Three in a Row!

After a somewhat slow and tedious start, the Golden Eagles are gaining ground. We have won the last three games in a row. With six games on the road and two starters from last season sidelined early due to injuries, a 5-2 record is not too shabby. Although from this coach's viewpoint, we could have been 7-0. We've beaten ourselves more than the opponent has beaten us. We are fortunate to be in this position which means if we limit our mistakes and continue to learn the game, we can become a very good team. It beats the flipside which is knowing we are not good enough to win the games which we have lost.

We still have players wrestling with their roles on the team trying to figure out what it is that they can do and what they believe the coaching staff wants them to do. This is often difficult as players perceive themselves differently than who they are. Some players believe they are running the offense when they penetrate and pitch without ball reversal or screening action. While this may be effective at times, it is the timing of the act which is critical. There are times when the coaching staff thinks it is a great idea to catch and shoot the first pass then there are times when this is not such a grand idea. Teaching the players the difference is the difficult part.

Our last game against Edinboro, we were able to develop a 20 point lead early in the game only to see us make error after error which the opponents used to their advantage. When we were up by 12 points with 5:00 minutes remaining, we would like for our team to take good shots such as uncontested shots by a great shooter, lay-ups, and 1-on-1 shots in the paint. We don't want to shoot the ball early unless we have one of those options. We'd rather work the ball, set several screens, get the defense moving from ballside to helpside, use the clock, and look for a great shot. Unfortunately, we did not choose to do those things.

Our players took shots which we had been asking them to do early in the game or perhaps even encouraging them to work on during practice. However, the timing these shots resulted in easy baskets for Edinboro. A bad shot is like a turnover. It is difficult to transition to defense when teammates are not prepared for the shot. Fortunately, we were able to do enough smart things to win the game this time. It is during next game that we must not allow ourselves to make the same errors.

When players become smarter, the game gets easier. When they understand what the coaching staff wants they no longer have to second guess their shots or actions. This is a tedious process and right when the coaching staff believes we have players where they need to be, they graduate and leave us to start at the beginning again with newcomers. At least with the current team, we have several sophomores who are playing and gaining tremendous experience. This knowledge should make them phoenomenal players by the end of the season.

We depart for the Bahamas on Monday for a two game tournament against some great opponents. Hopefully, we will have good news about our experiences both on and off the court.

I hope all of you enjoy family and friends over the holidays.