By Andy Furman
NKyTribune staff writer
Sean Nichols had a true love for basketball.
“I started playing when I was in the second grade,” he told the Northern Kentucky Tribune. “My brother was playing sports, and I went with my parents to watch his games. I wanted to go for it, too.”
There was only one problem – Transverse Myelitis (TM) – a rare neurological disorder caused by inflammation across both sides of a segment of the spinal cord, damaging the myelin sheath and disrupting nerve signals.
It leads to rapid onset of symptoms like pain, muscle weakness, sensory issues, and bowel/bladder dysfunction. It is often triggered by viral infections, autoimmune diseases, or, rarely, vaccinations. Treatment includes high-dose steroids and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG).
The symptoms develop over hours to weeks and include:
• Motor: Weakness in legs/arms, leading to paralysis in severe cases, and
• Sensory: Numbness, tingling, burning, and sensitivity to temperature
“I was diagnosed with TM at nine months,” Nichols said. “It never stopped my love for basketball.”
Nor his life in a wheelchair.
“Children’s Hospital had a website for Adaptive Sports,” the Villa Madonna Academy senior said, “My parents set up a meeting with them; we found the Cincinnati Dragons.”
The Cincinnati Dragons, formed in 2014, is a wheelchair basketball league where players compete in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association.
During the season – from September to April — the Dragons travel throughout the Midwest testing their skills against other wheelchair teams.
The Dragons field a 14-and =-under team in the NWBA’s Prep division and a high school-and-under team in the NWBA’s Varsity Division and a women’s team. All players experience some kind of disability that prevents them from playing traditional basketball.
“Sean has played wheelchair basketball with the Cincinnati Dragons since the second grade,” said Amy Holtzman a Broadcast/Journalism instructor at Villa Madonna Avcademy. “He’s played on the Varsity team since the fifth grade, including playing on the 2021 team that won the NWBA Varsity National Championship with a perfect 28-0 season.”
Nichols says he helps and assists with practices.
“I’ll help the younger kids with their rebounding, and pushing their chairs,” he says. “The basic stuff, like moving with your chair is not too difficult. Controlling the chair is a challenge as is ball-handling. That is little more difficult.”
The differences between the non-wheelchair game are, “How you dribble,” he said, “and there is a no carry the ball rule. You can dribble once every two pushes; and even carry the ball in your lap.”
The Dragons practice at the LeBlond Recreation Center, Riverside Drive in Cincinnati and host their home games and tournaments at the Mt. Washington Recreation Center.
“With tournaments,” Nichols said, “we play close to 20-30 games in season.”
Their National Tournament is in Louisiana this year. But next year – well next year Sean Nichols will be playing college basketball.
He signed a Letter-of-Intent Friday night between the Villa Madonna Jayvee and Varsity basketball games – with the University of Alabama to play wheelchair basketball. He will be receiving scholarships to cover costs.
Who knew?
There are more than 20 colleges and universities in the United States with established, competitive wheelchair basketball programs that offer opportunities for scholarships. These programs are primarily part of the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) Collegiate Division.
Several institutions with prominent programs, which provide athletic scholarships to recruit and retain top talent include:
• University of Arizona
• University of Alabama
• University of Illinois
• Edinboro University of Pennsylvania
• University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
• Southwest Minnesota State University
• Auburn University
• Eastern Washinghton University, and
• City University of New York.
“I attended summer camps at the University of Alabama,” Nichols said. “Their coaches noticed me. I sent them an introduction on e-mail and told them I had an interest in playing for them; and they watched my games on live stream.”
Arizona, Auburn, University of Missouri, and Illinois were also on Nichols’ radar.
What about staying a bit closer to home?
“The University of Cincinnati only has solo adaptive sports like tennis and track for wheelchair athletes,” he said. “Xavier University doesn’t have much; maybe a solo wheelchair sport like track; same for NKU and Thomas More University.”
The May Villa Madonna grad-to-be plans to drive to Alabama – yes he drives with his hands — and says he’ll have his car on campus.
“The incoming freshmen for Adaptive Sports all dorm together,” he said.
They may be a group – but Sean Nichols is one – the only one as far as he knows – of the first wheelchair hoopsters to gain a scholarship from Northern Kentucky. His true love for basketball continues to pay off.
