watch the young guys play. It puts you back to where you used to be thin 10 years ago and brings back those childhood days playing ball. Basketball with me is pretty much year-round anyway. I just love the game." And the Raganomics crew, easily seniors of the 16-team men’s competitive division, certainly thrives on the competition. "These kids don’t want to lose to old men," says Mike Ragan. "You get out here with a bunch of younger guys who jump out of the gym and do all this dunking, so us old guys have to come out and show ‘em some muscle and slap ‘em around a little bit to teach ‘em a lesson. It’s grueling competition by the time you’re done." Although there are no referees and teams call their own fouls, rare is the case when a team breaks too far from the honor code. "You can play dirty and you can cheat, but it’s going to show on the scoreboard when you’re done," says Albright. "I think the best team is the one who always wins this. By the end of the day, you’ve been through a battle and you can’t deny overall talent." Even with the 20-somethings zipping around the court, the Raganomics crew still is undeterred. "They have their advantage, I have mine," Albright adds with a wry smile. That advantage proved to be enough to carry the Raganomics squad into the No. 2 seed from their pool into Sunday’s Final Four, falling one point shy of an athletic team called Baller’s Inc. The championship dream for the Raganomics crew came to a close with a 15-13 loss in their semifinals battle with the top team from the opposing pool. Baller’s Inc. went on to win the Division I competitive title. Although a loss always stings, the Raganomics crew showed after a narrow loss during Saturday’s pool play that time has made it a little easier to bounce back. "When we were younger it would be ‘Man we shouldn’t have lost that game,’" says Kelly Ragan. "Now it’s, ‘Well, it’s just one loss. We just have to try a little harder next time.’" And if past history is any foreteller, there will be a next time. "By the end of this year, we’ll say we’re not doing this again," says Albright, who was a late fill-in for the Raganomics crew. "By next year, it’ll be ‘Sure, I’ll play.’ It never fails. Every year we say we’re retiring, and every year we’re back at it again." Besides, there’s a nice carrot hanging in front of Albright’s seasoned face. "Two more years and I’m in the 40-and-over bracket and I’m a superstar again," he says with a chuckle. "I just hope my body holds out that long." Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S