UC President Williams Declares the Show Must Go On

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In an interview today with the Cincinnati Enquirer, President Williams stated that he would like the Crosstown Shootout to continue despite the events of the last matchup. You remember that game right? Of course you do but just in case you’ve been living in a cave for the past three months, Xavier was obliterating Cincinnati when Dez Wells shoved GeLawn Guyn to the ground. Then all hell broke loose and Yancy Gates decked Kenny Frease with a right hook. In the ensuing days suspensions were handed out on both sides and questions asking for justification of keeping the series going emerged. The Crosstown Shootout has always been one of the fiercest rivalries in all of sports, let alone college basketball. Two schools with rich histories share the same city and are separated by only a few miles. Tensions are bound to boil over and there always seems to be at least one confrontation in each of these games.

But what happened on that Saturday afternoon will forever be typified as one of the ugliest moments in this rivalry.

That should by no means warrant officials from both schools to cancel the Shootout. There are measures that can be taken such as better crowd control, having stricter penalties for students barking obscenities and throwing objects onto the court, and ensuring that experienced refs are officiating the game. Axing one of the best games in sports is the easy way out and President Williams, as well as Xavier AD Mike Bobinski, recognize this. Obviously I’m glad to hear the Crosstown Shootout will continue. It’s the game that Bearcat and Musketeer fans circle on the schedule each year and on a national scale puts the city of Cincinnati in the spotlight for a few hours. No matter what side you root for, most people can agree that it would be a tragedy if these teams were dropped from their opponent’s schedule.