December 29, 2011

Diary Series: Steve Henson, Asst. Coach - Oklahoma

Winning the last game before Christmas sure makes everything seem better.  That is exactly what we did on December 21^st.  We picked up a nice win at home over South Carolina State and then gave our guys 3½ days off.  Most of our players and staff were fortunate to get home for a few days.  We came back and had a real good practice on Christmas night.  Sometimes, players are a bit sluggish, mentally and physically, after a break.  However, our guys were ready to work and we really felt like we improved. 

Assistant coach Chris Crutchfield and I spent the 27^th and 28^th recruiting at several tournaments.  Today, Crutch and I fly to Cincinnati to join our team, for our game against the Bearcats.  We all return home on Friday and have a short turnaround, prior to playing Northwestern State at 2 pm Saturday, the 31st. 

That game on New Year’s Eve will be our final non-conference game, prior to heading into Big 12 action next week.  We start league play at Mizzou on Tuesday and then come home to Norman to play Kansas. 

This has been an extremely fun season to this point.  We have a terrific group of kids who want to work and who really get along very well.  We are playing pretty well on the offensive end and we have, surprisingly, been a very good rebounding team.  We have some work to do on the defensive end of the floor, but our guys are making progress.  They are really “buying in” to what we are trying to accomplish and being able to win a lot of games, helps them believe the message.  Currently, our record is 9-1, with several quality wins. 

Here are some recent observations:

-          Not sure I have ever seen anyone bruise a shin, playing basketball.  Yet, lots of players are starting to wear shin guards. 

-          Instant replay has made NFL games almost impossible to watch, so I was really excited to watch the NBA on Christmas.  Unfortunately, they went to the replay monitor less than three minutes into the game!    

-          Should teams foul, when they are up three points?  They almost always win if they do, but it does require some execution.  There have already been several games this year that have gone to overtime, because the leading team was unable to commit the foul.  Memphis would have won the national championship a couple of years ago, if they had been able to execute the foul at the end of that game. 

-          One of the most disrespectful acts in basketball is when a kid gets substituted out of the game and then refuses to shake the hand of his teammate, who extends his hand in support. 

-          Why do coaches have to tell their players to block out on free throws?  What else would the players be thinking about?  Prior to each free throw, both teams are arranged around the lane, in preparation to rebound the ball.  It really seems that the players should realize, at that point, that they are going to have to block out. 

Looking forward to another great semester in the classroom and in the Big 12 – Happy New Year!  Go SOONERS!

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