The definition of the word “hero” is a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievement or noble qualities.

A lot of times athletes are looked up to as heroes.

On Saturday, during Game 2 of The Basketball League’s Upper Midwest Division playoffs between the Jamestown Jackals and Toledo Glass City Basketball Club, there were many athletes who could be heroes for their outstanding achievement on the court.

When not playing basketball, Toledo’s Myles Copeland is a hero off the court as a firefighter.

During Game 2, Copeland was only filling his role as a professional basketball player, until the unthinkable happened.

With 28 seconds left in the first quarter at Jamestown Community College’s Physical Education Complex, referee John Scully collapsed. He was having a heart attack and Copeland’s instincts kicked in.

“So I was sitting on the bench and right across the court I saw the ref collapse,” Copeland said Sunday afternoon. “Instantly, my instincts kicked in and I’m there before I get time to think. I felt for a pulse, making sure he’s breathing. I didn’t feel a pulse, so I just started doing CPR like I’m trained to do.”

Copeland administered CPR on Scully for around 30 minutes and when Scully left for the hospital he was awake and alert.

Copeland saved his life.

“I work as a career firefighter,” Copeland said about his life away from the basketball court. “Then I play basketball on this team in my off time, so it’s kind of cool to connect the two and make such an impact and be able to save his life.”

Luckily for Scully, Copeland has performed CPR numerous times when on duty as a firefighter and like a true hero his instincts kicked in to save Scully.

“I use CPR quite often,” Copeland said. “I have had quite a bit of practice on that. It wasn’t my first time; hopefully it’s my last, but probably won’t be my last time. I think I did a decent job and I’m thankful for everyone around me to my aid when I needed to help him.”

A moment like that can be scary for everyone involved, from those directly impacted to those just watching a near-death experience it can be a traumatizing event. But once Scully was safely transported to the hospital the game continued.

“For a normal person transitioning from a medical event like that to going back to regular everyday basketball would be pretty hard,” Copeland added. “But, I see that quite often. I see horrendous things that people wouldn’t imagine, so you just kind of have to brush it off and move on from there.”

Copeland and Toledo ended up finishing the game with a 96-93 win that forced Game 3 on Sunday. Copeland was honored prior to Sunday’s game and the crowd was updated that Scully was transported to UPMC Hamot in Erie and is now on the road to recovery.

“I’ve been in contact with his family,” Copeland said. “His family thanks me for what I did and they say he’s getting back to being stable. I’m just hoping for the best recovery for him.”