Bobcats Cope with Beye's Death
12/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
In the hearts and minds of everyone associated with the Montana State basketball program, that distinction defaulted to the death of a friend and former teammate. Al Beye, an All-Big Sky center last year, died in a single-car accident near Dillon on Friday.
"It's easy to say, 'Al would want us to play this way tonight,'" said senior center Ted Morris, "but we've still lost a friend. We went out and tried to honor Al. But it was hard to do."
Morris, fellow seniors Nick Dissly and Carson Durr, and junior guard Casey Durham shared the Bobcat locker room, along with all the hard knocks and exhilerating highs of college basketball, with Beye for two seasons. Those four veterans have proven pillars of strength through tough stretches early in MSU's 2-9 start to the 2006-07 season.
Huse said those four show the strain of the difficult circumstances, but that the team stayed together on a very difficult day Saturday. "I think it's great that our guys have each other to stand with," he said.
Morris, who replaced Beye in the starting lineup upon the latter's graduation last spring, said the team's veterans now look across the locker room for emotional strength. "One of the new guys told us in the locker room, 'We've leaned on you guys through the tough times so far. Now it's your turn to lean on us.'"
Visiting his brother Assane in Dillon on Friday, reports say that Beye died almost instantly in an early-evening single-car accident while the two headed for a Christmas party just outside of town. Reports also assert that no external factors, such as alcohol or bad roads, contritubed to the accident.
Inevitably, the accident's circumstances faded into the background in the hours after the tragedy. Huse said help in dealing with the situation arrived almost immediately. "Our Athletic Department jumped right on it," he said. "We had people available right away for our guys to talk to, counselors and that sort of thing. It was a real proactive job of handling the situation, and as a head coach I thought those were great ideas."
Beye's impact in Bozeman reached far beyond the walls of Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. "Al was like velcro," Huse said. "Everyone he talked to stuck to him. He had a contagious smile. If you only talked to Al once, you had one Al story."
Mick Durham, who worked with assistant coach Johnny Brown to land Beye, said the Senegal native had a magical touch with people. "Everyone who met Al liked him," he said. "He was so involved" in the Bozeman community, visiting most of Bozeman's public schools during his two years and lending his energy to any cause that invited him.
"He was so likeable," Durham said.
A local nine-year old echoed summarized: "I just liked to see him smile."
"It's easy to say, 'Al would want us to play this way tonight,'" said senior center Ted Morris, "but we've still lost a friend. We went out and tried to honor Al. But it was hard to do."
Morris, fellow seniors Nick Dissly and Carson Durr, and junior guard Casey Durham shared the Bobcat locker room, along with all the hard knocks and exhilerating highs of college basketball, with Beye for two seasons. Those four veterans have proven pillars of strength through tough stretches early in MSU's 2-9 start to the 2006-07 season.
Huse said those four show the strain of the difficult circumstances, but that the team stayed together on a very difficult day Saturday. "I think it's great that our guys have each other to stand with," he said.
Morris, who replaced Beye in the starting lineup upon the latter's graduation last spring, said the team's veterans now look across the locker room for emotional strength. "One of the new guys told us in the locker room, 'We've leaned on you guys through the tough times so far. Now it's your turn to lean on us.'"
Visiting his brother Assane in Dillon on Friday, reports say that Beye died almost instantly in an early-evening single-car accident while the two headed for a Christmas party just outside of town. Reports also assert that no external factors, such as alcohol or bad roads, contritubed to the accident.
Inevitably, the accident's circumstances faded into the background in the hours after the tragedy. Huse said help in dealing with the situation arrived almost immediately. "Our Athletic Department jumped right on it," he said. "We had people available right away for our guys to talk to, counselors and that sort of thing. It was a real proactive job of handling the situation, and as a head coach I thought those were great ideas."
Beye's impact in Bozeman reached far beyond the walls of Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. "Al was like velcro," Huse said. "Everyone he talked to stuck to him. He had a contagious smile. If you only talked to Al once, you had one Al story."
Mick Durham, who worked with assistant coach Johnny Brown to land Beye, said the Senegal native had a magical touch with people. "Everyone who met Al liked him," he said. "He was so involved" in the Bozeman community, visiting most of Bozeman's public schools during his two years and lending his energy to any cause that invited him.
"He was so likeable," Durham said.
A local nine-year old echoed summarized: "I just liked to see him smile."
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