What a season! We won the prestigious 51st Annual Alhambra Catholic Invitational Tournament this past weekend and accomplished our 4th and final pre-season goal:
1. Win the WCAC Regular Season Championship
2. Win the WCAC Tournament Championship
3. Win the DC City Title
4. Win the Alhambra Tournament Championship
We finished with a record of 29-7 (and won our final 9 games).
As I reflect back, here is a cursory analysis:
· Despite offensive struggles (poor 3-point & FT % and too many TO’s), we had a very balanced scoring attack. Our 6 leading scorers averaged between 7 and 11 points per game and each of those players led our team in scoring in at least one game.
· Defensively we were solid all year long. We had numerous games where we held our opponent to single digit points for an entire half. Only a handful of teams scored more than 50 points on us.
· While we shot poorly from the line overall, our 4th quarter FT % was excellent. We hit big FT’s under pressure.
· We averaged taking 2 charges per game.
· We were fortunate not to miss a single minute during the entire season from an ankle or muscle related injury. Having our players strength train consistently the entire year paid off.
The only injuries we suffered were collision injuries: a concussion, stitches, a broken nose, and a knocked out front tooth.
We will certainly take time to enjoy what we accomplished; but it’s hard not to start thinking about next season. We will return 4 of our 5 starters and 7 of our top 8 players. If we commit to a productive off-season, we will be very solid next year.
I will sit down with Coach Jones next week to finalize our off-season agenda. I will schedule individual meetings with all returning varsity players and discuss their athleticism strengths and weaknesses. We will set individualized goals for the spring and summer.
We will begin a structured off-season training program in the beginning of April. This will consist of strength & conditioning, individual skill work, and organized pick-up games. We will do this for the 8 weeks leading up to final exams and graduation.
For the summer, each of our players will be given a copy of my two 12-week off-season training programs:
http://shop.strongerteam.com/p-31-12-week-off-season-agility-and-conditioning-program-for-basketball-players.aspx
http://shop.strongerteam.com/p-30-12-week-off-season-strength-and-power-program-for-basketball-players.aspx
For players that don’t have access to a weight room over the summer, I just uploaded 3 new videos:
Bodyweight Training (Lower): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFdRFbPLHKk
Bodyweight Training (Upper): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svfM88t4NP4
Bodyweight Training (w/Ball): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-vfAjIJKIE
My next blog will address the common mistakes players make in their off-season training.
Work hard. Work smart. Work consistently.
Alan Stein
www.StrongerTeam.com
www.Twitter.com/AlanStein
www.Facebook.com/StrongerTeam
PS: My twin sons, Luke and Jack (aka ‘Born Backcourt’) turn one year old on tomorrow! (March 23, 2011). To honor their big day I am offering a special 24-hour discount promotion.
Please visit http://Shop.StrongerTeam.com on Wednesday to check it out!