Players Want a Roof Over Their Heads : Oxnard: Boys & Girls Club members have been put out by structural problems afflicting the gym’s ceiling. But Port Hueneme Seabees volunteered for repair duty.

Basketball players often dream of sinking the game-winning jump shot and watching the roof cave in under a cascade of cheers.

But the 500 children who play hoops at the Oxnard Boys & Girls Club are unlikely to fantasize about that. They want a sturdy ceiling to play their games under.

The club’s gym has been closed since June 1--the start of the summer basketball league--after an insurance inspector discovered that the 33-year-old building had unstable walls and a slouching roof.

Support beams had to be installed in the middle of the court to hold the ceiling up. Damage was estimated at $80,000, and the club’s board of directors worried about the future of the site.

But after some prodding by Oxnard Councilman Tom Holden, a board member, some Seabees from the Port Hueneme Naval Construction Battalion Center have volunteered to fix the gym in their off-hours--if someone buys the $30,000 worth of materials needed.

“Some of us have desk jobs, so it’s good to get out and lay some blocks,” said Master Chief William Jones, who is in charge of the project. “There’s nothing really technical about this. It’s straightforward work.”

To raise money for the project, the Boys & Girls Club has scheduled its first annual “Kids Are Our Racquet” tennis tournament Saturday at the Cabrillo Racquet Club. Organizers hope to raise $12,000 through the doubles tournament, then seek funding from other organizations to cover the remaining costs.

Club workers are aiming to open the gym in October. The Boys & Girls Club plans to honor the Seabees with a barbecue once the work is completed.

Abe Oliveras, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club, said the kids--many of whom shot baskets in the gym every day--were upset about the gym’s closure.

“They were all bummed out,” Oliveras said. “For a lot of them, it’s a home away from home. But we said, ‘Hey, you wouldn’t want the roof to cave in on your head.’ ”

The summer league’s 40 teams were able to salvage their tattered seasons, playing a confusing schedule at Oxnard High School, the Colonia Gym and the Port Hueneme Boys & Girls Club.

But the other facilities charged the Boys & Girls Club to use their gyms, and club workers, short of money, do not know if their popular winter basketball league will ever tip off this November.

Alongside the condemned gym, the kids shuffled around on a makeshift court set up on asphalt, trying to play.

“I don’t need any practice,” said 15-year-old Anita Lemos, who plays on one team and coaches another. She lofted an air ball.

Jonathan McKesson’s game was in better shape, as he dribbled around the court like a 10-year-old John Starks.

A guard on the league’s Knicks team, Jonathan said his fans now have nowhere to sit to watch him practice. He also complained about the officiating at Port Hueneme, which he considers awful.

“My mom and dad want to come, but they’ve got nowhere to sit,” Jonathan said. “I’m hoping we can get in there.”

Shannon Franklin’s girth makes him the Knicks’ ace in the post. Sweating on the sidelines after a three-on-three match, he reminisced of cooler days in the air-conditioned gym.

“It’s hotter out here,” Shannon said. “Way hotter.”