THE POEM OF ANDREW BROOKS

By Colton Casella

Intramural captain/coach/player Andrew had hoop dreams. But an 0-3 start to the four-game basketball season left him feeling cursed. 

The season began with hope. Andrew met USC men’s basketball’s 7’3 starting center Vincent Iwuchukwu training at the gym before Andrew’s first game. Andrew convinced Vince to join his team. The refs weren’t pleased. Vince was not allowed to play. 

Andrew’s Team Brooks lost the game by 30. 

A loss by 10 last night left Andrew’s Team Brooks debriefing outside by the pool deck at the Lyon Center late into the night.

“Zone defense? Worked,” said Andrew. “Offense, not so much.” 

Worst of all was the absence of Vince as cheerleader. Morale was low. The team grabbed their things to head back inside and—the door was locked. 

They tried another door. Also locked. 

Andrew knew coaching was his calling. “Your sister never talked,” his mom once said to him. “Probably because you talked for her.” He was always on his game. 

And so he did the talking for his team. “The swimmers gotta get out somehow,” he said to himself. 

He ordered his team to check all doors. They found only emergency exits. Alarm will sound if opened. His play call ran perfectly. The result was just not enough for success. 

The 47-degree weather was starting to get to Andrew, he stated after the incident. A wind chill of that temperature could freeze extremities. So Andrew met with his team. 

The only option were the emergency alarm doors. 

Teammate Chris called the audible. “I’m just gonna open this door,” he said. “If the alarm goes off, we run.” 

The team gathered by a door. Just when they were about to open it—

An ALARM sounded. Off Andrew’s order… they RAN. 

The alarm followed Andrew much like the sting of the three straight losses in IM ball. He stumbled to a stop by SCA and there he found the source of the alarm. 

On his phone: “AMBER ALERT. Child abduction.” 

Before Andrew could think if he accidentally stole a child while scampering away from Lyon, his teammates burst out laughing. 

The alarm they heard was nothing more than the Amber Alert. 

Andrew caught his breath and thanked his teammates. It was the first play call they followed perfectly all season. 

Andrew has one more game this season. If the team truly bonded behind his plays, next week might finally go differently for him. His hoop dreams aren’t over yet.

DPS has still not closed its investigation into Lyon Center’s emergency alarm trip last night.