Tuesday, February 15, 2011

(A)(S) Journal Entry #1 [Boy's Basketball Varsity]

           It's been roughly 2 weeks in the basketball season and so far, our team's been making steady progress. We had our first game 2 weeks ago but it was against each other. The game was split into 20 minute halves. On the first half, Dr G coached the team I was in, together with Jimmy, Jaffet, Kevin, Jack, Stin, AJ, and Kairen. On the second half, we switched coaches, and Coach Crudo was the one coaching us. Sadly we lost both halves but we did put up a good fight considering that the other team had a lot more experience that us. In our first game I realized that I needed to work on my passing and my turnovers because I had about 8 turnovers that game. After that game, I took practice more seriously and really focused on making my shots, and making good decisions on the court.
           Our second game was last week, on Wednesday against a local school from Olongapo. I wasn't sure on how old they were as most of them looked like they were in their mid 20's. Most of their players were tall and their centers were all over 6 feet. However, I didn't let this get in my head because I knew that basketball cannot be won merely by the size and height of the players, it's all about determination, heart, and how smart you play on the court. I was really pumped for this game as this was our first official game against another team. As we finished our warm-ups and stretching, Coach called me over along with Javier, Adam, David, and Kevin to start off the game. I was honored to be a starter, and I didn't want to give Coach a reason to take me off the court. The game started off fast paced, but no one was scoring. We played good defense, but we couldn't score on the other end. Around 3 minutes in the first quarter, I scored a 3 pointer which gave the game its first few points. After that, the other team started retaliating, and had a few runs. By the end of the first quarter, we were down around 10 points. Throughout the rest of the game, it was starting to get obvious that our team was filled with a lot of talent, but we weren't playing together. I could also tell that a lot of us were really nervous as some players were playing their first basketball game. The other team continued to drift away and by the end of the 3rd quarter we were down 30. I was actually a bit disappointed and confused as Coach kept subbing in and out players and we never got the chance to get a nice flow because before we could, there were switches made. I did, however, understand why Coach was doing this. It was because he wanted to find out who plays well with who and of course to give a chance to other people and give them a chance to increase their experience in the sport. On the 4th quarter, we had a good 10-0 run because of our defense and because we started making our shots. In the end we lost the game, but our team learned a lot. I was especially frustrated of my turnovers and missed easy shots. In the next game, my goal is to have no more than 5 turnovers, and to get a double double. From what I remember I had 5 assists and 11 points and I have to improve those numbers. I also hope to get to the line more in the next game and score through free throws. Hopefully we continue to get better and come ISAC, we'll have a much more fluid transition and have better team chemistry. After that game, everyone seemed to want to take practice even more seriously than before, which was good. I can't wait until the Baguio tournament on March 4-6.

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