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Stucki stays home
krobinett@journalnet.com
POCATELLO -- Every time the question came up, Matt Stucki answered with uncertainty. His wife, Chelsey, is scheduled to give birth to the couple's first child any day now, and being by her side for the big moment is something Stucki views as an absolute must. But being there for the Idaho State men's basketball team he plays for is something the senior guard also views as a must.
So there's the question. If he had to choose between a basketball game and the birth of his first child, a boy, what would he pick? The answer was always something he was vague about.
"I'll have to talk about it with my coaches," is more or less how he always put it. That was a nice way of saying he didn't want to choose. Of course the birth of his child was more important to him than a basketball game, but in a perfect world the two wouldn't conflict. He's always wanted to be there for both his family and his team.
But early Monday morning, a decision had to be made. The Bengals were boarding a bus for today's 8:05 p.m. game at Washington State. For Stucki to go on the road trip, it would mean leaving his wife for the better part of three days. For Stucki to stay behind, it would mean leaving Idaho State without one of its best players against a heavily favored Pac-10 opponent.
As of Saturday night, Stucki said he wasn't sure what he would do. So his coach, Joe O'Brien, made the decision for him.
"We're leaving him home," O'Brien said. "He wants to be here." O'Brien, who is a father of three, said he would never think of making Stucki go on this trip with his wife on the verge of giving birth.
He too realizes there are more important things than basketball games. Especially a nonconference one. After falling to BYU on Saturday, O'Brien said he only wished his former bosses felt the same way. "I had to hustle back for my kids," he said. "My first one was born the morning after a game, and the second and third on the night of a game. I remember driving 100 mph to get there. I wouldn't want him to go through that."
Stucki, though, was too bashful to realize that until Saturday. A team captain, he never actually got around to asking O'Brien if he could miss a game for his family. He hoped it wouldn't be an issue. Stucki said his wife "has teased us" with a few false alarms, and the idea of inducing labor was tossed around to avoid her giving birth on gameday.
But O'Brien stepped in and said not to worry about any of that before Stucki could even ask about it. "If I were in that position, that's a tough question to ask your coach," O'Brien said. "As conscious as Matt is about the team, I just made the decision and told him to stay home. I saved him the grief of having to ask the tough question." Stucki was thankful for that. "The coaches are supportive," he said. "They don't want me to miss it. I don't want to miss it." He won't. But there is still a slight chance he could play against the Cougars today. O'Brien said that if Stucki's wife gives birth early this morning, Stucki's father volunteered to drive him to Pullman, Wash., for the game. O'Brien said he could also possibly put Stucki on a flight if things worked out that way. But for now, Idaho State is focused on playing without its senior leader for the first time all season. "Unless Chelsey has the baby in the next few hours, we're going to find out what it's like to play without Matt," O'Brien said. "I imagine it will be tough. Not having him takes away one of our scorers and a lot of leadership." It also takes away any chance of Stucki missing out on a once-in-a-lifetime moment. For everyone involved, that's much more important. By Kellis Robinett
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