BANGOR, Maine — There was a basketball game going on at the Cross Insurance Center on Thursday night, but that was a mere appetizer to the entrees the Harlem Globetrotters served a packed throng of Queen City hoop fans.
From on-court dancing to referee teasing and four-point shots to high-flying slam dunks, the world-renowned “Clown Princes of Basketball” brought a little bit of everything to Bangor.
The Globetrotters, who are scheduled to perform in major cities during their busy 2017 North American tour, made their second Maine appearance of the month and showcased their high-flying, exciting brand of basketball.
The Globetrotters also appeared in Portland on March 12.
The festivities include a pregame contest of “Musical Chairs,” in which a throng of kids matched their skills against Globetrotter mascot “Globie,” a basketball spinning contest, a T-shirt cannon controlled by Globie and a postgame autograph session.
And, of course, there was a little bit of basketball and a whole lot of entertainment going on.
But that’s what the Globetrotters have provided fans all over the world for nearly a century, and virtually everyone left the Cross Center with smiles on their faces and memories to last a liftetime.
One fan who went home with a mix of fun and good-natured embarrassment was Alycia Allen of Pittsfield.
Allen, who took in the show with her husband and two sons, had her pocketbook hysterically stolen by Globetrotter Moose Weekes in the second period.
“He came on my lap and while he was sitting here he reached his hand under the seat and grabbed my pocketbook,” Allen said.
In exchange for getting her purse back, Allen got a few of Weekes’ sweaty wristbands and Weekes got a pair of smooches on the cheek.
The Globetrotter was fooled by Allen’s husband, who was initially brought onto the floor when Weekes asked to see the “pretty lady” who owned the purse.
“It was definitely embarrassing but it was kind of fun,” said Allen, whose family has now seen the Globetrotters for a second time.
She added that her two sons enjoy the entertainment the team puts on, and the family may be back the next time the Globetrotters return to Bangor.
The antics weren’t limited to the fans in the stands or to the World All-Star players or referees. The Globetrotters even found time to razz each other.
One case included Ace Jackson, one of four female players touring with the Globetrotters, and Firefly Fisher teasing each other with buckets of “water” that turned out to be confetti.
Fisher even tried to flee from Jackson by running up an aisle into the stands, but to no avail. The confetti wound up finding its target.
Ace also found time to show off some acrobatics, taking a seat on the rim to block a World-All Stars shot, and had a chance to check her hair in the process.
One thing you’ll see at Globetrotter games that’ll never happen in the NBA is the “four-point shot,” located 30 feet from the basket.
Plenty of four-point shots were taken by Globetrotters and World-All Star players alike, with many of them finding the bottom of the net.
Oh, and perhaps the most irrelevant “statistic” of the evening was the final score, which was Globetrotters 85, World All-Stars 81.
Follow Ryan McLaughlin on Twitter at rmclaughlin23
