For Madison Central’s Allen Feldhaus Jr., return to Sweet 16 is missing someone vital
Ken-Jah Bosley’s three-point bomb with 2.2 seconds left in the 2013 state finals had just given Allen Feldhaus Jr. the coaching victory he had craved his entire professional life.
In the exhilarating moments that ensued, the Madison Central coach knew what he had to do.
Amid the Rupp Arena bedlam following Madison Central’s 65-64 victory over Ballard in the 2013 Kentucky Boys’ Sweet 16 championship game, Feldhaus Jr. sought out his father.
He wrapped Allen Feldhaus Sr., a 6-foot-5 portrait in gruffness, in a bear hug.
“Dad didn’t get emotional very often, but he was kind of emotional after that game when I came up and gave him that big hug,” Feldhaus Jr. said Monday. “I know that was a really special moment for him.”
Late Wednesday afternoon, for the first time since that father/son hug, Madison Central will be back in the Boys’ Sweet 16. The 11th Region champions (21-9) will open state tournament play with a rematch against the school they beat in the 2013 state finals, 7th Region winner Ballard (19-2).
Yet as stoked as Feldaus Jr. is over his late-jelling team’s return to Rupp, there will be a bittersweet element, too.
When Madison Central and Ballard tip off Wednesday around 5 p.m., it will mark the first time Allen Jr. has coached in the Sweet 16 without a chance to share the experience with his dad.
Allen Feldhaus Sr. died Oct. 28, 2017, at age 77 from cancer.
“It is emotional,” Feldhaus Jr. said. “You know, it’s not so much the games where I miss him. It’s after the games. We would talk. I would call him or he would call me after every game.”
One of the enduring charms of Kentucky’s Sweet 16 is how it links the generations. When Allen Jr. coached Madison Central to the 2013 state title, he closed the circle on unfinished Feldhaus family business.
As a player, Allen Feldhaus Sr. made his Sweet 16 debut in 1956 in what is perhaps the most acclaimed Kentucky boys’ state tournament ever.
In the tourney that produced mountains darling Carr Creek’s only state title and featured “King Kelly” Coleman’s legendary scoring exploits, Feldhaus Sr. tallied 10 points for Boone County in a 64-61 first-round loss to Mayfield.
“It was his sophomore year,” Feldhaus Jr. said. “He would talk about what it was like, but I don’t even remember how many points he scored.”
As a high school coach, long after his time (1959-62) playing forward for Adolph Rupp at the University of Kentucky, Feldhaus Sr. turned the Sweet 16 into a basketball version of “My Three Sons.”
▪ Oldest son. In 1981, with Allen Jr. as one of his team’s stars, Feldhaus Sr. coached Mason County to its first trip to the state tournament. The Royals made it all the way to the state finals — where they led Simon Kenton 35-25 at halftime.
That made it all the more jarring when Troy McKinley, Dave Dixon and Co. rallied Simon Kenton past Mason 70-63.
“We came back out (after halftime) and hit the wall,” Feldhaus Jr. said. “That playing two games in one day (the state semifinals and finals were both on a Saturday) was kind of rough. I could tell the first shot I took the second half, I was like ‘oooohhh, the legs, don’t feel real good.’”
▪ Middle son. The following year, with Willie Feldhaus as one of the Royals’ key players, Feldhaus Sr. brought Mason County back to the Sweet 16 with a a 30-0 record.
Alas, the dream of an undefeated state championship died in the 1982 state quarterfinals at the hands of Virgie and star big man Todd May.
▪ Youngest son. Feldhaus Sr. had one more son and two more chances to win the state tournament. With Deron Feldhaus leading the way, Mason County made the Sweet 16 again in 1985 and ‘87.
Though Deron starred, the Royals lost in the quarterfinals to Doss (1985) and Ballard (1987) by one and two points, respectively.
So in 2013, when Madison Central came from 16 down in the fourth quarter to shock Ballard in the state finals, it was a moment of Feldhaus family catharsis.
“There was nobody any happier after we won it than Dad,” Feldhaus Jr. said.
If you believe there is a higher power controlling the events of life, then you might see meaning in the loss of Feldhaus Jr.’s father occurring when it did.
Since the death of Allen Sr., the Madison Central coach has had to help current Indians starters Jaylen Davis and Braeden Ray through the losses of their own dads.
“It’s been horrible,” Feldhaus Jr. said. “It’s one of those things as a coach, you don’t think about having to deal with your players losing their dads at such a young age.”
It is once his team’s games have wound down that Feldhaus Jr. most feels the absence of his own father.
Feldhaus Jr. would have loved to have heard Allen Sr.’s perspective on the Indians’ scintillating 101-97 upset of Lexington Catholic in the 11th Region Tournament quarterfinals.
He wonders what Allen Sr. would have thought about the box-and-one defense Madison Central deployed against Frederick Douglass star Dashawn Jackson in the 11th Region finals.
Whatever happens against Ballard Wednesday in Rupp, there’s a very good chance afterward that Feldhaus Jr. will feel the urge to call Allen Sr.’s number.
“I have to catch myself sometimes,” Feldhaus Jr. said. “After a big game, I still want to get on the phone and call Dad. I really miss those conversations.”
