A school team gave back a trophy.Here's why it matters

These are kids who understand integrity and a coach who remembers winning isn't quite everything. In the old days, we called this character.

- Rohit Brijnath Assistant Sports Editor

The best days in sport aren't just about shiny teams chasing mighty trophies in major leagues. No, the best days in sport are sometimes about an unknown school team fighting for a small-time cup in a final no one has ever heard of.

A team who won the title, later realised there was a scoring error in their favour, refused to keep quiet and eventually gave the trophy to the rightful winners.

A team who never made a fuss about this shining act of decency, till months later CBS Evening News did a lovely little story on them and now they're even in the New York Times.

But really this high school basketball team from Oklahoma City belongs everywhere - on every school's bulletin boards, in coaching seminars, in TV debates on fair play. Because these are kids who understand integrity and a coach who remembers winning isn't quite everything. In the old days, we called this character.

Early in 2025, the Academy of Classical Christian Studies won the girls' district championships by a point, 44-43, from Apache High School. Outside their little world, no one had heard of them, just kids scrapping for bragging rights.