MENTAL TOUGHNESS MAKES THE DIFFERENCE

There will always be times throughout a game when you struggle with your shot or you just can't seem to do anything right.  This is when mental toughness is needed.  One of the most difficult things to develop in a player, or a team for that matter, is mental toughness.   I came across two great examples this morning of teams that showed mental toughness when it counted.

7 Over Times to get the win
Skidmore beat Southern Vermont on Tuesday night in the longest game in NCAA Division III men's basketball history -- a seven-overtime marathon, with the Thoroughbreds prevailing 128-123. The game was tied at 59 after regulation, and they were just getting started....(link)

Spurs win their 12th in row after trailing by 21 points
Manu Ginobili scored 14 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter to rally the Spurs from 21 points down for their 12th straight victory, 113-109 in overtime on Wednesday night.

Richard Jefferson added 19 points and Tony Parker had 18 points and six assists for the Spurs, who didn't lead until there were 49 seconds to play in overtime, but still improved to an NBA-best 13-1.

"I thought there was no chance we were going to win it," Ginobili said. "We were down 20, nothing was falling, we're not playing with the kind of aggressiveness and energy that you need to overcome a deficit like that. I thought it was going to be a loss. Then slowly, very slowly, we started to recover."

After a horrid shooting start to the game, the Spurs hit 6-of-10 3s in the fourth. Gary Neal was fouled on a 3-pointer with 16 seconds left in regulation and hit all three free throws to tie it at 106. The Spurs missed 17 of their first 19 3-pointers, but Matt Bonner's 3 from the elbow gave them their first lead of the game with 49 seconds to go in overtime.

“Guys just didn't have the poise and confidence to be able to make the right decisions at the right times in crucial junctures of the ballgame." Said Wolves coach Kurt Rambis.

(Thanks SI.com)