Norm Stewart: “I love watching the high school kids play”

COLUMBIA, Mo (KMIZ)

Norm Stewart said he tried to make his annual, 48-hour basketball tournament work, despite COVID-19, but there were too many logistical problems.

Normally, the Norm Stewart Classic draws high school teams from around the country, but this year, that was exactly the problem.

"We didn't want to make this [decision] too early," Stewart said. "We wanted to wait and see if there was any way it could possibly happen. We always looked at it as we were going to do it."

Stewart said with teams from around the country and different regulations for each state, the classic needed to be postponed.

The legendary Mizzou basketball coach added that he was especially excited for this year because of one connection from his past: his alma mater Shelbyville High School.

"They were going to play, I believe they were scheduled to play a Columbia school," he said. "That would be very meaningful to me, after 70 years, to see Shelbyville playing Columbia."