George: And that’s that for Cougars basketball today. Your final score today, Cougars 106, Mardi Gras 101.
Marcia: The Cougars move up to 16-13, and they’re seventh in the league.
George: That’s going to put them strongly in playoff contention as we head into the last month of the season.
Marcia: Today was a major day for Annie Carter, of course, who strengthens her case for Rookie of the Year with a career high forty-two points on 13-22 shooting, leading the team. She was the WBL Player of the Month for July, and she’s continuing her campaign for all-WBL accolades this month.
George: It all really seems to be coming together for the Cougars, who had a slow start, but are gelling well and stacking wins in this part of the season.
Marcia: That was exactly what head coach Sheryl Wilson told the press when asked about their 0-4 start back in May, saying she was confident thew team could find its groove once they got used to playing with their superstar rookie point guard.
Meanwhile, in the locker room…
Sheryl: Great f***ing job!!! Annie, THAT is how you take over a game! You put us on your back and willed us to victory when it was looking hopeless.
Annie: Don’t flatter me.
Sheryl: Forty-two points, that’s a career high, that’s a franchise high, beating the forty-one points scored by Debra back in 2011.
Debra: I call foul. She’s on steroids or something, no way she broke my record naturally.
Aubrey: Don’t be jealous of my baby.
Melissa: Are we letting them getting all couple-y in here? It feels bad for team morale.
Carmen: You’re just saying that because you’re single. Not everyone can be as happily in love as Aubrey and Annie, or me and Adam.
Melissa: I’m not jealous! I do quite well.
Annie: Ew!
Melissa: You two were flaunting your exploits around the l-
Sheryl: This is a team unity moment, ladies. We just beat the team with the third-best record in the league, which we hadn’t done in our two previous meetings this season. This is major, and we have all of you to thank for it.
Tara: I didn’t play in this game, actually.
Kamala: And I had to come off the bench for the first time in my career, which I think is really unfair.
Alicia: It’s not my fault my injury healed!
Kamala: It’s Carmen’s fault for stealing my starting position!
Carmen: Look, what can I say? Coach likes my game!
Sheryl: I’ll let you all hash all this out later, but what I want to say now is that I really am just so proud of the fight you all had today. And tomorrow’s another day, and we have to get right back to the grind, but I hope you’re all proud of the work you put in today. This was a great team win, and you all contributed. I am so… I couldn’t be more proud of you all. Keep it up, and we’re going places. Now, hands in… 1, 2, 3, Cougars!
Annie: I sense that coach is ready for the post-game.
Sheryl: When am I ever not? You know how I love the media!
Debra: I really thought that at this point in history, we were all out of new sentences, and that it was impossible to put together a completely new string of words. Yet, Sheryl just became the first person in history to say “I love the media.”
Sheryl: Come on, you don’t enjoy a good post-game?
Fiona: I wouldn’t know, I’ve never been invited to one.
Debra: Wow, even Hale’s been invited to a few, and she’s averaging, what… six points a game?
Carmen: Seven.
Debra: Do NOT.
Aubrey: Six-seven!
Debra: Yeah, I’m retiring.
Melissa: Finally, I can start!
Celia: Eh.
At the post-game press conference…
Hailey: Coach, New Orleans has proven to be a challenger for you this season. You came into this game having lost the last two games to them. What was different about this game?
Sheryl: Well, um, being here in Denver certainly helps. This crowd breathes life into us, they’re our MVP, in a way. But also, I think Annie has really gotten so comfortable in this league, and she knows she has the full reins in any game to do what she needs. I trust her implicitly, and I’m never not amazed by what she can do for this team. And that resulted in forty-two points tonight, which is amazing, and I’m really proud of her. She’s gonna be one of the great players this league has ever seen.
Annie: Aww, thank you, coach.
Aubrey: I agree.
Phil Mackenzie (reporter): My question’s for Annie.
Annie: Great!
Phil: Are you aware of the controversy that’s happening online regarding Gina Arthur?
Sheryl: We’re gonna have to pass on that.
Annie: No, coach, I wanna hear about it.
Sheryl: If you must.
Annie: Keep going, please.
Phil: There’s been negativity all season, especially whenever you play the Mardi Gras. Your fans and hers fight with one another.
Sheryl: I don’t see how this is our business. We don’t police internet wars.
Phil: There have been racist, sexist, bigoted comments against Gina this season, and they have intensified after today’s game, when she committed that flagrant foul against you.
Sheryl: Again, I -
Annie: I can’t comment on the specifics without seeing it, but no one should use my name to attack anyone else, especially to make racist or sexist comments. I condemn bigotry in all ways. I’m a woman of color myself, I’m proud of my Chinese descent on my dad’s side. I play on a team with many other women of color, so if you’re racist, you have non business cheering on the Cougars, or me, period.
Phil: Thank you, Annie.
Sheryl: That’s gonna be all for today, guys. Thanks for coming out today.
Aubrey: Coach, we didn’t -
Sheryl: Shh!
Back in the locker room…
Annie: Coach, how bad is this?
Sheryl: We won, just worry about that.
Aubrey: I’m on Twitter more than you, I haven’t noticed anything serious.
Annie: So you’ve noticed something?
Aubrey: Your fans don’t like Gina Arthur. They taunt her a bit, it’s typical basketball rivalry stuff.
Annie: We’re not rivals.
Aubrey: She’s the only one giving you a run for your money for Rookie of the Year.
Annie: People are they worked up about that?
Debra: No one on the internet has a life!
Melissa: You’re just saying that because you’re too old to know how to log into Instagram.
Debra: I am not! I willingly choose not to post on there. It’s not worth my time.
Melissa: Not worth all the time it takes for you to remember your password?
Debra: Joke’s on you, I save all my passwords on my phone!
Annie: Guys, I’m actually concerned here. Do people think I’m a racist?
Debra: No one sane thinks you’re a racist. So some bad apples cheer you on… it happens. No fanbase is ever 100% pure. Don’t let them get you down.
Annie: I feel like I have to say something.
Aubrey: You did.
Carmen: What’s going on? I was in the bathroom.
Debra: Carter thinks people think she’s racist.
Carmen: All right, I think I absolutely need additional context here. Why would anyone think that?
Annie: My fans are starting problems online, they’re harassing Gina Arthur.
Debra: Hale can’t help you here, because she doesn’t have fans.
Carmen: I’m a starter on a very popular team, I surely have some fans. I’ve seen people with the #11 jersey in the crowd!
Debra: Not as many as #5 or #24, but…
Aubrey: Or #8!
Carmen: Are you all just taking turns pointing out how much more popular you are than me?
Annie: I would never! You are a dear friend to me.
Aubrey: Not as dear as some people…
Carmen: I’m sorry I’m not a lesbian, we all have our faults!
Debra: Thank you for acknowledging it as a fault.
Later that night…
Annie: Aubrey…
Aubrey: Babe, go back to bed.
Annie: I did something that might have been bad.
Aubrey: We’ll figure it out in the morning.
Annie: I need advice.
Aubrey: You know who gives great advice? Debra.
Annie: I can’t wake her up!
Aubrey: She’s old, don’t the elderly wake up this early?
Annie: Four in the morning?
Aubrey: I don’t know, that’s what Mark Wahlberg does.
Annie: Do you not even care about the bad thing I might’ve done.
Aubrey: Is it life-threatening to you or others?
Annie: No.
Aubrey: Then I’m too groggy for this.
Annie: But not too groggy to know about Mark Wahlberg’s morning routine?
Aubrey: I saw it on Ellen!
Annie: Don’t bring up people from New Orleans right now!
Aubrey: Okay, what did you do?
Annie: I responded to the racist Twitter trolls. Many of them.
Aubrey: No!
Annie: I know!
Aubrey: It’s early, delete them.
Annie: People are already responding. I think ESPN posted about it.
Aubrey: Okay, do you think it’s too early in the relationship to flee the country together and change our names and appearances?
Annie: Be serious!
Aubrey: This is embarrassing, babe. You’re not tech-savvy, but you know not to feed the trolls, not ever! I don’t know if I can stay in this bed. I kinda got the ick.
Annie: Not the ick! I’ll do that thing you like!
Aubrey: You mean you’ll make your family recipe for shrimp scampi?
Annie: Yeah, sure.
Aubrey: All right, I’ll stay. But only for the promise of getting scampi tomorrow.
Annie: We have a game tomorrow.
Aubrey: Another excellent reason we should be asleep right now. I’ll even cuddle you if you hop back into bed and stop panicking.
Annie: But you were just -
Aubrey: Hush… dream of a better tomorrow.
Annie: All right, I guess I can deal with this tomorrow.
The next day…
Aubrey: Babe, you have to get up. We gotta get to practice soon.
Annie: I barely slept. I was just thinking about how dumb I look. I’m afraid to open Twitter.
Aubrey: That should always be the case, half that app is just Nazi propaganda these days.
Annie: I’ve heard that.
Aubrey: So, we’re just gonna ignore the noise today, right?
Annie: I wanna call Debra for advice.
Aubrey: Was my advice not enough? We’re in a relationship here.
Annie: You told me I gave you the ick because I was arguing with random strangers on the internet.
Aubrey: I mean… it’s not your most attractive trait.
Annie: Debra can help me here.
Aubrey: Yeah, she’s very understanding.
Annie: She is with me! I guess I’m the Debra Whisperer.
Aubrey: Is that something to be proud of?
Annie: I’m gonna give her a call.
Annie picks up the phone and calls Debra.
Debra: What’s up?
Whitney: Debra, is this important?
Debra: I don’t know, it won’t be long.
Annie: Am I interrupted something?
Debra: Just breakfast. I think Whit will live. What’s up?
Annie: Debra, I went on Twitter last night.
Debra: Why?
Annie: I’m an idiot!
Debra: You said it.
Annie: I got into it with some Twitter trolls that claimed to be “fans” of mine. They were harassing Gina Arthur in my “defense,” and I told them to keep my name out of their mouths and stop being bigots.
Debra: Oh boy.
Annie: I don’t know what the response to it is, but I feel like I’ve made the situation worse.
Debra: It definitely did, but we all make mistakes. Stop fretting and move on. The rest of the world will too… soon enough.
Annie: I’ll weather the storm.
Debra: Good girl! Now, we have a game today -
Annie: And I’m so tired!
Debra: Maybe try a nap.
Annie: I just woke up! I have to get to practice.
Debra: We don’t need a tired PG1.
Annie: I’ll power through.
At practice…
Sheryl: Annie, what did you do?
Aubrey: If you want to yell at her, you gotta come through me first!
Celia: Aubrey, sit down. We have to talk with the tweeter.
Annie: I was trying to ease tensions.
Sheryl: It made it so much worse. The league is starting an investigation.
Annie: Into me?
Sheryl: No. Into Twitter.
Annie: Can they do that?
Carmen: Someone needs to.
Sheryl: They’re investigating online hate and trying to see how to protect the players in the league from online harassment.
Annie: That feels reasonable.
Sheryl: I don’t disagree, but we’ve been placed firmly at the center of it. Our fans are having fingers pointed at them implying they’re an “issue. It’s just caused a firestorm we didn’t need right now.
Annie: I didn’t mean to -
Celia: We’re not blaming you, honey. It’s just a headache.
Sheryl: We’ll be all right, and I don’t know what the league can really do about it anyway, but it’s unfortunate.
Debra: I told her to stay off social media! And I’m telling her now, don’t log back on there ever again!
Annie: I’ll try my best.
Sheryl: I can’t control your personal life, but I do think it’s best if we try to avoid replying to trolls.
Annie: I knew it was bad to give them attention the second I clicked “post.”
Celia: You replied to twenty-six accounts.
Annie: You never doubled down on your mistakes?
Celia: Fair enough.
Sheryl: Now that that’s been tended to, we have a game to practice for.
Annie: I’m tired, coach.
Aubrey: She’s not alone.
Melissa: I don’t like the implication of that.
Carmen: Oh, stop being a Republican.
Melissa: I’m just lonely, okay? And I’m an independent!
Debra: Sure you are.
Sheryl: Annie, do you want a personal day? I don’t think that’ll make anything better, but -
Annie: No, I’m playing.
Sheryl: Then let’s go!
Annie: Yes, coach.
Later that night…
Debra: Carter…
Annie: Please don’t.
Debra: Thank you for letting me be the team’s top scorer again.
Melissa: Well, she knew she’d have to do the post-game if she led the team in scoring.
Debra: I like to believe she’s just generous.
Sheryl: Not our best work today, ladies. Tomorrow’s a new day, we’ll get ‘em next time.
Aubrey: You’re going easy on us.
Sheryl: I don’t really want to make Annie cry today.
Aubrey: You weren’t that bad, babe.
Sheryl: Oh, she was. She looked every bit like a player that had… I’m gonna say four hours of sleep?
Annie: That might be overestimating it.
Sheryl: Yeah, my only answer for that would be to tell you to get more sleep. And you know that, so I’m wasting my breath. This is all gonna blow over, just go home and get some rest. Now the rest of you…
Debra: I had twenty points!
Sheryl: True. Everyone else but Debra… I know this was a tough game, Myrtle Beach is a good team and we’re on the second half of a back-to-back. I get that. But we have to do better.
Melissa: Yes, coach! I think if I get to start -
Sheryl: Yeah, I’m out of here. Debra, Carmen, let’s go do the press conference.
Carmen: Me?
Debra: Her?
Sheryl: Yeah, she’s the least likely to say something stupid.
Carmen: I could cry.
Debra: You’re not alone. Some of us have to do a press conference with you!
What did you think of this episode of Foul Play? Let us know in the comments and make sure to read a new episode of Foul Play next Thursday!
