The Kings of Home Court Advantage
When Conval High School opened in the fall of 1970, it was hailed as one of the finest in New Hampshire for its state-of-the-art academic and athletic facilities. And ever since that very first home basketball game in December 1970 against Tilton-Northfield (now Winnisquam Regional), Conval teams have generally enjoyed a big-floor home court advantage—even during the most challenging of seasons.
For one thing, in nearly every game over the past 50-plus years, there seems to be at least one key turnover gained from visiting teams from smaller gyms who underestimate the size of the floor and the depth perception of our court’s spacious layout.
But as with many things concerning Conval High’s rich basketball heritage, things like home court advantage due to facilities excellence were nothing new to those who came long before us.
Many basketball courts were so small, there was no room for out of bounds and the ball could be bounced off the wall and remain in play. It was said of one game played in Jaffrey that “the floor is very small and was overcrowded by extra seats being placed in the hall and thus diminishing the playing space.”
So, the large size of the new PHS basketball gym, when compared to many tiny community halls used by small-town high schools in that era, proved to be a sizable home court advantage. (Later, when even larger gymnasiums were built, the “large” PHS court looked tiny in comparison. It was turned into the the school's cafeteria and a site for youth recreation basketball after the current PES gym was built in the mid-1950s. Sadly, the gym, along with the entire 1926 building, was destroyed by fire on Christmas Day, 1970.)
However, the late Paul Cummings, longtime publisher and editor of the former Peterborough Transcript (before it merged with the Monadnock Ledger several years ago), reminded the last graduating class of Peterborough High School in 1970 that, like Conval’s new gym in 1970, the newfangled 1926 gym was a game-changer for local teams…
“The gymnasium, which is now your cafeteria, is where Peterborough in the very early years became a powerhouse in basketball, because we were well ahead of our time in having qualified coaches and good facilities.”—Paul C. Cummings, Jr.
In the 1930s, Peterborough High, and the area in general, was known for basketball excellence. Peterborough, Hancock and Bennington all had teams in a popular Monadnock Inter-Town Basketball League (adult league) that played before packed crowds. In the same era, the girls’ team at tiny Hancock High School went on a win streak that spanned more than 36 games! Meanwhile, Peterborough High, aided in part by its state-of-the-art gym and great coaching, won three consecutive state championships from 1930-32, was runner-up in ’33 and ’34, and won it all again in 1936 and 1941.
The small town, big court team
But the team that first made the most of its home court advantage and set new standards for other PHS teams to live up to was the one from 1927-28. Led by former collegiate basketball star and head coach Gordon L. Fox, the Peterborough squad won its first eight games of the season before falling to Milford on the road. The Transcript noted of that game: “Peterborough was outweighed at least 20 pounds to the man and this, combined with the strange floor, put them at a considerable disadvantage.”
That spunky and well-coached ’27-’28 team finished 16-2 during the regular season, and was undefeated at home on their big court. The climax of the season came in late February when Keene High—the main challenger in the entire region—came to the new gym. The winner would likely be selected to participate in the state tournament organized by the University of New Hampshire. Four players were under the weather that night in leading PHS against a school five times bigger, but the hometown team gave it their all and prevailed in a nail-biter, 23-21, before more than 500 fans crammed into the gym with its balcony and stage. The Transcript wrote that “both teams were completely exhausted as a result of the hard game…a better game will not be seen here for a long while.”
Dancing for joy at UNH
As a result, “the best basketball team which has ever been turned out at the local institution”earned a spot in the invitational state tournament at UNH, along with Manchester, Nashua, Portsmouth, Franklin, Berlin, Stevens High of Claremont, and Alton. In the quarter-finals, Peterborough was given little chance against mighty Portsmouth High, but after falling behind early 9-2 on the big UNH court, the small town team that was used to playing on a large court never gave up and turned the tide and won, 24-22! “In the closing minutes, Peterborough resisted all attacks on the basket and the Peterborough fans put on a demonstration of the snake dance on the large basketball court after the game was over.” (Aka, the modern day version of rushing the court!)
With injuries suffered by key players Paquet and Flood, however, the 1928 team lost in the semi-finals to eventual state champ Franklin. Even so, this well-skilled but never-say-die small town team that gave it their all each and every night finished 18-2, defeated three of four big city opponents, used their big gym to their advantage, and was the first team from the Monadnock Region to ever win a game at the state tournament.
What a heritage to carry on! #rollcougs
