1973 Streaks & Molly Smith- “Spending Our Whole Lives Watching Boys Get To Play”

This past week I read an article with some of the numbers associated with the WNBA and Caitlin Clark…

** Golden State Valkyries averaging 18,000 for home games.

*** Indiana Fever averaging 16,000 for home games.

*** Teams flying on charter jets

*** TV viewership matching NBA viewership

*** Caitlin Clark has $28 million contract with Nike. 

The interest in women’s sports is booming. It made me reflect on some of the “pioneers” who got women’s sports started in the 1970’s. 

In the Fall of 2022, we were planning a celebration for the Galesburg High School girls basketball program. Interscholastic girls basketball at GHS started in 1972-1973, right after Title IX was introduced. In the Fall of 2022, we anticipated that the Streaks were going to reach a total of 1,000 wins in program history. 

As part of the celebration, we tried to reach out to former player and fans to purchase 1,000 win t-shirts. I received a letter ordering a t-shirt from Molly Smith, who graduated from GHS in 1975. Molly attached a note to her order, which read in part,”Making the team back in 1972 changed my life- finally getting to officially play.” Her letter and my curiousity about that first season, led me to ask her to answer question for Massey Basketball Blog.

Galesburg- SMU Connection Led To 1972 SW Conf Championship

This photo of Galesburg HS grads- John Tuszinski, Zack Thiel, and Ruben Triplett on the SMU Mustangs’ 1972 basketball team is from the Tom Wilson Collection. 

Triplett 18.2ppg, 10.8rpg

Thiel 10.0ppg, 3.4 apg

Tuszinski 5.5ppg, 3.9 rpg

Can You Spot It? Galesburg Picture Quiz #1

I have 25 questions designed to see if you can recognize some places in Galesburg. (Answers at the end- keep your score!)

Fever’s Floundering: Critical Examination of Loss To Valkyries

It has been an up and down season for the Fever and for Caitlin Clark. A combination of factors have led to making it seem there have been more downs than ups. The Fever have dealt with Clark injuries, adding new players, dropping new players, big wins (vs Lynx, Storm, Liberty), and brutal losses (vs Sun, Valkyries). 

At the beginning of the year, there were high hopes that the Fever might be up challenging New York and Minnesota. As the Fever are only 3 games from the mid-point of the season (right now have played 19 of 44 games), they are not close to being a top two team in the league. Right now, depending if you are a glass half-full or half-empty person- the Fever are either tied for 7th or 9th with Washington and Las Vegas. 9th place would mean the Fever would not make the playoffs. Some may say it is still early and Clark just got back- BUT THE CLOCK IS TICKING. 

After The Timeout Podcast: Jamon Copeland- Offensive Nuggets

If you have not listened to After The Timeout Podcast with Jon Palicki and Todd Zasadil, you are missing so much. Jon and Todd are both coaches in Illinois, and they interview coaches from all over America. Often their podcasts are not with the famous names but coaches who are making a name on D3, D2, and lower D1 levels. 

I have gotten so After The Timeout is one of my go-to podcasts on our dog walks. Some podcasts I listen to for pleasure and some I take a small index card and pen to stop and write some key points down. Their podcast with Jamon Copeland was one where I filled up my index card— great stuff!!

Jamon Copeland is the head men’s coach at Ave Maria University. I want to share just a few of the highlights from the podcast. 

Please realize when I post about a podcast or clinic, I am not speaking for that presenter, rather giving my reaction and interpretation. 

Time Capsule- 1929 Reg-Mail & Reflector

GHS & Churchill

Recruitment 101- 6 Questions College Coaches Ask About HS Players

College coaches talk to HS coaches about players. For the best college coaches, the HS coach is a resource the college coach wants to tap into. 

HS coaches have watched a player practice and compete as part of a team- just like they will be doing in college. 

Here are the 6 most common questions college coaches asked me about my players:

Is Illinois Missing Out? Year-Round Coaching in Arkansas

As high school coaches and high school administrators, it is very easy to assume that the way we do things in our State is either the best or the only way of doing things. 

As an Illinois basketball coach, we sometimes played Iowa or Wisconsin schools. When we played the Iowa and Wisconsin schools, it became apparent that different States actually had different rules- such things about whether a players could play in the pre-lim and the varsity game, whether coaches could stand or not, and even whether you had a jump ball to start the game. 

Now in retirement, on my visits this winter to Oklahoma I became aware that they organized their state tourney to allow double-elimination in the early tourneys of the series. And in a smaller State, Oklahoma had at least 6 classes. 

When first confronted to these difference in other States, my knee jerk reaction was, “That’s stupid” or “Our way is better.” But the more I thought about the differences, the more I began to ask, “Is the way that Illinois runs things the best way?”  I began to realize that Illinois could benefit by re-examining historical methods and realize that there maybe better ideas out there. 

Justin Shiltz was one of the most successful coaches in girls basketball in the WB6 Conference during his tenure at UTHS. His matchup zone still causes me to wake up in a cold sweat even in retirement. Justin is now coaching in Arkansas and I have maintained contact with him- picking his brain on a variety of topics for my blog posts. 

Slappin’ Glass Podcast: Mike DeGeorge- Analytics and Offense

Slappin’ Glass Podcast always comes thru with great interviews. I really enjoyed their interview with Coach Mike DeGeorge of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Coach DeGeorge discusses how he developed his offense and how he has used analytics to break down the offense. 

Please realize when I post about a podcast or clinic that I listen to that I am not speaking for that presenter, rather giving my reaction and interpretation. 

Beyond the Gold- Streaks Champs Share Their Stories (Part 2)

I reached out to 8 GHS athletes who won individual State Championships, and 2 GHS athletes who won a doubles State Championship. My purpose has been to celebrate and honor their achievements, and to use their stories as an inspiration for athletes today. 

I certainly appreciate this athletes taking the time to share their memories and to share their insights into what is needed to be a champion. 

This is Part 2 “talking” with Caricia Andrews, Greg Whittle, Travon Diggins, Josh Eiker, and Gauge Shipp. 

Beyond the Gold- Streaks Champs Share Their Stories (Part 1)

 

I reached out to 8 GHS athletes who won individual State Championships, and 2 GHS athletes who won a doubles State Championship. My purpose has been to celebrate and honor their achievements, and to use their stories as an inspiration for athletes today. 

I certainly appreciate this athletes taking the time to share their memories and to share their insights into what is needed to be a champion. 

This is Part 1 “talking” with Gene Denisar, Mike “Charlie” Doyle, Dean McKillip, Nate Bobofchak, and Jason Gunther. 

4th of July with The Massey Brothers

Glenn, Oswald, Grandma, Ford, Wendell, Dwayne

(This was originally written on July 4, 2012)

Growing up in the 1950's & 1960's, the 4th of July meant one thing- the Massey's getting together. Today it is the "Massey Reunion", back then it was just the Massey brother's getting together with their children and grandchildren.

My grandfather (Cornelius) and my grandmother (Roberta) had five sons. The sons in order of birth were Glenn, Wendell, Wright, Oswald, and Dwayne. Two times a year, the brothers always got together- the Fourth of July and Christmas Eve. As long as they were alive, I don't remember any of them ever missing. It did not matter if the Fourth was on the middle of the week or a weekend, at noon the Massey brothers & families got together.

Caitlin Clark’s All-Star Ranking: Reality Check for Clark or Embarrassment for Players?

It is a great time in the WNBA. TV viewership, game attendance, and merchandise are all exploding. 

In 2024, WNBA games on CBS were up 170%, ION went up 133%, and ABC’s All-Star game was up 305%. That means lots of money in the next TV contract, which means better salaries, better practice facilities, and continued charter flights.

In 2024 attendance went up 48%. The highest average attendance for a team was 9,207 back in 2012. This year 9 of the 13 teams average over 10,000 fans, with Indiana 16k, Golden State 15k, and New York 13k. That means lots of money in the next TV contract, which means better salaries, better practice facilities, and continued charter flights. 

Hailey VanLith- Building Toughness

In the Sweet Sixteen win over Notre Dame, Texas Christian University trailed at half-time 35-32 and star Hailey Van Lith had scored only 8 points. And Notre Dame still led after three quarters, 52-51.

Hailey Van Lith scored the last 6 points of the third quarter, and then scored 12 points in the fourth quarter to lead TCU to a 71-62 win. She outscored ND 12-11 in the fourth quarter, and had 18 of her teams 39 points in the fourth quarter. 

Jay Bilas- Essay on Toughness

 

Toughness” – Jay Bilas – ESPN .com

I have heard the word "toughness" thrown around a lot lately. Reporters on television, radio and in print have opined about a team or player's "toughness" or quoted a coach talking about his team having to be "tougher" to win.

Then, in almost coordinated fashion, I would watch games and see player upon player thumping his chest after a routine play, angrily taunting an opponent after a blocked shot, getting into a shouting match with an opposing player, or squaring up nose-to-nose as if a fight might ensue. I see players jawing at each other, trying to "intimidate" other players. What a waste of time. That is nothing more than fake toughness, and it has no real value.

Jay Bilas- Book on Toughness, My Takes

Several years ago Jay Bilas wrote an article on toughness which went viral in the basketball world. High school and college coaches all reprinted the article and shared it with their players. (I have it reprinted on this blog.) Bilas said the motivation for writing the article was a reaction to how a commentator used the word "tough" to describe a physical and perhaps a dirty player. The basic premise of the article was "toughness" is more about an attitude and a self-discipline vs. a physical characteristic.

In his book on the same topic, Bilas looks at the characteristics of tough people. He seeks out people in sports and business who are tough in their approach to sport and life.

Toughness Can Be Learned
"Toughness isn't physical. It has nothing to do with size, physical strength, or athleticism. It's an intangible, an attitude, a philosophy. Some people may be born with the aptitude to be tougher than others, but I believe that true toughness is a skill that can be developed and improved in everyone."

Jay Bilas- Book on Toughness (Some Excerpts)

Jay Bilas’ book- Toughness is an outstanding read for both players and coaches. Here are some excerpts from Toughness: 

Successful players and teams don't just assess themselves by records or statistics, but by a standard of excellence that goes beyond a final score.

Self-evaluation takes honesty, and the toughest teams and players do not con themselves. When I was playing for Coach Mike Krzyzewski of Duke, he was often harder on us after a win than after a loss. He would identify areas of concern for our team and for individuals as "slippage" from our standards, and he was quick to point out that a lesser performance might have beaten our latest opponent, but it would not beat the best teams coming up in the future.

Double The Talent, Triple The Bond: Twin And Triplet Athletes

I taught high school psychology and I took my fair share of psychology classes. So I read my share of “twin studies.” The basic premise of most of these studies was to compare if identical twins were more likely to share a characteristic than fraternal twins- so trying to get at the nature vs nurture question. 

According to the stats- in natural births, there is a 1 in 250 chance of having twins and 1 in 10,000 chance of having triplets. 

When one thinks about twin athletes at Galesburg HS, the first names that come to mind are Albert and Elbert Kimbrough (GHS Class of 1957). They were two of the all-time great athletes in GHS history. 

Galesburg: A Prairie City’s Past- Test Your Knowledge

 

#1- Who was the founder of Galesburg?

#2- The founder’s house is located at the corner of what two streets?

#3- When they mapped out Galesburg, the original NW corner of Galesburg was at the corner of what two streets?

#4- When they mapped out Galesburg, the original SW corner of Galesburg was at the corner of what two streets?

#5- When they mapped out Galesburg, the original SE corner of Galesburg was at the corner of what two streets?

#6- When they mapped out Galesburg, the original NE corner of Galesburg was at the corner of what two streets?

#7- Union Hotel was located at the corner of what two streets?

#8- A plaque recognizing the site of Galesburg HS’s location from 1906 to 1959 is at the corner of what two streets?

#9- A plaque is on the wall of Galesburg’s oldest restaurant. What is Galesburg’s oldest still running restaurant?

#10- Where did a Presidential Debate take place in Galesburg?

Caitlin Clark- If I Had A Daughter…

This story was written originally on July 11, 2024 after Dave Wood and I went to Indianapolis to watch the Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark. I had generously been gifted two tickets by a Knox alum with Fever season tickets. And if there is a basketball game someplace- Woody is ready to go. This post describes our experience at the Fever game. 

Peterman’s Pick- Analyzing Illinois High School Basketball

If you study the history of Illinois HS basketball, you are probably aware of some of the early coaching legends. There were some great coaches in Illinois in the 1920’s, 1930’s, and 1940’s. 

Arthur Trout at Centralia won three State Championships and 6 State Trophies, and won 811 games. 

Ernie Eveland at Paris won two State Championships and 5 State Trophies, and won 436 games. And Eveland also won 3 State Championships in Cross Country.

Duster Thomas at Pinckneyville won a State Championship and 5 State Trophies, and won 460 games. 

Dolph Stanley was highly successful at Equality, Mt. Pulaski, and Taylorville during this time period, including winning a State Championship at Taylorville. He won 8 State Trophies before 1950. 

HS Summer Games Wrap Up- Questions Every Player Should Be Asking

In Illinois, players workouts and games with their high school teams are probably wrapping up the last weekend of June. Hopefully it has been a great opportunity to work with your high school coach and understand the coach’s expectations. As these team workouts and games finish, it is important for players to take the time to reflect about how things went, and about their goals going forward. 

I would recommend high school players reflect on the following questions:

HS Summer Games Wrap Up- Questions Every Coach Should Be Asking

For many high schools across the nation, the month of June can be a wild scramble. Coaches go from the last day of school right into summer basketball. The players often are not in basketball shape, yet coaches want to do as much as possible in limited time. 

So this year, most of the Illinois HS teams are playing one last tourney the weekend of June 28. At that point, coaches are often ready to take their family vacations and decompress. 

Before the summer workouts get too far in a coach’s memory, it is important for the coach to sit down and take notes. The purpose of the notes will be to help prepare for the winter season, and also make next summer’s program more effective. 

So here are questions that are important for coaches to address soon after their summer programs end. 

Caitlin Clark- It’s A Long Season But

With the Fever this year, there have been some highs and some lows.

*** Inconsistent first few games.

*** Clark injured

*** Clark and Fever explode vs. New York Liberty

*** Fever win the East and will play for the Commissioners Cup

*** Fever looks dominate early vs Golden State and Las Vegas then falter.

It is a long season- 44 games, but having played 13 games, the season is about 30% over for the Fever. 

Knox College’s Tribute: Elizabeth Eckford Of The Little Rock 9

On my morning walk one morning, I came across this monument to Elizabeth Eckford at Knox College. 

In 1954, Brown vs Board of Education ruled that separate was not equal, and outlawed segregation in American public schools. While the federal government worked to support and enforce desegregation, some states resisted desegregation. 

Streaks Scrapbook- 1929 Boys Basketball- Sweet 16

I have had this ticket stub by my mom about 50 years ago. It was from her senior year at Galesburg High School. I have kept it on my desk since that time. I think I have kept it as a reminder of a connection with my mom. 

This past week, I was looking at the ticket stub and thought, I should go check out this tourney. And this is how I got started with this blog post- looking at the 1929 Galesburg basketball team. 

1934- More Things Change, More They Stay The Same

I was doing some research in the Galesburg newspaper from March of 1934. I came across the cartoon below. 

Corpus Christi At The 1935 Catholic State Tourney

 In 1935, Catholic schools were not part of the IHSA and held their own State Tourney. This tourney was being held in Decatur. Corpus Christi was one of 16 teams in the State tourney field. 

Corpus lost their first game but at this point won their first game in the consolation bracket of the tourney. 

Corpus Christi had won the 1934 State Championship. 

Streaks Scrapbook- Galesburg HS State Champs

This is a look back thru history at Galesburg HS’s 22 IHSA State Champions. GHS athletes have won: 4 Team State Championships, 1 Relay Team State Championship, 1 Doubles Championship, and 16 Individual State Championships.  

The first was the 1913 Boys Basketball team, and the most recent was Gauge Shipp in wrestling in 2023. 

Josh Eiker accounted for 4 of the 21 State Championships, Goff Eyre won two State Championships (one as an individual and one as part of a team), and Greg Whittle also won two State Championships (one as an individual and one as part of a relay).

Boys Track has accounted for 11 of the State Championships, while Boys Golf and Wrestling have each won 3 State Championships. 

Caricia Andrews in Girls Track has accounted for the only State Championship won by a female athlete at GHS. 

Fever vs Sun: Chaos On The Court- Your Thoughts?

The Indiana Fever defeated the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday night 88-71. By my count, the match up produced 3 ejections, 5 technicals, 2 flagrant fouls, and too much trash talking to count.

History of Bad Blood- It is obvious that Caitlyn Clark (Iowa) and Jack Shelton (Ohio State) have bad blood. I am sure Iowa fans could explain to me the evil things that Shelton did in college, and the Ohio State fans could explain to me the evil things that Clark did in college. 

William Allen: GHS Teacher Makes Ultimate Sacrifice in WW2

 William Allen was a 1939 graduate of Knox College. While at Knox, he became a political activist. He was part of a large group of students who were unhappy with the school’s “chapels.” They felt that the chapels had become a way for the college to indoctrinate students with conservative, pro-business speakers. His activism led him to take a leadership role as the editor of the Knox Student (school newspaper). His outspoken approach caused some to label him as un-American and a Communist.  

After graduation, he taught three years in Fairview. He moved back to teach at Galesburg High School in 1942. He was an English teacher and in charge of all of the drama activities. At this time, before TV, school plays were performed almost monthly. 

Caitlin Clark’s Comeback, Fever Stun Liberty, Commissioner’s Cup Implications

I wasn’t the only one that was anxious to have Caitlin Clark back. The game set a record for most watched WNBA game. 

Streaks Scrapbook- From 1954 JH City Champs To 1957 Elite Eight

 

In 1954 Hitchcock hosted a junior basketball tournament at Steele Gym. The tourney included Galesburg’s three JH teams- Hitchcock (today Hitchcock apartments), Lombard, and Churchill (still downtown), as well as ROVA. 

Hey Coach- Happy Father’s Day

Mike Reynolds- DeKalb

"I Doubted I'd Ever be a Streak"

The old GHS located just off the square.

This post was originally published Nov. 13, 2011. 

When we think about segregation and racism in America during the 20^th century, most of us in the North immediately turn out thoughts to the South. The reality is that there were many examples of segregation and racism in the North during the 20^th century.

My mother told a story of when my father was coaching basketball in Savanna, Illinois in the 1940’s. Savanna was located about 40 miles from Wisconsin, so definitely the “North.” My father had an African-American player on his team. If the team was going to stop for a meal after a road game, my father would always go into the local restaurant to see if they would serve an African-American. If they would not, he would go back out and tell the team, “The restaurant is full.” And they would look for another place to eat. Having grown up in the 1960’s, I found this story to be a revelation. I was sure that only happened in the South.

Inside Hoops- Learning From Sue Bird

One of the best ways for coaches and players to learn about the game is to learn from the best players in the world. A great opportunity to do this is with Sue Bird’s podcast. Bird’s Eye View with Sue Bird drops every Friday. The podcast can be listened to as a podcast or on YouTube. 

Inside Hoops- Pacer’s Plan To Stop The Star

I write this after game #3 of NBA finals. It may well that the Pacer’s plan does not work in game #4 so you decide that this is not valuable. 

My take is that everyone who knows the NBA is in agreement that OKC has much more talent than Indiana. So how is Indiana managing to be up 2 to 1. 

Players Playbook- We Don’t Do That Here

When we think about the transition from JH to HS, it is easy to think about the basketball skills. It is easy to focus on the JH player needs to learn how to become stronger with the ball, clean up their shooting form, not take possessions off, get down in a defensive stance, etc. That is all true- a JH athlete transitioning to the HS must really improve their skill sets. 

The same is true of players transitioning from FS to Varsity. They have to improve their skill sets. All of this is true.

College Playbook- Advice and Insight From First Year Students

I had the opportunity to reach out to 10 Silver Streaks athletes, who graduated from GHS in 2024. They are all finishing their first year of college. Seven of the ten continued to play a sport in college, while three did not continue playing a sport.

These 10 shared their college experiences this year. They talk about classes, time management, high/lows, advice for graduating high school seniors, and things they missed in Galesburg. 

Summer Sports at GHS- Programs and Opportunities

Summer sports programs have been a part of Galesburg High School dating back to the 1960’s. 

With summer programs just getting ready to start, I reached out to GHS varsity head coaches to see what summer programs were available. 

It is exciting to see the opportunities being provided to Galesburg student-athletes.  

Massey Book Club’s Top Choices For Summer

A big thanks to the people who contributed to this booklist to the “Massey Book Club.” I feel like I am the member of the book club who hasn’t read any of the books but you keep me in the club because I supply the wine!!

Galesburg Summer League- Downstate Tradition

This is the 38th year for the Galesburg Summer League. We started the girls basketball league in the summer of 1987, and took one summer off for COVID. 

Previous to GSL, the Carver Center had run a summer league for men’s and women’s teams. Usually there were 3 Galesburg teams and a couple area teams who entered the Carver league. 

We started to take GHS varsity teams up to Maine West to play in their weekend tourneys. I had become friends with the Maine West coach, Derril Kipp- we were both on the All-State board. At the time, Maine West had a league during the week, and ran a couple one day weekend tourneys. We would go up and play, and usually lose badly. It was very obvious the Chicago area teams were very much ahead of us in the summers. They were playing a lot more basketball. 

The One-Sport Squeeze: Pressures on HS Athletes To Specialize

Greg Bennett is a retired Athletic Director at Lewistown High School in Lewistown, Illinois. I asked Greg to share what he did as AD at a small school to develop a culture where coaches, athletes, and parents saw the value of participating in multi-sports. 

Greg not only shares some of the ways he worked to establish a multi-sport culture, but also touched on some of the pressures placed on athletes to specialize. 

Promoting Multi-Sports Participation

 I had a coach share that a coach at their school was telling some players in their sport not to go out for other sports. The coach had a simple question,”How can this prevented and discouraged in an athletic department. 

To answer this question, I reached out to two individuals who were athletic directors. I wanted to know how they developed a “multi-sport culture at their schools. 

Mike Tracey and Greg King share great advice for athletic directors, coaches, and parents. 

Inside Hoops- Slappin’ Glass Podcast w/ Kellen Sampson

Slappin’ Glass Podcast produced another great one with Kellen Sampson, assistant coach for the Houston Cougars. Their questions and his responses make it a must listen to podcast. Some highlights of the podcast—

UNSCRIPTED POINTS

Houston’s Focus is to win “the unscripted points.” This means winning in three areas- 

1- Offensive rebounds

2- Producing turnovers and fastbreak

3- Rebounding and fast breaks. 

All three of these areas involve winning the battle of energy. 

Streaks Scrapbook- Galesburg’s All-Time Best Season

Galesburg’s all-time best team? The debate is on! There are some who say the best team has to be 1959 with Bumpy Nixon, 1966 with Dale Kelley, 1968 with Jim Reinebach, 1998 with Joey Range. And some might claim 1997 with Molly Watson, 1999 with Sarah Larson, or 2000 with Megan Pacheco. 

Caitlin Clark Reveals The Secret To Her Greatness

Clearly Caitlin Clark has drawn the attention of many, many fans- and brought fans to watch the WNBA. Fans analyze her game, and experts analyze her game. So why should I be any different? 

My question is: What is it that makes Caitlin Clark great? 

Parents Playbook- Advice From A Parent

The following is a Facebook post from a parent- giving parents advice on the do’s and don’t’s of being an athletic parent. It may take some courage for parents to read!!