Edmond YMCA partners with UCO basketball to host special needs game

EDMOND, Okla.

The Central Oklahoma men’s basketball team helped serve the community with a heart-warming gesture when they assisted the Rankin YMCA in hosting an organized game for a group of special needs kids.

From teaching, to encouraging, to ultimately just interacting, the presence of the UCO student-athletes helped the kids know just how it feels to be stars on the court.

No matter what, who or where you are, basketball is a sport where all you need is a ball and a hoop to play. Despite any unique differences and challenges one might face, when you indulge in the competitive nature this sport brings, all other worries and stresses are put to the side.

“It’s awesome to have our guys serving the community in any capacity that we can and for them to experience things they’ve never experienced in their life,” said UCO assistant men’s basketball coach Matt Mossman. “Maybe put it in perspective how good they’ve had it in their own lives.”

After the young athletes completed pregame warmups, it was game on!

Up and down, side to side, back and forth. For the next 30 minutes, everything seemed right in the world. Every dribble, pass and shot, made or missed, constant cheers and roars of encouragement would follow right after. Every single person in the gymnasium was rooting on these superstars.

“I think the kids get a lot out of it, but I think our team gets just as much out of it as well,” said Mossman.

Truly, a heart-warming story that will leave a lasting impact on many of these superstars lives.

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