I like sports a lot. I'm a big fan. Competition brings out peoples true colors, and it's always fun to watch.
The sport that this post will concern is women's college basketball. I absolutely love women's basketball. It's not all about athleticism and out jumping the other guy, it's about technique and form and team chemistry and adhering to offensive and defensive schemes. It exemplifies the basic fundamentals of sports. I'll discuss this more at a later time.
Right now I'm going to focus on something my Mom and I were talking about today. Having lived in Connecticut (My Mom still lives there), we both follow the UCONN women's basketball team. This spectacular team, coached by the brilliant Geno Auriemma, is the best college team in the country this year and is consistently one of the top teams in the nation. Sure, one can attribute this to its great players, like Maya Moore or Renee Montgomery. One can attribute this to the fact that it plays in the Big East, the best conference for women's basketball. But what this season for the UCONN Huskies has shown me is that their advantage is exceptional coaching. Their team was just as good last year, but what they have demonstrated this year is consistency. They have consistently beaten every team that they have played, and won every game thus far by double figures. They turn on the jets and don't ever let up. They play hard against every opponent, no matter how good or how highly ranked. That is what great coaching can do for a team.
Coach Auriemma has them prepared night in and night out to play at the highest level no matter who is sitting on the other bench. Many top teams do not do this, and this ends up killing them as the season goes on. Not this team. I will be very surprised if they do not win the national championship. Of course, it doesn't hurt that they have two national player of the year candidates playing in every game. The main reason that I believe they will again be crowned national champions this season, however, is because of their coach.
If you are a sports fan, you want the coach of your favorite teams to read up on Coach Auriemma. He's one of the best out there, in any sport. I just wish my other teams had coaches who could get their players to perform consistently and consistently well like the Huskies do.
Well Sir,
ReplyDeleteI do believe that you are correct Auriemma is one of the best coaches out there. Auriemma presents an effective workout that breaks down specific aspects of the game into drills that build quality, well-rounded players.Auriemma has devised 20 drills that provide the foundation for building a championship team. He begins by demonstrating full-court drills that work on long and short outlet passing, lay-ups, chest passes, jump stops and, most importantly, communication; all key elements in running an effective fastbreak. And I agree with your love of women's basketball it is what it is, but you failed to mention one last big thing you like about women's basketball...
If you did not guess by now it is the women. High Five