Just getting the final touches ready for Greece. Can't wait to get over there. We will be arriving in Greece tomorrow at 1:45pm after a connecting flight through Amsterdam. We should have the internet at the first hotel we are at but I'm not sure about the others. I'll try to keep everything updated as much as I can with the blog, pictures, and videos.
Here is our game schedule when we are over there.
May 26th - vs. Kalamata Basketball Club
May 31st - vs. Maroussi Basketball Club
June 1st - vs.Ilissiakos Academies Basketball Club
June 2nd - vs. Argonaut Basketball Club
Should be a great time.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Practices 5-6
I'd like to thank my loyal followers, your support has been tremendous in keeping this blog afloat in these tough economic times, all six of you.
Now onto Allen Iverson's favorite piece of basketball, practice. We had our fifth practice on Sunday right before our guys had their finals. It didn't exactly go the way we would've liked but at the same time half of our guys were sitting around on Saturday and Sunday helping out with a basketball tournament that we were hosting. We went for about an hour and a half just to get their legs going and make sure they were prepared for the main reason they actually came to college, school. It certainly is tough this time of the year to practice. It's really nice outside, finals are about to happen, and in the famous words of Noah Aguirre, "I like girls in sundresses."
Yesterday's practice was much better. Our guys were able to focus a little longer after being done with finals. Now it's just basketball. We went through a lot of stuff yesterday. At this point, we are nitpicking a lot with what we want. We have to be able to focus and make the right decisions and learn from our mistakes. Just a little thing like securing a loose ball instead of reaching for it or creating a little better angle to a make a post pass. Those little things could and have a made a difference in winning or losing a game. Ask Butler's guard about slowing up on a breakaway and getting blocked instead of two points. They ended up losing by two. That's life and basketball.
These ten practices have been great for me. I am starting to get a better grasp of our players and what each is capable of in a half court setting. Hopefully, I'll be able to get some "head coaching" experience in one game out in Greece. It would be extremely beneficial for me. We'll see how everything transpires out there. We finally got our opponents and I'll try to update everyone with who and when we are playing within the next couple of days.
Now onto Allen Iverson's favorite piece of basketball, practice. We had our fifth practice on Sunday right before our guys had their finals. It didn't exactly go the way we would've liked but at the same time half of our guys were sitting around on Saturday and Sunday helping out with a basketball tournament that we were hosting. We went for about an hour and a half just to get their legs going and make sure they were prepared for the main reason they actually came to college, school. It certainly is tough this time of the year to practice. It's really nice outside, finals are about to happen, and in the famous words of Noah Aguirre, "I like girls in sundresses."
Yesterday's practice was much better. Our guys were able to focus a little longer after being done with finals. Now it's just basketball. We went through a lot of stuff yesterday. At this point, we are nitpicking a lot with what we want. We have to be able to focus and make the right decisions and learn from our mistakes. Just a little thing like securing a loose ball instead of reaching for it or creating a little better angle to a make a post pass. Those little things could and have a made a difference in winning or losing a game. Ask Butler's guard about slowing up on a breakaway and getting blocked instead of two points. They ended up losing by two. That's life and basketball.
These ten practices have been great for me. I am starting to get a better grasp of our players and what each is capable of in a half court setting. Hopefully, I'll be able to get some "head coaching" experience in one game out in Greece. It would be extremely beneficial for me. We'll see how everything transpires out there. We finally got our opponents and I'll try to update everyone with who and when we are playing within the next couple of days.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Greece Trip Practices 1-4
Right now we are preparing for our upcoming trip to Greece. We are leaving May 24th and we get to play four games there and most importantly are given ten practices by the NCAA beforehand to get the guys in shape and formulate what we want to do. These practices are huge for our guys development for next year. We have ten guys returning and all of them have made significant changes to their body since the season ended.
We started practicing last Friday and needless to say it was sloppy. The NCAA handcuffs division 3 coaches by not letting us work out the guys like they do in d1 and d2. D3 guys are considered "true" student-athletes but those two hours we want to work them out is them playing video games and doing other things college students do. We were on the floor for a little over two hours and got a lot of things done. We changed our defense a little bit due to our personnel. We aren't going to get out the passing lanes like we have in the past. We want to take away penetration and then get back to shooters as much as can.
The talent level comparably speaking to my first year is night and day. We led the conference in scoring with just under 74 points a game. That is still not where we want to be but it's a start. We were second in the conference in field goal percentage defense at around 42%. Hopefully, as this group gets older and stronger our scoring will go up and our defense will get better.
Next year should be interesting because we will be extremely young going against a lot of senior laden teams in our conference. We will have one senior, Carl Hipp. Three juniors, Levi Wenrich, Brandon Rieg, and Matt Farb. We will have all of our freshmen class returning including All Freshmen Team members Noah Aguirre and Jordan Schmidt back. Other members of the rising sophomore class are Andy Voigt, Christian Taber, Victor Easter, and Charlie Choiniere.
As of right now we have six incoming freshmen coming in. Four local guys and two out of state players. We are still waiting to hear from a couple of others. We will wait and see.
We started practicing last Friday and needless to say it was sloppy. The NCAA handcuffs division 3 coaches by not letting us work out the guys like they do in d1 and d2. D3 guys are considered "true" student-athletes but those two hours we want to work them out is them playing video games and doing other things college students do. We were on the floor for a little over two hours and got a lot of things done. We changed our defense a little bit due to our personnel. We aren't going to get out the passing lanes like we have in the past. We want to take away penetration and then get back to shooters as much as can.
The talent level comparably speaking to my first year is night and day. We led the conference in scoring with just under 74 points a game. That is still not where we want to be but it's a start. We were second in the conference in field goal percentage defense at around 42%. Hopefully, as this group gets older and stronger our scoring will go up and our defense will get better.
Next year should be interesting because we will be extremely young going against a lot of senior laden teams in our conference. We will have one senior, Carl Hipp. Three juniors, Levi Wenrich, Brandon Rieg, and Matt Farb. We will have all of our freshmen class returning including All Freshmen Team members Noah Aguirre and Jordan Schmidt back. Other members of the rising sophomore class are Andy Voigt, Christian Taber, Victor Easter, and Charlie Choiniere.
As of right now we have six incoming freshmen coming in. Four local guys and two out of state players. We are still waiting to hear from a couple of others. We will wait and see.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Basketball Season Recruiting
Today I'm going to give you a listing of all the places that I went for games for this past high school season. I'm not going to give you names of the kids because it's a NCAA violation. The Hamline Basketball schedule is mixed in there in bold as well so you can get an idea of how busy we are during our season. If you look through the schedule you will notice that most Sundays are off, but not for the coaches and players. Sunday is usually a prep day for Monday's game, so we almost always have practice. Sunday is also a big day to catch up with recruiting.
Nov. 15 - vs. Elmhurst (IL)
Nov. 17 - vs. Northwestern (MN)
Nov. 29 - vs. Buena Vista (IA)
Dec. 2 - vs. Augsburg
Dec. 3 – Forest Lake
Dec. 4 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Dec. 5 - vs. Macalester
Dec. 7 - @ St. Olaf
Dec. 8 – Forest Lake
Dec. 10 – St. Anthony Village
Dec. 12 - @ Concordia-Moorhead
Dec. 15 – Academy of Holy Angels
Dec. 18 – Janesville Parker, WI
Dec. 21 – Wheeling Holiday Tournament, IL
Dec. 22 – Blaine
Dec. 29 - @ Cal Lutheran Tourney vs. Wheaton
Dec. 30 - @ Cal Lutheran Tourney vs. Cal Lutheran
Jan. 2 - vs. Carleton
Jan. 4 - @ Bethel
Jan. 5 – Forest Lake
Jan. 6 - vs. St. Mary's
Jan. 8 – Shakopee
Jan. 9 - @ Gustavus
Jan. 12 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 13 - vs. St. John's
Jan. 15 - St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 18 - vs. St. Thomas @ Macalester
Jan. 19 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 20 - @ Augsburg
Jan. 21 – Janesville Craig, WI
Jan. 22 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 23 - @ Macalester
Jan. 25 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 26 – Robbinsdale Cooper
Jan. 27 - vs. St. Olaf
Jan. 28 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 29 – Forest Lake
Jan. 30 - @ Carleton
Feb. 1 - vs. Concordia-Moorhead
Feb. 2 – St. Anges
Feb. 3 - vs. Bethel
Feb. 5 – Breck School
Feb. 6 - vs. Gustavus
Feb. 9 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Feb. 10 - @ St. Mary's
Feb. 16 – Zimmerman
White Bear Lake
Feb. 17 - @ St. John's
Feb. 18 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Feb. 19 – Academy of Holy Angels
Feb. 20 - vs. St. Thomas
Feb. 23 - MIAC Quarterfinal @ Carleton
Feb. 24 – Minnehaha Academy
Feb. 25 – Totino Grace
Feb. 26 – Shakopee
Feb. 27 – St. Anthony Village
Mar. 1 – Hill-Murray
Minnehaha Academy
Mar. 2 - Hastings
Mar. 5 – St. Thomas Academy
Mar. 10 – Holy Angels - Sectionals
Mar. 11 – Forest Lake - Sectionals
Mar. 12 – Hill-Murray - Sectionals
Mar. 13 – Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted - Sectionals
Mar. 16 – Arlington HS - Sectionals
Elk River HS - Sectionals
Mar. 18 – Kohl Center – WIAA States
Mar. 24 – Target Center – MSHSL States
Some practices that I attended were not included. One must remember that this is just my recruiting schedule and not the other coaches.
Nov. 15 - vs. Elmhurst (IL)
Nov. 17 - vs. Northwestern (MN)
Nov. 29 - vs. Buena Vista (IA)
Dec. 2 - vs. Augsburg
Dec. 3 – Forest Lake
Dec. 4 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Dec. 5 - vs. Macalester
Dec. 7 - @ St. Olaf
Dec. 8 – Forest Lake
Dec. 10 – St. Anthony Village
Dec. 12 - @ Concordia-Moorhead
Dec. 15 – Academy of Holy Angels
Dec. 18 – Janesville Parker, WI
Dec. 21 – Wheeling Holiday Tournament, IL
Dec. 22 – Blaine
Dec. 29 - @ Cal Lutheran Tourney vs. Wheaton
Dec. 30 - @ Cal Lutheran Tourney vs. Cal Lutheran
Jan. 2 - vs. Carleton
Jan. 4 - @ Bethel
Jan. 5 – Forest Lake
Jan. 6 - vs. St. Mary's
Jan. 8 – Shakopee
Jan. 9 - @ Gustavus
Jan. 12 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 13 - vs. St. John's
Jan. 15 - St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 18 - vs. St. Thomas @ Macalester
Jan. 19 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 20 - @ Augsburg
Jan. 21 – Janesville Craig, WI
Jan. 22 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 23 - @ Macalester
Jan. 25 – Minnehaha Academy
Jan. 26 – Robbinsdale Cooper
Jan. 27 - vs. St. Olaf
Jan. 28 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Jan. 29 – Forest Lake
Jan. 30 - @ Carleton
Feb. 1 - vs. Concordia-Moorhead
Feb. 2 – St. Anges
Feb. 3 - vs. Bethel
Feb. 5 – Breck School
Feb. 6 - vs. Gustavus
Feb. 9 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Feb. 10 - @ St. Mary's
Feb. 16 – Zimmerman
White Bear Lake
Feb. 17 - @ St. John's
Feb. 18 – St. Cloud Cathedral
Feb. 19 – Academy of Holy Angels
Feb. 20 - vs. St. Thomas
Feb. 23 - MIAC Quarterfinal @ Carleton
Feb. 24 – Minnehaha Academy
Feb. 25 – Totino Grace
Feb. 26 – Shakopee
Feb. 27 – St. Anthony Village
Mar. 1 – Hill-Murray
Minnehaha Academy
Mar. 2 - Hastings
Mar. 5 – St. Thomas Academy
Mar. 10 – Holy Angels - Sectionals
Mar. 11 – Forest Lake - Sectionals
Mar. 12 – Hill-Murray - Sectionals
Mar. 13 – Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted - Sectionals
Mar. 16 – Arlington HS - Sectionals
Elk River HS - Sectionals
Mar. 18 – Kohl Center – WIAA States
Mar. 24 – Target Center – MSHSL States
Some practices that I attended were not included. One must remember that this is just my recruiting schedule and not the other coaches.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
NABC All-District Team
Nice to see that there are people that actually have a clue. The NABC's All-District Teams came out and Carl Hipp was voted on a Second Team All-District member with fellow MIAC player Aaron Burtzel from St. John's. Tyler Nicolai from St. Thomas was voted First Team.
You can find the list by following this link on the NABC website. (It's a PDF file so it might take a while).
Also, congrats to Coach Mike Maker and his Williams College Ephs making the Final Four. Coach "Makes" worked with me at West Virginia and has been very instrumental in my coaching career.
You can find the list by following this link on the NABC website. (It's a PDF file so it might take a while).
Also, congrats to Coach Mike Maker and his Williams College Ephs making the Final Four. Coach "Makes" worked with me at West Virginia and has been very instrumental in my coaching career.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
D3hoops.com All Region
D3hoops.com All Region teams were announced yesterday. Congrats to all the players on the first, second, and third teams (like the MIAC should do it). West Region teams are here. I'm just going to go out on a limb here (insert sarcasm). A few of these selections are complete jokes. John Fraase from Concordia is a good player and good enough to be All-Conference but isn't an All-Region player let alone a 2nd team, ahead of our conference's MVP, Tyler Nicolai. I don't think Fraase is even the best player on his team let alone a top ten player in the West region.
Are they trying to say that neither Ray Brown or Carl Hipp aren't one of the best 15 players in the West? What a disservice to these kids. On top of that, Aaron Burtzel, second leading vote-getter for MVP of the MIAC isn't on the list either. Come on people, have a clue.
At least they got one thing right on Freshmen (not First year) of the Year Chris Palmer. He was a stud for them and clearly should be awarded.
Are they trying to say that neither Ray Brown or Carl Hipp aren't one of the best 15 players in the West? What a disservice to these kids. On top of that, Aaron Burtzel, second leading vote-getter for MVP of the MIAC isn't on the list either. Come on people, have a clue.
At least they got one thing right on Freshmen (not First year) of the Year Chris Palmer. He was a stud for them and clearly should be awarded.
Friday, March 5, 2010
MIAC Awards
The MIAC awards just came out the other day and was filled with Hamline players. Both Ray Brown and Carl Hipp were All Conference. Carl was also All Defensive Team. Jordan Schmidt and Noah Aguirre were two of the five guys on the All Freshmen Team. You can look at the rest of the awards here.
Based off the votes, both Ray and Carl would be First Team All League but unfortunately, the league basically decides anyone who is nominated for All Conference gets at least Honorable Mention. What a joke that is. There should be a First Team, Second Team, and a Third Team and that's it.
There is also a Sportsmanship Award that goes to one player from each team. In the famous words of Jack Byrnes (Robert DeNiro) in Meet the Fockers, "I didn't know they gave out 9th place ribbons."
Based off the votes, both Ray and Carl would be First Team All League but unfortunately, the league basically decides anyone who is nominated for All Conference gets at least Honorable Mention. What a joke that is. There should be a First Team, Second Team, and a Third Team and that's it.
There is also a Sportsmanship Award that goes to one player from each team. In the famous words of Jack Byrnes (Robert DeNiro) in Meet the Fockers, "I didn't know they gave out 9th place ribbons."
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