The 5 on 4 Advantage - How to get it......

I watched parts of the Gonzaga- Oklahoma State game last night on ESPN.

GAME OUTCOME:

OSU held a 37-36 halftime lead, and sophomores Jame Anderson & Obi Manuel0 along with "grandpa" Terrel Harris led the Cowboys in battling even steven with the Zags for 34 minutes.

OSU held a 63-62 lead with just over 6 minutes left before Gonzaga erupted on a 15-2 run to put the game away. Gonzaga seemed to turn up the defensive intensity at this point and OSU may have ran out of gas defensively, especially inside against the deeper and stronger Zags.

OSU point guard and leader of this years squad, Byron Eaton [E-tahn] dished out 10 assists, but was just 2-15 from the field and zilch for 7 from the 3 pt line. The POKES were rewarded with a consolation game against the nation's 3rd ranked Michigan State squad tonight at 7 pm.

OK... the 5 on 4 Advantage. What???

Freshmen 5'10" OSU guard Keiton Page is undersized AND is limited athletically with his jumping and quickness. However, he understands the game, and how to utilize the assets he does possess.

One of the top two scorers in Oklahoma High School basketball history [I can't remember if he or former teammate Rotnei Clark hold the all time scoring record.], Page has a knack for creating space against opponents who are typically taller, quicker and better overall athletes.

Deceptive moves, with and without the ball, enable Page to create space and either make a shot or create correct passing angles to assist teammates with entry passes.

Last night, Page utilized his shot fake on three different occasions against the Zags to propel OSU into 5 on 4 advantage situations. All 3 fakes were from behind the 3 pt arc, and the "move" only needs 3 variables to work for you.

1- You have to have earned the respect of your opponent that you CAN knock down the 3 pt shot. Obviously if you knock down 3(s) in the game you are playing, or , if your reputation and/or stats have provent that you are a capable long range bomber

2- Your fake has to be realistic. ie; you must LOOK like you are actually in prep mode to launch your shot.

3- Defender must be running at, or manned up with you, and mentally is thinking of "he is NOT going to get this shot off uncontested!"

Against Gonzaga, the Zags defender was hustling over towards Page when he initiated his "fake" shot, three times the Zags defender left his feet, and all three times Page penetrated past the defender to put OSU into the 5 on 4 situation.

Typcially, Keiton will launch the shot himself at that point, but due to his teammates this year being just a bit better than the Pawnee Bears teammates he's played with in high school, Page opted to kick OUT or IN for potential assists. He did record assists on two of his passes, and third he should have but a missed 8 foot shot kept him from the assist.

Page used the same manuever against Tulsa and North Texas, and has no problem with shooting himself.

I'll add that Keiton did an excellent job defending point guard Jeremy Pargo of Gonzaga, who is both quicker and much stronger than Page.

DEVELOPING YOUR SHOT FAKE:

If your shot fake is too quick, then the defender can't see it and react to it. So slow it down. Think .....slow shot fake, but quick drive.

As you develop your shot fake, don't try to do too much. Keep it simple.
Just take your normal shot motion, and stop short before the ball gets to your nose. Don't raise up and come out of your triple attack position or you’ll lose the ability to be explosive.

Try it in front of a mirror and see if you can sell yourself with your own shot fake.

Now, the shot fake should go no higher than your nose for two reasons.
First, you don’t want to block your vision of the goal or the rest of the players.
Second, a high shot fake slows down your drive. I don't care how quick your feet are. In order to drive, you must put the ball on the ground. So you can't begin to go by the defender until the ball has moved from the top of your shot fake, back down to hip level, and then to the floor with your first step. A high shot fake means the ball has to travel a long way and that takes a longer time. A shorter shot fake means you can initiate that first step quicker, and it's the FIRST STEP when you BEAT your opponent.

How to Fast Break - Loyola Marymount

Thanks to Eric Musselman for this superb fast break system. [by the way, if you haven't been to Eric's blog, check it out. Basketball mixed with inspiration. Applies to not only sports, but to life itself!] Although it doesn't guarantee basketball success, if you have the personnel to run, and you work on this fast break, your team will definitely get opportunities to score!!!

The Loyola Marymount break is predicated on striking QUICK. After a made shot, your best 3 pt shooter streaks the right lane until spotting up at the 3 pt line, turns and is in "ready" position; a forward sprints the left lane, and at ft line extended angles toward basket; enough of my interpretation, just click here to plainly see it.

Friday Night: Lights are on OUTSIDE and INSIDE

Welcome back to Oklahoma High School sports on FRIDAY night.
Yep, the lights are on at many stadiums around the state. And half of the seniors on the nearly frozen tundra, will be making their last appearance in an organized tackle football game. Many a tear will be shed, as the great plays of tonight, turn into the miracle plays described years from now.

"Yassir, it wuz ma last game I ever done played; we wuz behind North Cherokee Institute of Gamblers Anonymous by 6 points and had only 3 seconds on the clock when Billy Joe Bob called our last time out."

"I scrambled around the backfield like a greased pig in a Jimmie Dean sausage revival until Clarence, all 6 ft 8" of him, started wavin his hands like he was landing a plane. Two of them Cherokee Gamblers were hanging on him but I threw the ball with all I had....and Clarence stiff armed both of them boyz with ONE hand, while he caught the ball with the other...and we SHOULD have advanced into the next round."

"But, it turns out that old stupid ass Ben Jenkins, who was a dang National Honor Society dude, and valedictorian, well, Jenkins was off side and we lost the game."

Back to reality.
Sorry, I did that tangent thing again.

Under the outside lights in cold blustery conditions, the football boys are lining up to see who advances to the next round.
Indoors, defending State Champ Memorial Chargers face off against former Tulsa Golden Hurricane Lester Johnson and his Nathan Hale Rangers. Cameron Downing is a junior postman who will be getting lots of looks from college scouts.

Other games dot the city landscape.

Let's see....... we predict both UNION and JENKS advance to the seminfinals. Terrell Williams, Howard Scarborough, Jarred Wise, and Tracey Moore are some basketball players that have Celtic ties. Two teams from the West, Mustang and Midwest City are undefeated.........Broken Arrow might just pull off the upset over there in Mustang. A former CELTIC, Sam Moses, anchors the BA Tigers defense. Sam was a gamer. At the time, quite short and stocky, he was a WALL. A BRICK WALL.

Let the games begin.

One more thought about the game....OSU vers TU

I have never coached a game on the college level; I've coached enough to know how much I do NOT know about coaching; with that said, with the right assistant coaches, I would welcome the opportunity to coach on that level. OSU continually worked the pick and roll against Tulsa University. It appeared like the Hurricane were helpless against this most basic basketball play. I'm guessing you could find multiple strategies to defend the pick-and-roll if you know how to google. Let's see, Oklahoma State ran the most basic play in basketball COUNTLESS times, and the Golden Hurricane never made any adjustments. Or at least it didn't appear they adjusted.

John Wooden

http://tulsaceltics.blogspot.com/2005_01_01_archive.html

Some reflections and observations from Coach John Wooden.

At UCLA, he won 10 National Championships in his last 12 years. A record that may last forever......
wow.
Incredible.
And he won 7 ,,, SEVEN , consecutive NCAA Championships.
1.2.3.4.5.6.7
Oh my gosh! Truly amazing.

The only thing more amazing was when I heard him speak at Tulsa University's Friends of Finance about 3 or 4 years ago. The Reynolds center floor was packed. I believe 94 years old at the time, Coach had to sit while he delivered his talk. He was one of the most eloquent speakers I've ever experienced. Complete sentences. Wonderful messages and insights. He spoke of his Pyramid of Success. http://http://www.entrepreneur.com/management/leadership/article176282.html

He is truly a great man!

...here is a short list of thoughts from him [in blue and gold in honor of THE COACH!]



Losing is only temporary. You must study it, learn from it, and try hard not to lose the same way again.

Fear no opponent. Respect every opponent.

Remember, it's the perfection of the smallest details that make big things happen.

Hustle makes up for many mistakes.

Be quick, but don't hurry.

Understand that the harder you work, the more luck you will have.

Remember that there is no substitute for hard work and careful planning.

Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.

Talent is God-given: be humble. Fame is man-given: be thankful. Conceit is self-given: be careful.

=========================
On a personal note, John Wooden is one of my heroes.

John Wooden. A living legend.

Oklahoma State Destroys Hurricane....dribbles

#23 TU's Jerome Jordan battles for ball with OSU's Terrell Harris.........

Afew dribbles......that I thought about while sleeping.....

Travis Ford showed ME a little "sumpin sumpin" about this years Cowboy squad. The Pokes completely frustrated Doug Wojcek's Tulsa University team with their superb quickness and athleticism. Terrel Harris plucked the ball away repeatedly from Tulsa's two gunners, Hurtt and Andrews. The Hurricane had 15 turnovers in the first 14 minutes of the game!! Ridiculous.

A 20-1 run basically ended the game in the first half, although Tulsa had one 2nd half spurt that cut the lead down close to single digits. But Ford put his quickest group in, applied full court pressure, and quickly elevated the advantage to back over 20 points.

Ben Uzoh, who Wojcek was forced to move to the point guard position [due to BAD recruiting decisions?] was the only Hurricane player to not succumb to OSU's relentless pressuring defense. Uzoh is a special player.

It was said that at least 7 NBA scouts were in attendance last night in Gallagher Iba arena to see Tulsa's Jerome Jordan perform. Hmmm.... well, he sure didn't "make himself a million" last night. His lack of strength in his hands and body were magnified with OSU's aggressive interior defense. They say you can't coach HEIGHT, and he definitely possesses that,, and will undoubtedly make a nice living "performing" basketball. I just wonder if it will be in Europe as opposed to stops in the USA like , Ok City, Dallas, Chicago, NY, LA, Philly etc.

On the bright side for the Cane, Tulsa backup center Steven Idlet was quite impressive both offensively [8 pts on 4 of 7 shooting] and on the boards. I wonder if Coach Wojcek might consider playing him in the same lineup with Jordan. That could be interesting......

A highlight reel powerjam by 6'6" California freshmen Joe Richard {Re-Shard} was very impressive and a highlight for the Hurricane. Going right down the lane from the keyhole he tomahawk slammed over an OSU player and displayed athleticness reminiscent of Eric Coley, a member of Bill Self's Elite 8 team. I look forward to watching REEE-SHARD in the Reynolds wrap-house.

Back to the NBA..... OSU's slimmed down version of last year's chunky point guard Byron Eaton, may have earned a few hundred thousand dollars by virtue of his performance last night. The still thick Eaton displayed not only his strength and quickness but his improving ability to stylishly assist his teammates while opponents converge on his very difficult to stop drives to the hole. He had 26 points and 7 assists on the night.

Daniel Orton -commits to Kentucky ~ Surprised?

When Daniel Orton committed to spend the next four years....err,,, let's start over, when Daniel Orton committed to spend next season at Kentucky, it was NOT a surprise to those who were aware of certain "speaking engagement" payments that were made to Daniel's father, Larry, who also happens to Coach Daniel's AAU team. He received $4,800 for 19 speaking engagements at Wildcat summer camps. Oh, remember Terrence Crawford? Oklahoma HS superstar who played for the Eddie Sutton at Oklahoma State, well, he happens to be the step brother of Daniel Orton. Guess what,,,,, brother Terrence was compensated $ 1,950 for speaking to Kentucky basketball campers.

Ya gotta love Billy G!!! Billy the kid...... Jim Cox, who runs the highly successful Hardwood Productions basketball operations befriended Gillespie when he assisted Bill Self at the University of Tulsa. Cox has stayed friends with Billy G and raves about his recruiting abilities. So does Self. He has proven that "rebuilding" a basketball program can be done in ONE recruiting year. If you don't believe me, google Billy Gillespie UTEP and see what he did there. Then it was on to Texas A&M.

Critics argue it's little more than well-couched payola done within the rules. By hiring Larry Orton, Kentucky basically paid for Daniel's camp appearances, allowing the Wildcats to bring a top recruit on campus before he was allowed an official visit.

"It shouldn't be allowed," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said, "but it is."

Even Gillispie understands the criticism.
"I think the rule -- I've been in favor of the rule being changed for a long time," Gillispie said about being allowed to pay coaches to speak at his camps. "I think that's best for everyone."

But the NCAA has not changed the rule. [Don't they have enough rules already?]

Larry Orton insists that Kentucky did nothing to sway his son's decision. He says he was also paid to speak at camps at Oklahoma State and Kansas and Daniel attended elite camps at Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor and Connecticut.

Orton is an intriguing project; athletic, graceful, yet his mental toughness and offensive tools need drastic improvement if he is to move on to the LEAGUE in 2,3 , 4 or 5 years.

I just found this little tidbit from Greg Swaim who has a recruiting blog on his website.

Back in April, 2008, he made this statement:
"Carl has a coaching offer from Memphis and is just waiting on the same offer from KU before making a decision. The asking price (that Cal offered) is $250K per year and if OSU wanted him could get him for that as well...UNC will not make that deal."

Wow! $ 250,000 for assisting Calipari!! Let's see if it pans out..


Kentucky had a tough, tough matchup last night at #1 North Carolina.
Things can only get easier Coach!
Goodluck Billy G!!

Edison Eagle Hoopstar's Smooth Evolution

The first time I saw Kevin Pritchard, the 6'3" basketball phenom was quickly making a name for himself in Tulsa, Oklahoma at various high school gyms in the area. Uncanny jumping ability, combined with a deft display of basketball skills, coupled with new Eagle Head Coach John Phillips and Archie Marshall enabled the Pritchard led Edison squad to a 2nd place finish in the Oklahoma State championship tournament.

Pritchard and Marshall both earned scholarships to Kansas University where Pritchard was the starting point guard on the Jayhawks team that defeated the Oklahoma Sooners for the 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship. As my father [former Tulsa University sports broadcaster Len Morton] will quickly remind you, the Sooners had won the two previous showdowns with the underdog Jayhawks.

While at KU, he played under head men's basketball coach Larry Brown, and then-assistant coach Gregg Popovich, now the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs.
He was drafted by the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association in 1990. He had a six-year NBA career spanning five teams--the Warriors, the Boston Celtics, the Philadelphia 76ers, the Miami Heat, and the Washington Bullets. He also holds the distinction of being the first player signed in the history of the Vancouver Grizzlies in 1995, although he was released before ever getting an opportunity to play a game for them. Pritchard's playing career also included a stint with Caceres C.B. in Spain and Pfizer Reggio Calabria in Italy in 1993-1994. He retired from playing in 1998.

Fast forward............Pritchard goes from San Antonio scout and was then named as General Manager for the Portland Trailblazers.

Modeling their team after the Spurs, the Portland Blazers have a bright future, built on a foundation of character, according to SAS coach Gregg Popovich:
"They are way more than just on the right track. I think they're doing what good organizations that want to be successful are doing. A lot of things begin with character. Portland has gotten a crew of guys in (Portland) who have that.They understand priorities ... and care more about the group than individuals. That has to happen. It doesn't matter how much talent you have. If you don't have (character), it's not gonna fit together, because all the pieces have to fit."

Coach Popovich credits Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard the former KU guard and a former Spurs scout, for the progress in Portland:
"We knew from the beginning that he had a feel for the game. He has a passion, is competitive and smart.. He wasn't a superstar by any stretch. Often, it's those guys who know how the pieces fit and how role players have to fit around the stars. For all those reasons, you just knew he was going to be successful, given the opportunity."

A few other names that bring back exciting and fond memories~~

Waymon Tisdale, Mark Price, Steve Hale, Kevin Pritchard, Winford Boynes, Joey Robinson, Blake Griffin, Keiton Paige, Rotnei Clark.........