Michael Hughes Snags ESPN Top Ten Play
The Eagles men’s varsity basketball team was trailing the Fort Osage Indians Friday, February 12, a team they had previously beat by 20 points earlier in the season. The score was 33-27 as the clock ticked down in the first half when senior Michael Hughes heaved a desperation shot as time expired. The shot was about 75 feet away from the basket, which solidified him a spot on the popular ESPN’s top ten plays later that night.
“Michael’s shot was a great momentum play for our team, but more importantly the crowd. The shot created a buzz that helped fuel some energy for us to start the second half well, which was a pivotal turning point on the game”, McCabe said.
The KNET crew and Nile’s Media’s John Sprugel were the ones that submitted the play to ESPN. It made number two on on Sportscenter’s Top Ten at midnight, which exploded the world of social media. Many students took to tweeting about it on social media. “It’s a thrill for our team, our program, our school and certainly our community. Michael is a special player and has some special recognitions, this was something that he will remember forever, as well as many others,” men’s basketball head coach Chris McCabe said.
The floor camera wasn’t working well earlier in the day. Jeff Knold of Niles Media worked to get it running. Turns out that was the camera that would end up getting Michael’s shot on video.
“Liberty North High School’s game production team has always been really good. It’s not really that special in the idea that I got the shot on camera because our team is so good I’m willing to bet anyone else would on our team would have been able to capture it. Seeing it on ESPN with the logo just made it clear how good our team is. It made it look so professional. I was actually not expecting him to make it, but the thought went through my head well what if he actually does, so I followed the ball anyways. I was absolutely amazed when he made it I wasn’t even thinking of how my camera looked”, freshman Ripley Knold said.
Hughes plans to further his career next year at the University of Akron in Ohio. His positions that he plans to play are a power forward and center.
“It felt so cool to be on national TV. I grew up watching Kobe and Lebron dunking on people and getting on the top ten and to be on something professional players are often on is a cool experience. I’m so greatly appreciative of John Sprugel and the broadcast team for going through what they did for me to get on ESPN. It means a whole lot to me, this school and our basketball program”, Hughes said.