NCDS: Russell Springmann, Asst. Coach - Texas

It's hard to believe it's the middle of February and we have already played 2/3 of our conference games. Our team has done a tremendous job focusing on daily improvement and taking one game at a time. They have embraced a workmanlike mentality and have consistently given great effort in practice and games.

Our practices have shortened in duration but certainly not intensity. We emphasize fundamentals everyday and still start every practice with passing, catching, finishing around the rim, and defending the ball. In fact, our players feel like the first 20 minutes of practice is the most demanding. After our core fundamental offensive drills we break up into post and perimeter  groups and work on individual improvement. Our players enjoy this breakdown because it usually involves 1 on 1 and/or 2 on 2 and is very competitive. Following our skill development, we will work on our transition game and then breakdown our halfcourt offense: 2 on 2, 3 on 3, 4 on 4, then 5 on 5. Free throws are mixed in between segments to get our players to take these shots when they are tired and as close to a game situation as possible.

Our team continues to grow closer everyday. The leadership on this team has been outstanding as every player has been willing to help a teammate, either during practice or in the heat of a game. Every member of this team truly has each other's backs and as a result, these guys love to play with each other.

Dogus Balbay, Jai Lucas, Matt Hill, and Gary Johnson have provided outstanding senior leadership. Each has their own style of leading, some more vocal than others, but they collectively make a positive difference for their teammates and make sure everyone stays focused on the process. Lex Wangmene brings energy and effort and leads by example while Jordan Hamilton and J'Covan Brown continue to grow into leadership roles and talk with their teammates more. Finally, our freshmen Cory Joseph and Tristan Thompson are mature beyond their years. They compete everyday and have a passion to play the game. This group embraces each other's strengths and differences and stays together.

Our season to date has been successful because of our leadership, focus, and effort. As we come down the stretch in conference play, we hope to maintain the mindset of playing every possession and concentrating on daily improvement. If we can do these things, we feel like the season is just beginning and we have a lot of basketball left to play!!

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