Dayton police officers will go head to head against the Dayton Youth Sports Association’s special-needs team in a Cops Vs. Kids two-game basketball series on Saturday, Feb. 22, in the Dayton High School gym. Games start at 10 a.m.
Dayton Police Capt. John Coleman warns that the youth team better bring its A game as officers have been prepping. However, the only outward sign that the police team is actually gearing up is the gear itself, which Coleman showed off during Monday night’s city council meeting.
The police team, including Coleman and Chief Robert Vine, will be wearing matching blue T-shirts with the team’s name, the Dayton Dunkers. The T-shirt design shows a doughnut – the stereotypical food favored by police – dunking a basketball, and judging at how little they have prepared, Coleman said the T-shirt artwork may be the closest they get to scoring.
With no expectation of actually winning against the younger and better-trained youth team, Coleman says the police team will be content with helping the youths raise money to cover the cost of participating in league sports throughout the year.
The games will have four 8-minute quarters. Following the first game, there will be a 30-minute break to allow time for people to bid on silent auction items. The second game will begin after the break with the last game expected to wrap up by 1 p.m.
Jay Matlock, the coach for the special-needs team, also runs Houston Astros Nation Facebook page, the largest fan group for the Houston Astros. Matlock promises that the auction will include some Astros memorabilia.
Admission is $3 per person.