Missouri HS basketball team accused of swapping triplets on free throws

January 3, 2019 / Winning Hoops
The Missouri athletic association is looking into allegations that a high school basketball team illegally swapped its look-alike players in free-throw situations.

basketball netThe Dora High School boys basketball team includes triplets, and during a holiday tournament championship game against Licking High School, the team apparently swapped one player for another to take free-throw shots, according to the Springfield News-Leader. The referees didn’t notice — even though the players wear different numbers — and it wasn’t until watching game film that a parent of the opposing team noticed what happened.

Dora High School won the game, 64-62. The coach and school principal is the father of the triplets, the News-Leader reported.

It goes without saying that the maneuver would be a violation of state rules. To make matters worse, the parent claims that parents of players at others schools have accused Dora of pulling the same stunt versus their teams.

The News-Leader spoke with representatives of the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA), who say they’re investigating the claims. They didn’t sound confident that there would be any forfeiture of games played. Instead, they would potentially use the incident as an opportunity to educate their officials.

Read the full story from the Springfield News-Leader.