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Cavs Legion GC pulls out a nail-biter as they top Mavs Gaming, 67-66.
The best players in 2K gaming go pro with the launch of the inaugural NBA 2K League. Watch live all season long at Twitch.TV/NBA2KLeague. [This Highlight Video Reel And More Below]
We ask our players to give their best effort every single day they walk on the court, field or track. We say things like, "If you aren’t going to give me your best today, then don’t come at all", or "When you step inside these lines it is go time, leave everything else going on in your life outside." Constantly reminding them to be prepared to get better in practice, but as a coach, are you orchestrating the team to get the most out of the day as well?
To obtain the excellence you demand, there must be a system in place that helps your athletes succeed. Without the right system it is like demanding greatness from a powerlifter, but only training them with elastic bands and yoga balls. It won’t work. Your team may work hard, but it is up to you to train them smart. Here are a few tips that will help you get the most out of your team practices.
Competition
At some level, every player in their respective sport has a love for competition. It is the driving force that takes them to the next level, and the characteristic we all want to see in our players. You can have them do all of the drills you see in instructional sports videos during the off season, but team practice is when you fuel that competitive fire.
They work on individual drills to develop their skills regularly, but practice is the only time where the competition of a game can be simulated. It could be as simple as one on one defensive back drills, competitive ball security drills or full blown scrimmaging. Whatever the drill may be, the more you include competition, the more your players will be fully engaged in practice.
Adding more competition gives both the players and coaches a long list of benefits. Players can see how much their individual skill work has improved as well as gain confidence in practice from game-like situations.
As a coach, you can assess the skill-set each player brings to the team and the toughness they will exhibit in the games. We have all heard of the “practice player”, the kid who wins every basketball shooting contest, but as soon as the game starts they disappear. That has a lot to do with the psychology of the player, but the constant simulation of a real game can help them break through the mental barrier tremendously.
Practice without competition is not only boring for your players, but it lacks the one key substance every player and coach thrives off of. Add more competition to practice and you will see a greater sense of urgency, focus and drive amongst your players.
Switch It Up
If you plan to do the same drills, every practice, every day, then you are cheating your players out of getting better. Repetition is key for skill development, remembering plays and understanding the game as a whole. Yes, I agree. However, coming into a practice with the same setup as the day before will become extremely monotonous to your players.
The last thing you want is for your players to lose concentration and begin to “go through the motions”. At some point, they will learn the practice schedule and exploit it because they are not being challenged.
In every sport, there are a plethora of drills, practice schemes, competitions and techniques to choose from. Why not switch it up? Keep your players on their toes and ready to perform for you day in and day out.
As a coach, we like to stick to our philosophies and what we feel works best. That should not keep you from being able to develop practices that fit the same ideals, but with a unique structure.
It is similar to having our players walk into a classroom every day, with the same lesson plan, same structure, and the same practice exam, but expecting them to perform differently on the test. Not going to happen!
Get creative and use your expertise to continue to challenge your players in unique ways. Keep your philosophy but bring it to them with different points of view; you never know which player you might get through to that day.
Build Chemistry
Sorry coach, as much as you want to, you can’t compete for your players. When your team is in the game, it is on their shoulders to work together and come back with the win. Practice is the best time to build that team chemistry.
First, you must develop the camaraderie and build the trust. Put your team through drills that require them to work together to succeed. These drills can be in practice, but can also be incorporated into the weight room, on the track or with team bonding events. It doesn’t matter where these activities take place as long as a strong foundation is established.
Once they have the trust, it is your job to test it. Put them in situations that might arise during the game and see how each player reacts. Do they come together? Do they start to point fingers? Who is the leader?
In team sports, it is crucial to understand the identity of your team and which players will be an extension of you during the game. Building the chemistry and testing it during practice will be your greatest indicator.
Conclusion
Team practice is crucial for your success in pre-season training as well as during the season. The teams who are efficient and can obtain the most benefit from every workout are often the ones who remain on top. Use competition, creativity and trust building drills as much as possible to secure your spot with the best of them.
Relive the before, during and after of the Cleveland Cavaliers' win over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, featuring 46 points from LeBron James.
(MEN'S Bb FULL STORY) Livingstone Blue Bears Top Bowie State Bulldogs 70-63
SALISBURY, N.C.
- It's been up and down for the Bowie State University men's basketball
season over the past week as the Bulldogs dropped a tough 70-63 road
decision
at Livingstone College in New Trent Gymnasium on Wednesday night. The setback puts the Bowie State record at 7-10 overall and 2-4 in the league.
Sophomore Saiquan
Jamison led the Bulldogs with his sixth double-double of the year with
14 points and 11 rebounds. Joining Jamison in double figure scoring were
sophomore Cameron Hayes (Upper Marlboro, Md.)
with 11 points and seniors Dayshawn Wells (Baltimore, Md.) and Ahmaad
Wilson (Baltimore, Md.) with 10 points each. Senior Omari George came
off the Bowie State bench to add nine points and six rebounds.
Neither team shot
the ball particularly well on the night with Bowie State going 20-of-53
from the field (37.7 percent) compared to 23-of-65 (35.4 percent) for
Livingstone. Both team were pretty even at the
charity stripe. Livingstone made 22-of-30 (73.3 percent) while Bowie
State made 21-of-31 (67.7 percent). The Bowie State Bulldogs won the
battle on the glass, out-rebounding the Blue Bears 45-39 but committed
22 turnovers.
Bowie State held a 26-24 lead at the break but relinquished that lead at the 16:26 mark of the second half following a jumper by Livingstone’s Rashard Todd.
Bowie State regained a brief lead (31-30) after a pair of Wilson free throws. The games sixth tie occurred at the 11:34 mark when BSU’s Jamison made one of two free throws.
From that point, Livingstone used a 14-5 run to take a 53-44 advantage with 7:21 left in the game.
The Bulldogs outscored the Blue Bears 11-4 over the next four minutes to pull within two at 57-55 at the 3:06 mark but would get no closer.
Livingstone (5-6 /
3-2 CIAA) played 16 players in the contest and Malik Smith was the only
player to score in double figures with 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from
the field. Ramel Belfield came off the Blue
Bears bench to lead the team in rebounds with six. The next closest
scoring players were Todd and Cameron Buchannon with eight points apiece
and Austin Walker with seven points.
The Blue Bears had
advantages in points in the paint (34-26), points off turnovers (18-12),
second chance points (22-17) and bench points (47-28).
Bowie State men’s basketball will look to get back into the win column on Saturday (January 13), but will face a tough Lincoln (Pa.) University team on the road at 4 p.m.
(WOMEN;S Bb FULL STORY) Bowie State Bulldogs Win Fifth Straight with 74-62 Road Victory at Livingstone
SALISBURY, N.C. - Bowie State University women's basketball won its fifth game in a row on Wednesday evening, downing Livingstone College by a final count of 74-62
and improved their record to 12-3 overall and 5-1 in conference play.
Bulldogs senior Kyah
Proctor (Capital Heights, Md.) led all scorers with 24 points while
teammate Sade Chatman added 17 points in the win. Redshirt junior Pere
Alexander (Baltimore, Md.) and sophomore Kyaja
Williams (Baltimore, Md.) recorded eight points each and senior Kiara
Colston chipped in seven points for Bowie State. Williams and Alexander
ripped down 13 and 12 rebounds respectively.
Bowie State held a slim 15-13 after one quarter of action and carried a 32-21 advantage into halftime.
The Livingstone Blue
Bears led most of the first quarter until a Colston layup with 10
seconds left that gave Bowie State all the lead they needed.
Bowie State
outscored Livingstone 9-3 over the first five minutes of the second
quarter and reached a double-digit lead of 28-18 following a Chatman
jumper in the paint. Both team went cold over the next three
minutes with Livingstone’s Kayla Searcy ending the drought with a
jumper with 1:15 left in the first half.
The Bulldogs turned it up in the third quarter, leading by a game-high 15 points (54-39) at the 3:25 mark which allowed Bowie State a 60-48 cushion after three quarters.
Livingstone (5-10 / 0-5 CIAA) mounted a rally late in the final period, behind the play of Searcy. A 3-pointer with 3:48 left pulled Livingstone within six (66-60), and at the 3:04 mark Searcy knocked down
a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 66-62, but would get no closer.
Searcy led three
Livingstone players in double figures with 22 points while Asia Green
and Nina Robinson tallied 10 points apiece in the loss. Searcy was also
the Blue Bears’ top rebounder with eight to go
along with a game-high four assists.
Livingstone shot
32.8 percent (20-of-61) from the field and 21.7 percent (5-of-23) from
the three-point line while making 17-of-26 (65.4 percent) shots from the
free throw line.
Bowie State ended
the game shooting 32.5 percent from the field (26-of-80). The 80
attempts was a season-high for the Bulldogs. Bowie State made 20-of-30
free throws (66.7 percent) and tied its season-high
in rebounds with 54.
The Bulldogs travel to Lincoln (Pa.) University this Saturday (January 13) for the CIAA Norther Division opener for both teams. Game time in the Manuel Rivero Hall is set for 2 p.m.
Hi, I'm Jack and I attend BSHS, class of 2019. As a freshman last year
going into the winter season, I decided I would like to try a winter
sport -- diving seemed like fun. So I came out for the team with no
experience in diving, and by some crazy stroke of luck I edged myself
into qualifying for the state competition...where I promptly bombed my
first two dives and was eliminated early. However, this year I'm back
for more and have qualified once again for the state competition, to be
held on March 25th (Update: 15th place).
Above is my list I have been preparing this year. Included are some of
my better dives in each category (that I happened to record) in the
order that I do them in competition. Every dive is a work in progress.
Interested in contacting me? My email is jtstill818@gmail.com.
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