WHAT DO YOU PRACTICE?

"I've seen too many players who never improve because they think they've got it made.  What they do well, they enjoy doing, naturally, so that's what they practice, sort of showing off, like a great hook-shooter who spends all day shooting hooks.  

I've seen too many players who won't practice what they don't do well, because they're afraid of showing these faults, of being embarrassed by them.  I always practiced ball-handling rather than shooting because I needed ball-handling practice more than I needed shooting practice."

- Jerry West

LA Lakers

West averaged 27 ppg over 14 seasons with the Lakers.

THE CHOICES WE MAKE

There’s a choice you have to make,

In everything you do.

And you always keep in mind,

The choices you make, make you.

OFFICIALS DON'T WIN OR LOSE GAMES FOR YOU

With the playoffs right around the corner, we should expect some close games.  And with close games, we should expect some questionable calls.  But the thing to remember is that the calls we have gotten all season long will likely appear “amplified” in a close playoff game.

A point to remember:  Officials don't win or lose the games.

It's a point too many players, coaches, and fans refuse to acknowledge, especially in a time when many people -- players and coaches included -- don't want to take responsibility for their part in a loss.

After close games, you'll often hear a lot about "bad calls" by the officials.  In fact, there may have been some bad calls.  But how many mistakes did you, as a player (or me as a coach), make that contributed much more to the loss than an official's call?

Officials don't make bad passes, take ill-advised shots, or execute plays poorly.  Passing and execution is the responsibility of the players, not the officials.  How many FT’s do the officials make you miss?

In games where there are perceived missed or bad calls, what ends up happening is that the focus on the officiating becomes a distraction.  It also becomes a convenient excuse.  The attitude often becomes, "Well, we can't win because the refs are obviously against us..." and that opens up an opportunity for a team to stop competing.  Fans convince the players to start thinking they're victims.  The "poor me" attitude comes into play.

As Mike Jacobs, the head men's soccer coach at Evansville, wrote recently, "as a player or a coach, there are only so many variables you can control during the course of a soccer game — a call that a referee makes (or doesn't make) is not one of them."

According to Coach Jacobs:

"As much as athletes and coaches probably feel that 'working' the refs is glorified by watching ESPN, the idea of shouting at the referee during the game becomes more of a hindrance and distraction to the officials and your own players.  As a player, arguing with the referee or even getting yellow-carded for dissent are signs of a lack of mental toughness or focus."

Coach Jacobs rightly contends that "the coach who complains about every call gets tuned out pretty quickly by an official, and now the coach has lost a forum to even discuss a call with the referee."

Of course, there are times when it's important to challenge a call -- particularly a blatantly bad call.  The key is being smart and strategic about it.  Forget about the refs and just play hard.

4:13

National Rankings - Covenant at No. 10,074

The Final Regular Season National Rankings are out this morning and Covenant is sitting at No. 10,074.

I've included some of the schools that we have played in comparison and the two schools in RED are the two favorites to win it all in Division III and IV at the National Tournament this year.  

Tabernacle, which we saw last season is in Division IV and Gramercy is in Division III.  We will likely face Gramercy at Nationals.  We beat them by 1-point in our last meeting and they were ranked waaaaay ahead of us at the time.  You know what they say...history has a way of repeating itself.

All things....4:13

Final Regular Season State Rankings - CCS No. 308

The final Regular Season State Rankings came out this morning and Covenant finished at No. 308 which is much better than the 402 we finished at last season.

The graph picture here is the comparison of local schools that we've played...and a few that didn't want to play us.

SEVEN POINTS IN 1.4 SECONDS

Coaches preach it day in and day out…that EVERY SINGLE POSSESSION COUNTS and today’s game featuring the previous two NBA champions drove that point home better than any coach ever could.

For nearly 48 minutes, the Spurs and Celtics played to a near-draw Sunday afternoon, back-and-forth in a game of punch-and-counter punch, big shots and big defensive stands.

With 20.4 seconds left and down by 1-point, the Spurs hit a 3-ptr that put them up by two.  Then on a sloppy Celtics inbounds pass, the Spurs stole the ball and the Celtics fouled on the Spurs breakaway.  Being that a foul on a breakaway lay up is a technical foul….the Spurs went to the line for four FT’s.

   

The Spurs scored seven (7) points in a period of 1.4 seconds and then got the ball back (technical foul).  In the end, the Spurs won 105-99.

Every possession counts.

4:13

EVEN IN THE NBA...

Came across an article this morning that echoes what I have been preaching…

In D.C., injuries have forced younger players to step up quickly.

According to coach Ed Tapscott, young players typically " have two or three years to watch, observe and work their way into the rotation - rather than learning through such a heavy dose of trial and error."

"It becomes an object lesson in learning how to play the right way, how to play winning basketball - even when you're not a winning team," Coach Tapscott said.  "And there is a right way to play, even when you're not winning, and that's what I kept stressing throughout the game.  And we had episodes of good, solid basketball - winning basketball - when you play the right way, and then we have episodes of very poor basketball."

According to this article, Coach Tapscott "has stressed the importance of driving to the basket to generate higher-percentage scoring opportunities.  He also wants his guards... to penetrate and draw defenders toward them and then kick the ball out to teammates (our E2).  But while the Wizards got the ball into the paint, they got caught up in what Tapscott calls hero play, otherwise known as one-on-one basketball."

"Hero basketball is jackknife dunks, reverse lay ups, plays that make the late-night highlights on sports programming - but they become low-percentage plays," (our ESPN shots) Coach Tapscott explained.  "You might make only three or four; what happens on the other six?  They're dunks the other way. 

Great effort, bad percentage basketball.  I remember having the same conversations with an old coach a long time ago," Coach Tapscott said with a chuckle, shaking his head.  "You get it sooner, or you don't and someone else gets your minutes."

4:13

ONLY KNOWING ONE WAY TO PLAY

Came across a story today about St. Mary's center Omar Samhan who recently told a story about how former LA Laker Mark Madsen, who'd graduated from the same high school as Samhan, would return in the summers to scrimmage with Samhan.

More than anything, what Samhan remembers about those practices is Madsen's work ethic.

"He played so hard," Samhan said.  "He played like he was in practice with Shaq and Kobe and those guys.  He dove for a ball, and I asked him, 'What are you doing?  You could get hurt.'  And he said, 'I only know how to play one way.'"

Madsen, a former standout at Stanford who played nine seasons in the NBA and won titles with the Lakers in 2001 and 2002, would give Samhan advice, too.

"(Madsen) always reminds me that basketball is a game, to enjoy it and always, always play hard," Samhan said.  "You start out playing the game for fun, not for getting a scholarship or for making money.  Those are just bonuses if you're extremely fortunate.  He says he sees too many players who don't have fun anymore."

4:13

IT TAKES ALL FIVE

Great team-defense takes a very selfless attitude, because it takes all five players to do it.  It takes a lot of effort, energy and intensity, which allows everybody on the team to participate.  Not everyone can score 20 points a game, but they can all play solid defense.  And solid team-defense wins championships.

4:13

HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT?

Rebounding is not about size, rebounding is about effort and desire. When a shot goes up, there are 10 players on the court looking for that ball, the player that wants it the most is going to come up with it. That's what rebounding is about.

4:13

TEN THINGS

THAT MATTER

TO PEOPLE

WHO KNOW YOU . . .

1.  Keeping promises

2.  Punctuality

3.  Ethics and Honesty

4.  Demeanor

5.  Respect

6.  Gratitude

7.  Sincerity

8.  Feedback

9.  Enthusiasm

10.  Initiative

4:13

SPEED KILLS....WE'VE KNOWN IT ALL ALONG

Interesting story today's Wall Street Journal titled "Why Carolina Owns College Hoops."  It begins with this paragraph:

There are 343 colleges playing Division I basketball. They're spread all over the map -- 24 in California, 13 in Louisiana, at least one in every state except Alaska. And yet, three of the very best hail from the same narrow strip of North Carolina tobacco country.  Duke, North Carolina and Wake Forest, which are all currently ranked in the nation's top seven, are located in Durham, Chapel Hill and Winston-Salem, respectively. Their campuses are so close together that a determined person could visit them all in a single day -- by bicycle.

According to the author, "There isn't a remotely comparable cluster of excellence anywhere else in American sports."  He contends that "what has helped the Carolina schools excel this season is a common culture of innovation -- in this case, a warp-speed style of play."

At a time when most college teams are working the floor at a snail's pace (game speed, measured by total possessions per game, dropped to its lowest level in a decade in 2006 and has stayed flat since then), Tobacco Road looks more like the autobahn. 

Wake Forest and North Carolina are among the nation's 10 fastest teams in possessions per game.  Duke isn't in as big of a hurry but still ranks in the top third nationally.  Although Duke looked sloppy in a road loss to Clemson this week, the Blue Devils blew the doors off poor Maryland last month, running up a 40-point lead in 25 minutes.

Wake's Dino Gaudio says he "doesn't believe in walking the ball up the floor." 

In his words:

"From an offensive perspective, you win championships by pushing the ball up the floor and getting easy baskets."

Wake, Duke, and UNC are "part of a gradually increasing group of major-conference teams including Missouri and Washington [that] are winning by running opponents out of the gym."

4:13

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Came across an article this morning that reminds me a lot of one of our players.

Denver Nugget forward Chris Andersen clearly takes pride in his defense.

"That's what I do," he said. "I defend."

As the article in the Denver Post points out, his coach George Karl says that Andersen "kind of acts one way, but he's a lot more responsible and mentally into a game than people give him credit.  He plays with such a reckless abandon that people think, well, he's not thinking out there.  But he's actually very, very good cerebrally in the games."

"There was an intangible that Eddie Najera gave to our team last year that I was scared to death of not having this year.  "You don't replace intangibles with statistics — you replace it with an energy, a focus and a team-ness.  We got that out of Chris." 

And we’ve got it with Hannah.

HOORA!

4:13

DO YOU HAVE A PASSION TO BE GREAT?

“There is no greatness without a passion to be great, whether it's the aspiration of an athlete or an artist, a scientist, a parent, or a business person.”

- Anthony Robbins

"People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be -- not what you nag them to be."

“I over E” -- Intelligence over Emotion.

I came across an article this morning that discussed various coaching philosophies and why the game has turned into such a half-court X’s & O’s exercise for so many coaches -- which is totally against my way of thinking (coaching).

I believe in allowing players the freedom to play, provided that they understand “how” to play.  

When we teach E2, Equilateral Spacing, Pushing the Ball, Proper Shot Selection, Fakes, etc., those are concepts used to teach players “how to play” the game, rather than teaching “plays.”  There will always be a time & place for plays, but I think it is far more important to teach an athlete “how” to play the game.

As a coach, I can’t control every single play (nor do I want to).  Instead, I have to trust that the five players out on the court understand what it is that we are trying to accomplish (our game plan) and know “how” to play to achieve that objective.  

There have been times when I have had to intervene and calm things down (slow it down).  Those are the times it becomes necessary to remind players to stay calm and analytical.  To remember “I over E” – intelligence over emotion.

4:13

Charles Spurgeon once wrote to his students in the book, “Lectures to my Students”…  

"Fits of depression come over most of us.  Usually cheerful as we may be, we must at intervals be cast down.  The strong are not always vigorous, the wise not always ready, the brave not always courageous, and the joyous not always happy.   There may be here and there men of iron…but surely the rust frets even these.”

4:13

DEFINE TOUGHNESS IN BASKETBALL

There are so many attributes that can be used to define “toughness” in basketball, but here a few that standout:

Talk on defense: The toughest players talk on defense, and communicate with their teammates.  It is almost impossible to talk on defense and not be in a stance, down and ready, with a vision of man and ball.  If you talk, you let your teammates know you are there, and make them and yourself better defenders.  It also lets your opponent know that you are fully engaged.

Get to your teammate first: When your teammate lays her body on the line to dive on the floor or take a charge, the tough players get to her first to help her back up.  If your teammate misses a free throw, tough players get to her right away to encourage her.  Tough players are also great teammates.

Show strength in your body language: Tough players project confidence and security with their body language – not cockiness, but strength.  They do not hang their heads, do not react negatively to a mistake of a teammate, and do not whine and complain to officials.  Tough players project strength, and do not cause their teammates to worry about them.  Tough players do their jobs, and their body language communicates that to their teammates -- and to their opponents.

Set a good screen: The toughest players to guard are the players who set good screens.  When you set a good screen, you are improving the chances for a teammate to get open, and you are greatly improving your chances of getting open.  A good screen can force the defense to make a mistake.  A lazy or bad screen is a waste of everyone's time and energy.  To be a tough player, you need to be a "screener/scorer," a player who screens hard and immediately looks for an opportunity on offense.  On the 1984 U.S. Olympic Team, Bob Knight made Michael Jordan set a screen before he could get a shot.  If it is good enough for Jordan, arguably one of the toughest players ever, it is good enough for you.

Post your man, not a spot: Most post players just blindly run to the low block and get into a shoving match for a spot on the floor.  The toughest post players are posting their defensive man.  A tough post player is always open, and working to get the ball to the proper angle to get a post feed.  Tough post players seal on ball reversal and call for the ball, and they continue to post strong even if their teammates miss them.

Concentrate, and encourage your teammates to concentrate: Concentration is a skill, and tough players work hard to concentrate on every play.  Tough players go as hard as they can for as long as they can.

Make every game important: Tough players don't categorize opponents and games.  They know that if they are playing, it is important.  Tough players understand that if they want to play in championship games, they must treat every game as a championship game.

4:13

DO AS I SAY...NOT AS I DO

I usually tell players not to allow a players size or the way a player looks shape their opinion of the player before meeting them on the court.  Because looks can be very decieving.  Yet I did exactly that when Monica asked me if she could tryout for the team.  

I let her "girly" appearance shape my opinion of her abilities before she ever walked onto the court.  In addition, although she had four years of playing time under her belt, she hadn't played ball in three years and I couldn't see how she could possibly help us.

I told her before practice that "we are really too close to the Regional Tournament to add another player to the team.  However, if you can help us I'll consider it."  

Most European players are stereotyped as having solid fundamentals.  After watching her practice last night, I am a believer.  So is coach McDill and most of you that I spoke with last night.  I am convinced that she CAN help us.  She has great footwork (especially on defense), solid fundamentals, and she picked up on everything we did very quickly, even with her broken english (she's Italian).

Please make her feel completely welcome and like a member of the team.  Let's make her time as a Lady Lion one of the best memories of her High School experience in America.

4:13

2009 Eastern Division Regional Tournament

Dothan, Alabama on February 13 & 14th.  

Boys

#1 Seed Bye

#2 Seed Bye

Game 1: #4 Seed vs. #5 Seed, Fri. 11:00 am

Game 2: #3 Seed vs. #6 Seed, Fri. 12:30

Game 5: #1 Seed vs. W-Game 1, Fri. 5:00

Game 6: #2 Seed vs. W-Game 2, Fri. 6:30

Championship: Saturday at 2:00

Girls

Game 3: #1 Seed vs. #4 Seed, Fri. 2:00

Game 4: #2 Seed vs. #3 Seed, Fri. 3:30

Championship: Saturday at 12:00

Higher Seeds will be home and wear the light uniforms.

IS THERE REALLY A HOME COURT ADVANTAGE?

Came across some interesting statistics this morning about whether or not there actually is such a thing as “home court advantage.”  

Studies have confirmed that there really is such a thing as “home court” advantage in sports.  In fact, basketball and hockey (both indoor sports) found it more pronounced; less so in baseball and football (both outdoor sports for the most part).

Specifically, the home team was victorious in 53% of professional baseball games, 58% of NFL games (excluding ties), 60% of college football games (excluding ties), 64% of professional hockey games (excluding ties), and 67% of professional basketball games.

Further, studies have found that "offensive (points scored, touchdowns, etc.), not defensive, performances were improved."

Well it makes sense that the home team will feel more comfortable and relaxed at home right?

Well there is also another study that throws a wrinkle into that theory.

One study found that teams may tighten up in BIG games when playing in front of their home crowd.  A researcher "concluded that the home team is more likely to lose than to win a 'crucial' game.  In professional baseball and basketball, the home team tends to win initial games but lose in the finale."

The researcher contended that this "choking' phenomenon" was due "to the effect of social expectations on the heightened self-consciousness of players."

4:13

UH OH....

Got an email from the News Herald this afternoon asking if I would accept an invitation to be one of the two coaches to represent the East Region Girl’s Team at the Freedom All-Star Classic.

The fifth annual Freedom All-Star Classic, matching the top senior basketball players in the Central Panhandle, will take place Saturday, April 11.

The girls game is at 11 a.m., followed by the boys at 1 p.m.  The games will be played at the Billy Harrison Field House on the campus of Gulf Coast Community College.

The event features the East boys and girls teams against counterparts from the West.  The East is comprised of players from The News Herald's readership area of Bay, Washington, Holmes, Gulf, Liberty, Calhoun, Franklin and Jackson counties. The West players are selected from the coverage area of the Northwest Florida Daily News in Fort Walton Beach, which includes Walton, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties.

West teams have won three of the four girls contests.  The series is tied 2-2 among the boys.

Pray for me…I’ll need every bit of help I can get! (LOL!)

4:13

ALL-TIME CAREER RANKINGS

Being that I had forgotten the Covenant Career All-Time list the other night, here are the latest rankings as of the Wewa game:

POINTS

#3  Haley with 1,082

#5  Jess with 540

#6  Chelsea with 537

#7  Heather with 459

REBOUNDS

#4  Haley with 471

#5  Heather with 426

#6  Chelsea with 426

#7  Rachel with 358

ASSISTS

#2  Haley with 222

#3  Chelsea with 198

#9  Olivia with 104

#10  Jess with 67

#11  Hannah D with 66

STEALS

#2  Chelsea with 329

#4  Haley with 315

#8  Hannah D with 141

#10  Olivia with 125

PLAYING FOR EACH OTHER = SUCCESS

The No. 13 ranked Butler Bulldogs have appeared in five NCAA tournaments since 2000 and reached the regional semifinals twice in the last six years.  Over the past three seasons, they've won more games than any other Division I school in Indiana and have been ranked for 40 weeks since 2006.

This season, Butler's starting lineup features three freshmen and a sophomore and is led by "he nation's third-youngest coach, 32-year-old Brad Stevens.

And guess what?  They are winners of 19 of their first 20 games.

Butler's old-school strategy favors teamwork over experience.  Players share the basketball, take pride in defending opponents, prefer crediting teammates to gloating about their own accomplishments and they don't deviate from the system.  Simply put, it's all about desire, determination and execution.

Part of Butler's recipe for success is that the team's "coaches look for distinctive traits in recruits — like maturity and teamwork — that other schools often overlook.  At Butler, they're essential.

"We spend a lot of time talking to their high school coaches and the coaches around them.  That gives you better insight into them,"  Coach Stevens said.  "But I think if you watched how they interacted with their teammates on and off the court, you'd see we really didn't have to do a lot of research.  It starts with the makeup of the kids on this team — their selflessness and their belief in being a great teammate."

4:13

Hey Ladies!! I received an e-mail from my grandma this morning and I thought you guys might want to check it out. It's very powerful!!



http://www.maniacworld.com/are-you-going-to-finish-strong.html