today was our game against mobilnye seti. a very young but good team that we barely beat earlier in the season (before i was coach). there only losses have come against us and tulpar. they rolled through everyone else.
i typical fashion, we came out slow and flat but survived the first quarter all tied up. we really fell apart in the second half (making bad passes, not running our offense) and we went into the break down by 5.
i could feel the stares of my mafia boss sitting behind my and could just imagine him sending one of his henchmen out to get a burlap bag with which to stuff me into. so i decided to try a different approach with my team (maybe go throw mud on their cars?).
i am a pretty laid back friendly kind of coach. i think getting the input of my players is important as they are "professionals". it is an approach that they are not use to in the least. the are all very former soviet unionish (including my three american players who were raised in the ukraine). i am learning that they need to be told exactly what to do. not asked. but told. oh... and that they respond to yelling (as one of my players told me as we headed into the locker room).
that is exactly what i did at half time. i went berserk. i yelled and screamed. spittle was flying out of my mouth. i threw my clipboard not once but twice (a player sheepishly picking it up and handing it to me each time). paul, the american missionary who is the preacher of the local russian language christian church had to translate for me. i felt a little bad as i used a choice selection of curse words during my tirade.
but it worked. we started the third quarter with a 14 - 0 run and never looked back... cruising to a 10 point win that wasn't nearly as close as i let my subs play the entire fourth quarter.
you would have thought i was elected president after the game. strangers shaking my hands. people asking for my photo (i am not joking). i was pretty cool. i was feeling so good that i went back into the locker room and yelled at my team again. if that is what they need in order to play well - that is what i am going to give them!
as i came into the locker room i caught the tale end of a fight between my a guy on my team and the really good point guard from mobilnye seti (who had taken objection against a hard foul towards the end of the game). i walked up to see what was going on and was promptly pushed against the wall. sigh.
we now have two weeks off before the playoffs begin. our first opponent? mobilnye seti.
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