HOF Insights- Approach to Post Season

What was your approach to the post season? Was your approach to the post season any different than to regular season? Were there things you did or didn’t do that you felt were important to the success you had in the post-season? 

It should be noted that the three coaches who answered this question had TREMENDOUS post-season success. Kathy Bresnahan (Volleyball), Mike Tracey (Football), and Tim Engebretson (Football) consistently had great post-season runs. 

One thing opposing coaches knew about these threes teams- Their teams played their best in the post-season. 

Kathy Bresnahan- Iowa City West

The post season is the most exciting time of the year…every practice, every film session, every weight room session is to prepare for the post season.  It’s easy to have rhythm and continuity in the regular season because our conference matches are on Tuesday and tournaments every Saturday so it’s imperative for coaches to maintain some sense of normalcy when the playoffs begin. Matches are held on different days but try to keep your film sessions, skill work, weights, and team dinners consistent with the regular season

Players - especially seniors - are keenly aware that a loss means they’ll never put on that uniform again. Reduce their sense of urgency and keep them focused on the task at hand. Stay with your regular routine. 

I always worried about that end of season injury so once we qualified for the State tourney, I reduced some net drills as we didn’t want to blow out an ankle or knee.  We still had intense practice but dialed them down a notch

Finally I suggest to young coaches to keep copious notes during the post season, especially the state tournament. What worked, what didn’t?  Little things like team meals before the game. What time to arrive at that venue.  What distractions should be eliminated/reduced?  It’s up to the head coach to put their team in the best position to be successful so evaluate everything after the season is over. 

Mike Tracey- Alleman, UT

First of all, we looked at making the playoffs as a great accomplishment and honor. We shared our feelings with the players and community members every chance we got.

The main thing we did was cutting back our running, conditioning, etc. during practice. We kept our two days of lifting as critical. We did our best to stay strong and not be physically tired.

Lastly, we did our best to keep everything positive. We did extra film study with our guys to make them as confident as possible. This was very important in "the old days" of the Wednesday-Saturday games. I do not believe we ever lost a second game. We certainly lost games in all the other slots, but if we won game #1, we won game #2.

Tim Engebretson- United

It was not drastically different because we wanted to stay with what helped get us to the postseason. However we did alter a few aspects. 90% of playoff games for us were played on Saturdays. So we had one extra day of practice. With one extra day we could afford to shorten up our practices. I always felt that helped the crispness of practice.We also felt it helped our players' mentally. 

We spent a little more time on our opponent and the scouting reports. Especially if it was someone who was unfamiliar to us. Practice was less physical and we had a lot more walkthroughs. 

We also reinvested time on special teams. The last thing we did was revert back to preseason fundamentals. We tried to stress to our players that blocking and tackling were still the most important aspects of the game.

One of my personal favorite things of postseason practice was watching the underclassmen. Players not needed for scout teams were given tremendous freedom to do what they wanted in another practice area.  You could see the leaders by who was setting everything up. You also found out who was aggressive and who didn't want to be very physical. Without coaches controlling the environment you could learn a great deal about each individual. The great thing about it was those players never realized how much we observed them.

WB6 Update- Girls Basketball Standings & Leaders thru Feb 9

This is WB6 Girls Basketball Standings & Leaders thru Feb 9- with one game to go. 

Sectional Assignments Are Set Until They Aren’t

As coaches, every year you can’t wait to find out what the IHSA assignments are for the State Tourney series…

1962 Illinois Boys Basketball State Tourney

State Champs- Stephen Decatur

Streaks Alumni Profile- Maddy Ross 2015

Today’s Streaks Alumni Profile is with Maddy Ross from the class of 2015. 

In high school, Maddy was somebody who added to every sport she played, every activity she was involved in, and every classroom. She has energy, enthusiasm, strong work-ethic, and humility. 

In basketball, whether she played a little or played a lot, she was “all-in” for her team and her teammates. 

Maddy has always had a positive impact on the world!

My Scout Report- Shot Clock, Rules, Refs

It has been another fun week watching basketball. Here are some random thoughts from this week. 

Coaches’ Corner- Flex Backdoor

 

This is a nice backdoor off flex action. If you have a shooter that they want to deny coming up off the baseline, this is a good option.

Galesburg Wins 15-13 in 4 OT’s- Why Were Scores So Low?

In 1929, Galesburg defeated Pekin in the Sectional, 15-13 in 4 over-time’s. Any of us who have looked back at basketball scores before 1940 have seen examples of these low scoring games. It is easy to look at the scores and dismiss basketball of the era. Some might say, “They couldn’t have been that good if they couldn’t even score 20 points.” 

We would be mistaken to feel that way. An example would be the great Lou Boudreau of Thornton HS. As a freshman, he led his team to a State title in 1933, then seconds in 1934 and 1935. He went to become one of the all-time greats in MLB. He and many others playing basketball in this era were great athletes. 

Coaches’ Corner- Late Season, Play 8, Trust 7

In the NBA, playing an 82 game schedule, teams need to have a deep roster. If you look at NBA boxscores, you will see that usually teams usually have 9 to 10 players playing at least 15 minutes per game. This allows them to have most of their top players only play 30-35 minutes per game. This distribution of minutes is necessary to maintain play health over an 82 game schedule. 

Once the teams get to the NBA Play-Off’s, teams shorten their bench. Instead of playing 9-10 players significant minutes, they will cut that to just 8-9 players in the rotation.

1966- WGIL Adds FM-95

 

In 1966, WGIL added FM 95 to their programming. The Register-Mail celebrated this with an insert into the paper, describing the inner workings of WGIL.

Coaches’ Corner- Need Two Pros

As coaches put together their playing rotation and their offensive system, each coach is trying to calculate the best formula to produce a championship team. 

Massey Quiz #32- 15 Galesburg Pictures

 

I have fifteen Galesburg pictures of the past and present. There may be pictures of places, people, monuments, parts of buildings, and even more. The quiz is designed to celebrate how wonderful Galesburg is, and test your knowledge of our community. Enjoy and have fun!!

The answers are at the end of the quiz. Keep track of your score and read exactly what your score indicates. If you would like- share your score on the Facebook or Massey Blog under the comments. Please don’t share answers in the comments!!

Senior Night- How Should Coaches Handle It?

I had a conversation with a high school coach who discussed how "Senior Night" can turn into a difficult situation for a coach and for a team. His basic question centered around how a coach should handle who starts and the playing time of senior players on Senior Night. 

Not all parents, coaches, players, or fans agree on the proper way for a coach to handle Senior Night. 

AP Rankings- Illinois HS Girls/Boys Basketball thru Feb 4

This is AP Rankings for Illinois HS Girls/Boys Basketball thru Feb. 4.

1951-1954: Ken Menke Breaking the Color Barrier in GHS Basketball

Galesburg High School basketball ended an era in 1950 when Gerald Phillips stepped down as basketball coach. Coach Phillips had been the coach of the Streaks since 1929. Phillips’ teams went to State 7 times, including a 2nd place finish in 1931. 

To replace Phillips, Galesburg came up with a huge name in the basketball world. They hired Ken Menke to start in the 1950-1951 season. Menke had been part of the University of Illinois’ famous Whiz Kids. Menke and the Whiz Kids were considered among the best players in America. 

Menke did not have a successful win-loss record as the GHS coach, he had a huge impact on both the basketball program and on the entire Galesburg community. Menke is responsible for playing African-Americans on the Silver Streaks basketball program. Before Menke arrived, GHS had not had an African-American play basketball for over 35 years.