Even before a single sneaker hits the court this weekend, athletes from one university in basketball’s Final Four already have proven to be heroic.
Baton Rouge, La., was spared the worst of Hurricane Katrina but became a refuge for thousands of Gulf Coast evacuees. At Louisiana State University, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center was transformed into an emergency medical center. For several nights, LSU’s men’s basketball team set up cots and medical equipment, unloaded relief trucks and ambulances – and even held IV bags as doctors operated on patients.
LSU’s Lady Tigers, headed to the women’s Final Four, pitched in, too, raising donations and visiting hurricane victims.
It’s unlikely any sports event could ever rival the time when Katrina brought so much chaos and loss to the Gulf Coast. Athletes were among many young people barely old enough to vote who stepped forward to perform community service. Whether the Tigers and Lady Tigers win or lose, LSU already has given Louisiana cause to cheer its remarkable young people.
