Hundreds of basketball games have been played on the floor of the Clements High School gymnasium. But none of those games have been as wild as the one that will take place Thursday night.

That’s because it won’t be your average basketball game. It will be played by players wearing helmets and riding donkeys.

Yes, that is correct, donkeys will grace the floor Thursday with riders trying to control the beasts long enough to shoot a small ball through the hoop.

The game will benefit the Clements softball team, and softball coach Wendy Gordon said it was something fun the school used to do back when she was a student, so she thought it would be a good idea to bring it back.

“We used to do this years and years ago, but this is the first one we’ve had in many years,” Gordon said. “I wanted to try and start it back and see how it went.”

As one can imagine, the novelty of donkeys on a basketball court has excited not only the students but also the entire community.

“Everyone is very excited,” Gordon said. “The response from the community has been outstanding. I think everyone wants to see how this is going to go.”

The game will consist of four 8-minute quarters, with six players on each team. Fun events will take place between quarters and Blue Springs Elementary students will be performing a halftime show. The teams will be students vs. faculty and community members.

Gordon said there are 12 faculty and community members set to play, which means each person will play one half. She said she was hoping to get enough students signed up so they would each play one quarter.

“Some of my softball players are riding, so I’m slightly concerned,” Gordon said with a laugh. “Back when I played, I rode on a llama, but if there will be a llama here Thursday, I don’t know.”

The donkeys and helmets will be provided by Circle A Donkeys, of Henry, Tennessee, a company which has been doing donkey basketball games across the Southeast for many years, according to its website.

The donkeys will be wearing rubber boots on their hooves so they don’t scratch the floor, and plenty of softball player “volunteers” will be there to scoop up any messes the animals make.

“The ones who didn’t want to ride chose to be pooper scoopers,” Gordon said. “Hopefully, they won’t go very often. Don’t feed them too much before the game, I guess.”

The event will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday at the gymnasium. Tickets are $6 in advance or $8 at the door. Advance tickets can be purchased at the main offices at Clements High or Blue Springs Elementary. They can also be purchased from any Clements softball player. Concessions will also be sold at the event.

“I hope it’s going to be a lot of fun,” Gordon said. “We want the community to come out and have a good time.”