Sunday Mash Up

Brady Heslip's story courtesy of Andy Katz.  Here is a kid that will forever be remembered in the NCAA statistical records, and he didn't have the straight-forward journey to get there.  


Roger Rubin's article in the New York Daily News includes a great line from Kyle O'Quinn:  “People ask about what it was like in the game but at the end it was just us playing basketball. Those other teams are names, but they’re just players like us, so why not us?"  


This quote reminds us that kids are playing a game, kids are competing, kids are ecstatic upon victory, and kids are crushed upon defeat.  And hopefully, kids are having fun playing a game with  former high school teammates and rivals.  


Kyle O'Quinn enjoying the moment with his coach.



Spring is here and Washington D.C. celebrates its 100th Cherry Blossom Festival.  Here is a timeline of the last 100 years and the D.C. cherry trees.

Here is a link for information about the St. Patrick's Day you may or may not know.

The show is timeless.  If high school classes in 2012 of predominately Hispanic immigrants can relate to this, Bill Cosby did something right.

The Big East Tournament Part V: Finality

This is the first Big East Tournament final without an original member.  But at this point, what does that mean?  Teams like Syracuse and Pittsburgh replaced with teams like Central Florida and Houston still reads like a typo.  That can't be right, can it?  This is like trading a 2011 Dodge Charger for a beat up Pinto that's been sitting in the field behind grandpa's shed.

Goodbye to the sleek and powerful 'Cuse and Pittsburgh.

Hey there Golden Knight, wanna play?

Maybe this Cincinnati Louisville Big East Tournament Final is fitting.  Both clubs (no Cincinnati brawl pun intended) should scare any higher seed in the NCAA bracket.  And because the league is shifting and stretching in such uncanny ways, these two teams seem to represent the new regime.  Rick Pitino is already a Godfather figure, right?

The Big East Tournament Final:

The good cop.  Articulate.  A mentor.  He embodies patriarchal toughness.  He brings reason, purity, responsibility, and accountability to an NCAA athletic world that is warped.  Mick Cronin is the new Big East and he is easy to love.

Rick Pitino has a past.  But don't we all?  He faced the media, the accusations, and the repercussions of his choices head-on.  With his Italian swagger, Pitino commands a Godfather-esque reputation.  He wants the keys to the new Big East Tournament.

This Big East Tournament Final is FINALLY what we've been waiting for all week.  

A flashy, gritty, competitive point guard is in the finals and Peyton Siva has elevated his game.  

A legit, polished, and competitive post player is patrolling the paint and Yancy Gates has repented and paid for his mistakes--and ironically earning a Criminal Justice degree.  This Yancy Gates story--a story of mistakes, accountability, education, and second chances--is exactly what amateur athletics are supposed to tell.

The Big East Tournament is here.

Big East Tournament Part IV: The Marathon

Sports mark chapters of our lives.  This week melted away as this Big East Tournament evolved.  What happened Tuesday?  I can't remember.  Well, it is Friday and there will be no need to watch ESPN's gamecast during work.  Saturday allows us to sleep, so the night cap can be enjoyed from the couch, rather from bed.

Semifinal #1:

  

The "Otto" the Orange is so politically correct for such a scandalous 2011-2012 team.  Somehow, taking the street-fighting Bearcats feels better to me.  At least you know what you are going to get with them, right?  A punch in the face is direct.  Drugs and molestation is dark, back alley, and sociopathic.

Yeah...somehow those bearcat eyes let you know what you are going to get.  Beanie's smile?  Not so much.  Ewww.  I just got cold shivers.




Semifinal #2:

  


He's too sexy and his team has been relatively quiet all year.  Peyton Siva plays them into the championship, rather than into a tough loss.

I know Mike Brey doesn't believe this...but the Fighting Irish have won some good games, but they just seem to lack a little moxie this year.  I'll give him overtime...but Pitino's team gets it done.

Why 2012 Big East Tournament Won't Disappoint II

The Big East Tournament "3 tournaments in 1" is  an awesome structure.  In the first round, 8 teams fight to the death.  Coaches exert a lot of time on advanced scouts to get through the first day.  Team captains say their things.  Fans pay for multiple nights in hotels and pray for a win.  And, they all do this to just get to the next day, which has four FRESH teams waiting to battle.  Awesome.

And still, ANOTHER four FRESH teams wait two days out.  I love it.  The Big East Tournament is the best conference tournament in division I basketball...period. At this point, Villanova looks like the team that can survive the first three days.

Big East Tournament Second Round Predictions:

UConn and West Virginia start the Big East Tournament day at noon.  Sigh.  It would make sense to flip the USF game time with this game time, but so it goes.  Two senior NYC guards, Darryl Bryant and Kevin Jones, should run the show and stop UConn.  The mountaineers cruise to a comfortable 4 possession win.

Pittsburgh has no chance against Georgetown.  World--meet Jason Clark.  A close game becomes a Hoya 16+ win.  Done. 

Louisville and Rick Pitino's white suit get it done and erase Seton Hall's outburst.  Kyle Kuric goes off and this game is over within 8 minutes of the second half.  Pitino is Too Sexy.


USF faces off with Villanova.  We all have to root against the soft schedule of USF and yell "over-rated" at the top of our lungs.  Do it. Villanova played one hell of a second half in the first round and look like they can make a nice little run.

A Tuesday first round series sets up a survive and advance to JUST get to a second round day.  The Big East Tournament is so intriguing because of the pedigree of the league.  The plethora of bubble teams that need a win or two to  scrap their way into the NCAA tournament all get a chance to make or break their bubble BEFORE the Big East Tournament quarterfinals.  Awesome.

I went 2-2 with my first round picks.  Villanova and Pittsburgh definitely surprised me.  Could they be this year's Big East Tournament story?  Regardless, round two should be a better day with closer games. 

Next Play

Basketball taught me to quickly move on from making  mistakes.  Within the game, there is always the emphasis on the next play. 

Don't dwell.

Don't over think.

Don't let it get to you.

Be confident. 

Be ready to make the next play.

As coaches, we always yell, "next play! Next Play!  NEXT PLAY!"  to shake our players out of their funk and get them moving onto the next moment.  

In high school and college basketball,  I felt like this was easy.  I'm starting to grow unsure of myself, however, when I try to make the real world application.

Today I met with an English department colleague about an action my co-chair and I felt was unprofessional and detrimental to the team's morale.  This conversation did not go well.  My colleague quickly became defensive and argumentative thus preventing any chance of me learning about their perspective or this person listening to our perspective.

The only thing I could do was sift through the tone in search of the root of the behavior and leave her with a brief recap of our observation--that we felt her actions compromised the integrity of our team and we felt her decision was unprofessional. 

I know she heard me based on her reaction.  But did she listen to what was said? 

The script I rehearsed about other ways to handle the issue and to open myself up to be receptive of her perspective went right out the door.

As I debriefed with my co-chair, I could not stop myself from dwelling on the poor outcome.  What did I do wrong?  What could I have done to create a conversation rather than trigger the tirade?    I was ineffective and as a result, I contributed to the negativity beginning to swirl in our department by upsetting my colleague. 

I made a mistake.  But why can't I disengage and move on like I was always able to do in the game of basketball? 

I started watching the Syracuse/Cincinnati game and remembered how fast the game moved.  For every missed shot, foul, turnover, or blown assignment, that player was immediately thrust into another situation.  Another opportunity to be successful came within the next second.  Literally.

The school day ended  and now I have all this time to dwell on the day and my mistakes.   My next play my not come for another day, week, or month.  I don't have practice to go to tomorrow to work out the decision.  I don't have a coach breaking down film with me.  I just have me and my reflection. 

How will I know if I will be ready next time?