Diary Series: Chris Kreider, Asst. Coach - George Mason

There is no better way to usher in the New Year than with what makes College Basketball so special: conference play.  We are currently 4-0 in the CAA after a huge weekend that saw us earn an always tough road win at Old Dominion on Thursday and outlast a great Georgia State team on Saturday.  As expected, the CAA is shaping up to be one of the most competitive mid-major conferences in the country.

Most coaching staffs split up the college basketball season into three segments: the non-conference slate, conference action and the post-season play.  Each of these three seasons are planned for, calculated and evaluated uniquely.  Each season can affect next one, but the beauty of college basketball is that sometimes the third season can turn out to make and break a year all by itself.  This makes it absolutely crucial, that everyone remains “all in” at all times especially down the stretch, win or lose and no matter what may happen in the first two seasons!

Getting to the NCAA Tournament is the driving force and the number one goal that motivates every single Division I college basketball player and coach in the country.   To accomplish this goal, the most important characteristic is for a team to be playing their best basketball at the end of the second season and for that to carry-over into the third season when it really counts, when it becomes “win or go home”!  We all know that there is really no such tangible thing as “pressure”, but if there were, there would be a picture of the championship game of a conference tournament as a visual right beside it in the dictionary!

Each of the three seasons is important, but often overlooked in the middle of the first season (non-conference) and the second season (conference) is what could almost be considered a “half time” of sorts.  It is during the semester break that adjustments and improvements can be made, given the amount of extra time that is available with classes not in session.

Here at Mason, finals week for the fall semester finished up on Wednesday, December 18^th and classes do not resume for the spring semester until Monday, January 23^rd.   Ever since the pre-season, this block of time was circled on our calendar and was viewed almost as a “mini training camp” in the middle of our first season as a new staff with our new team. 

As a new staff, this break has been priceless.  By the time classes and finals ended, we had eight games and countless practices and individual workouts of data to evaluate and begin to look at the deficiencies that must be addressed in order to have the opportunity to accomplish our goals.  We have taken advantage of the extra time available during this break and placed a huge emphasis on individual instruction.  In addition to our normal team practice, we split up our team into groups of three or four and allocate 30-45 minutes a few times a week to work on shooting, footwork, ball handling, passing and the other specific details of each player’s game.   The semester break is always beneficial on the court, but especially so in our situation without having a lot of time with our full team on the floor together (due to injuries, etc.) early on this season.  This has been a crucial piece to the puzzle as we begin to establish an identity as we head into conference play. 

On the court, you begin to see a lot of progress.  Off the court, you also start to see signs of improved chemistry as relationships begin to grow stronger due to how much time is spent together as a team.  When class is not in session campus is quiet and there are limited distractions, which allows the team to spend a lot of extra time together off the court as well.

Happy New Year!  I look forward to checking back in with you in a few short weeks!

GO MASON!

Chris Kreider