PHOTO OF THE DAY: IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Bob Pidde, who in 1975 led the Freeman Flyers to its one and only Class B basketball championship, speaks from the lectern at the Best Western Ramkota in Sioux Falls after being inducted in the South Dakota High School Basketball Hall of Fame Saturday afternoon, Aug. 28. Pidde was one of 13 men and women who were honored as part of the Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020. “Playing basketball in the 70s was basketball at its best,” Pidde said in his remarks. “The excitement it gave its school and its fans was at its highest level. The question wasn’t whether our fans were going to the games, but when they had to (get there) in order to get in.” He noted the District 21 championship game in Sioux Falls against arch rival Parker that drew 5,000 fans, “and I’ll never forget the 236-car caravan that escorted us to our welcome home celebration.” 

Coach Ron Bennett and teammates Dave Jones, Keith Massey, Kent Mueller and Mark Gross were among those in attendance in support of Pidde. Watch for extensive coverage in the Sept. 2 edition of The Courier.