Cops. Kids. On-court, opponents. Off-court, teammates.

GAINESVILLE—-I want you to think about the relationship your neighborhood has with the local police for a second.

Respectful, tense, positive?

Gainesville Police Department officer Bobby White is breaking barriers for what it means to “protect and serve”. He’s finding a way to help protect the lives of our city’s kids, by playing basketball with them.

On Friday evening, White kicked off the second-annual Basketball Cop Foundation All-Star Game. The event featured student-athletes from surrounding schools teaming up to face a squad of officers from around Alachua County.

“Typically when we’re out in the community and we’re on the job interacting with a kid, it’s important and it’s intimate, that interaction. But, a lot of people don't see it,” White voiced.

“We want to show the communities that we are for the kids. We’re partners in the community for them. We care about them, and this is a good way to show it. It’s positive all around.”

This is a movement that has already shifted across the borders of Gainesville. Last year, over 30 different police agencies across the country donated balls, hoops and other equipment to kids in their area in an effort to build relationships over time. The perceptions have changed. Trust has re-established itself—and that is one of the hardest things to acquire in life, at times.

Speaking with All-Star parent Israel Wilcox Sr. post-game shed even more light on what officer White and I spoke on, pre-game.

Wilcox Sr. dialed back to his teen days when he said there use to be a cop stationed in a certain area of his neighborhood. He and his friends would see him every day, to the point where bonds were forged and levels of communication were high and open. This is the vision. No matter the outcome of situations, positive or negative, White wants to build a sense of belief.

“If you have a police chief that’s standing up and saying ‘This is what happened, these are all the details. This is why we do what we do.’ and they trust that law enforcement official that’s telling them that, then they may say ‘We believe you. We’re together on this.’,” White said.

“It starts with the kids. If we can start building trust with these kids at a very young age, then when they get older, they may feed off of first-hand experiences instead of second and third-hand, social media and the news.”

What was news to these kids at the start of the game? The other squad had a guy named Tyler Courson who can really score.

He started the first quarter hot, hitting 10 points and finishing with 28 on the night. However, that wasn't enough to stop the Dream Teens from staging a late fourth-quarter comeback.

With just a couple minutes left in the game, Don Harris of the Class 1A State Semifinalist Hawthorne Hornets banged a three-ball from the wing, cutting a four-point lead to one. Gainesville Hurricanes senior Isaiah Wilson scored two of his eight points on the next possession off a tip-in to take the lead.

‘Five-oh’ got the lead back to three with the help of a nifty reverse layup by Courson. By the time only 16 seconds remained, we saw a tie game. 71 all.

Coincidentally, Hawthorne was the only school represented who reached their class’ State Final Four, this season. It would make sense that Harris’ fellow Hornet, Devin Lawrence, would have a championship moment.

Just past half-court, Lawrence was able to steal the rock and race the clock for a game-winning layup with five seconds left. The officers couldn't respond after calling a timeout. Devin said post-game that he couldn’t go home knowing he missed that shot. P.K. Yonge senior Jevon Boswell spoke on how it felt to be a part of it all.

“It was really fun. They came to play hard and they really wanted it. But we had to go get that W,” Boswell smiled.

“We wasn't making any buckets at first, but we had to come out and put the defense on them. I should’ve never ate that donut at halftime,” Eastside’s Anthony Wright laughed.

Gainesville’s Derek Owens welcomed the opportunity to compete against a group of grown-ups.

“It was great to play against, you know, ADULTS,” Owens said happily. “And they were actually being competitive. We were messing around at first, they almost pulled out on us. But it was a great, great experience. Even though I didn’t play in it last year, I had fun tonight.”

THIS IS WHAT WE NEED MORE OF! We solve the issue by working together. For good. Nothing else. Find out more about the Basketball Cop Foundation by clicking the link below!

#StayRAWE

https://www.facebook.com/BasketballCop/