The Lima Senior vs. Lima Central Catholic basketball game this season is one of the most anticipated showdowns in recent history. The teams enter the game at or near the top of state rankings and have dominated their opponents. Many accurately believe the Spartans and the T-Birds are legitimate contenders to compete in Columbus for state titles.
It’s not unusual for public and parochial schools in the same city to become fierce rivals. The LCC-Lima Senior game has certainly achieved that status, but the uncommon history between the two schools has added a unique element to the rivalry.
Lima Senior and LCC were both formed in the mid 1950s in an era when many schools were consolidating. An agreement was reached between the two schools that allowed LCC to use the beautiful new Spartan gymnasium as its home floor as well. The cooperative effort worked for nearly 50 years until LCC opened its new Athletic and Convocation Center in 2004.
The arrangement worked flawlessly in the early years because there was plenty of gym time, due to the fact the only teams using the facility were the boys varsity and junior varsity teams from both schools. LCC had a practice on Wednesday evenings and scheduled home games around the Spartan contests. The cooperative effort became increasingly difficult to schedule over the years as Lima Senior added more and more athletic teams (girls basketball, freshmen basketball, wrestling, gymnastics) that required gym time.
One of the results of the cooperative venture was a feeling of respect that existed between players and fans of the schools when the two teams met in competition. Don’t get me wrong. The games I witnessed as a fan and coached in were as intense and passionate as any I have ever witnessed. But they never went over the top, as is often the case in similar rivalries in other cities.
1960s
The Spartans and T-Birds met four times in this decade, with the Spartans winning every game. All the games were in postseason tournament play because they were both in the same division.
I was a young spectator at their first two meetings in 1961 and 1962. My overwhelming memory is pouting in the back seat of our family car after a Spartan thumping but also being mesmerized by the play of Bob Gunn, who was a legendary player for Lima Senior and led them to their first appearance at state. Gunn remains one of my all-time favorite Spartan players.
Their 1968 game was a thriller, with Lima Senior winning 93-82 on its way to its second trip to state.
1970s
In this decade, the rivalry was highlighted by the creation of the Lima Holiday Tournament that was played between Christmas and New Year’s and featured teams from Lima Senior, LCC, Bath and Shawnee. Schools took turns hosting the tournament.
In that decade, the Spartans and T-Birds met five times. The tournament was an immediate success, and fans flocked to the games.
LCC captured its first win in the rivalry in 1972, beating the Spartans 77-72 in the championship game. In three of the next four years, Lima Senior beat LCC by one, two and one point in the finals. You can probably imagine the drama and emotion in those three games.
My first head coaching game vs. Lima Senior came in December 1978, a Spartan win, played at Shawnee. My only enduring memory of the game is Paul Whitney, the Spartan muscular star and future coach, falling to the floor with an offensive rebound and then shooting the ball up to the basket while flat on his back. Made it. I never saw anything like it before or since.
1980s
In this decade, the Holiday Tournament was moved permanently to Lima Senior, and the match-up with LCC in several finals produced some of the most memorable basketball games in Lima history.
In 1980, I won my first game coaching against Lima Senior. It remains one of the favorite wins of my career. The game was tied at the end of the first, second, third and fourth quarter. Down one point with just seconds on the clock in overtime, Kendal Nance delivered the game-winner for LCC with a jumper from the top of the key. When the game ended, I recall being so emotionally exhausted I could barely stand up.
The 1983 final between LCC-Lima Senior, a Spartan victory, will be remembered for the spectacular duel between A.T. Thompson and Bruce Hodges. It was one of those games where I just sat back and enjoyed the moment. Those two stars, who were close friends, were like two old-west gunslingers trading volleys on a dusty main street.
Hodges, the most passionate player I’ve ever coached, would deliver a big shot, and A. T. would answer with his silky smooth jumper. Thompson’s 38 points, four more than Hodges, were the difference in the 72-68 Spartan victory. The fact that A. T. and Bruce rode to and from the game together demonstrates the unique relationship between the players from both schools.
In that era, players sharpened their basketball skills on their own in the off-season. Summer playground basketball courts at Hope-N-Nova, Whittier and Bradfield Center brought together players from both schools and cemented friendships between even the fiercest rivals.
The decision to end the Holiday Tournament in 1986 also meant the finish of the Lima Senior-LCC rivalry. It would be over a decade before the Spartans and T-Birds met again on the basketball floor.
I always felt it was a mistake, and the biggest losers were the fans who loved great basketball games. How many fans would have lined up to witness those powerful Greg Simpson-led Spartan teams square off against the spectacular T-Bird squads led by the Hutchins brothers in the early 1990s?
The Lima Cup years
The renewal of the rivalry in 2002 began a new chapter in the clash between the two schools on the basketball court and the creation of the Lima Cup, awarded to the winner. In the last 13 years, the Spartans have won 7 and the T-Birds 6 of those contests.
My favorite was the final time I coached in the spirited rivalry. In 2010, my last year on the bench, Desi Kirkman soared to the rim for the winning basket in the closing seconds of the game, providing another cherished moment in this passionate rivalry.
The anticipation for this year’s game has been growing for months and promises to be a memorable encounter. Regardless of the outcome, you can bet the game will include the same ingredients that have made it so popular over the years: an electric atmosphere, passionate play, great players making great plays and, just as importantly, respect.
Good luck to both teams.
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