Chanticleers reflect on historic trip to Cuba

Sitting in his office earlier this week reflecting back on Coastal Carolina’s recent exhibition trip to Cuba, Chanticleers coach Cliff Ellis hardly brought up basketball in the conversation.

Yes, the Chants played three games against the Cuban national team in Havana, but the most impactful experiences came away from the court, Ellis said, as his team got a rare glimpse into the isolated Caribbean country during its eight-day visit earlier this month.

“It was a learning experience,” Ellis said. “They don’t have a lot. They’re very appreciative. I was very proud of our players. We educated them before we went over about what they would see. I overheard them saying, ‘After being over here, when I want to complain I really have to think twice about complaining.’ I saw our players give their shoes off their feet to kids.”

The Chants, who left campus Aug. 6 and returned early last Saturday morning, were the first Division I college basketball team to play in the island nation 90 miles off the coast of Florida, at least since the Cuban revolution that would ultimately sever diplomatic relations between the countries back in 1961.

With the United States and Cuba restoring those relations now more than 50 years later, Coastal Carolina’s travel party found itself on the forefront of history as the American flag was raised in front of the newly reopened U.S. embassy in Havana during the final day of the Chants’ trip.

With U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry presiding over the ceremony, Ellis persuaded the security to let his team inside the embassy’s courtyard gates as American representatives for the historical moment.

“We were within 50 feet of John Kerry. It was emotional,” Ellis said. “The three Marines that took the flag down in 1961 when the Cuban government said the American flag is to go down, the three Marines vowed an oath that ‘We’ll be back one day to raise the flag’ and those three marines were there to raise the flag. So it was a tremendous moment.

“It was a moment in history that I know at some point in time our players [will truly appreciate]. … To be 50 feet away, 60 feet, whatever it is, and to see that was just an awesome experience.”

Ellis recounted how the Coastal Carolina group tried unsuccessfully to secure its place inside the gates in advance of the trip with the help of South Carolina Congressman Tom Rice. When that didn’t work, Ellis tried again with a direct request the day of the ceremony. At first, he was told his coaches and two players could come in before getting further word the whole team would be allowed inside.

“We were as close as you could get,” junior point guard Shivaughn Wiggins said. “There were a lot of people outside the place, but we had the opportunity to be on the inside.”

The flag-raising ceremony was national news, but the Coastal Carolina basketball team also got an extended look inside the country that few Americans have in the last half century.

It was those moments that left the biggest impact on the players.

“[It was a] learning experience of how different America is from there,” junior guard Elijah Wilson said. “[They’re] kind of back stuck in time in terms of the cars and how they do things and how the businesses look. From going there, you really learn to appreciate what you have over here. …

“We really do have a lot compared to what they have. You’ve got to really learn to appreciate what you have.”

It was Wiggins, meanwhile, who was asked for his shoes after the first of the team’s three exhibition games and happily obliged.

“They don’t have much over there. He asked me for my shoes and I had an extra pair so I decided to give it to him because he can use them a lot more,” Wiggins recalled.

As for the basketball, the Chants lost all three games – by scores of 76-68, 96-72 and 93-86 – but got an extended splash of attention on ESPN’s SportsCenter in the process.

It was good experience for a team coming off back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances and expecting another strong season upcoming, but Ellis reiterated, it felt bigger than that.

“We went over as ambassadors, and I’ll tell you what, Cuban television covered the whole thing,” he said. “To see [not] Coastal Carolina, but to see USA on the scoreboard – Cuba and USA – which was propaganda, but to see us representing the USA and to see that on television and watch a replay and there’s ‘USA,’ it was pretty cool.”

Away from the court, the coaches and players toured the country, took salsa dance lessons, put on a basketball clinic and got a feel for the culture while interacting with locals.

Ellis said he could sense tension from a few Cubans they encountered but that 90 percent were welcoming and friendly. And for his part, he felt the Chants’ visit had a larger importance.

“Anytime we would meet someone we’d try to be as kind as we possibly could because I know there’s been tension between Cuba and America for 50-something years, and we went over to dispel that. And I think we did a great job of doing that,” Ellis said. “I think we represented ourselves, our university and our country extremely well.

“In my opinion, that will go down, and people may not recognize it, but that was a bigger moment … in my mind I’d say that’s as big a moment in Coastal Carolina’s athletic program, it’s bigger than the NCAA tournament. I mean, you’re representing America.”

After further thought to find the right context to put it in, Ellis reiterated that point again.

“It’s got to be one of the top five historic feats for Coastal Carolina,” he said. “… I know for me it will be bigger than the two NCAA tournaments we played, because we represented our country.”

Ryan Young: 843-626-0318, @RyanYoungTSN

This story was originally published August 21, 2015 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Chanticleers reflect on historic trip to Cuba."