Coach’s Journal: Delta
It’s the last week of the regular season, as well as Senior recognition weekend! We are so thankful and proud of all our seniors this year: Owen, Nick, Barrett and Grayson. It has been so great to watch these guys grow into the leaders they’ve become and we are all proud of you guys for the leadership and character you show, as well as the work you put in to make sure our culture is one of high standards on and off the court and in a great place to pass on to the next generation of hoopers coming along.
Delta came to town for our final home games. We were glad they made it safely through this huge wind storm we have been having the past week, especially up on Thompson pass. Our DOT crew does an unbelievable job making sure our roads are safe up there, and were able to pilot-car Delta’s bus through so they were able to make the trip safely!
Now, we had a chance to watch Delta play earlier this season in their Dean Cummings tournament, but have not actually played them yet. So to prepare we watched a lot of game film from that tournament, as well as some more recent games against Monroe and Hutchison.
The last few years we’ve had Delta’s number, but this is a whole new team. They have an entirely new coaching staff this season. We had a chance to meet their new staff earlier this year during our Middle School season where we played Delta what seemed like about 50 times in two months, and I can tell you this much: they are up for any challenge. Coach Bunselmeier had those boys ready to run through a wall for the team. Their high school squad is just the same. From seeing them in their first game in that Delta Tournament earlier this year we could tell that this wasn’t the same Delta squad that we’ve been playing the last decade. They play some tough grind it out defense and are very organized offensively, and although it can take time for new systems and cultures to really establish themselves in basketball programs, they have made this transition into a new era feel seamless.
So we had a few reasons to be excited for these games! One: our final home games of the year. We have traveled close to 5,000 miles so far this season to play basketball, with another 1,300 to add on in the coming weeks for the regional and state tournaments.
Although I think we essentially have the #1 seed for regionals locked up, these games were still really important to us. Delta is, in my opinion, maybe the next strongest team in our conference, so these games were likely to be a preview for one of our toughest matchups next weekend at regionals. And because these games didn’t necessarily have any bearing on how we placed for that tournament, there was always a chance for complacency.
Last week against Monroe, I talked about how at the end of some games, when the score is out of reach, and how teams can still build off of momentum despite the game being essentially decided. Bobby Knight has a great quote: “Mental toughness is to physical as four is to one.” Basketball is a mental game more than anything. It would be very easy for a team in our position to come out nonchalant against Delta and coast through these games, but we had a job to do. Our mission: Do not give Delta ANY thought or hope that they have a chance against us. We had to send a message this weekend that next weekend at regionals there was no doubt that we are the best team in the conference. We need to strike some fear into this tough Delta squad. We need to take their souls.
Friday night was a battle.
The first quarter was a great defensive quarter for both teams. Tough hard-nosed defense defined the period and both squads really had to work on offense just to get any shot off, let alone a good one. One of the drills we like to implement in practice is called “30 second defense” where we focus all our mental and physical energy on getting one stop, and the clock will keep resetting if we fail. It felt like every possession lasted about three times that long before a shot would go up, which can be very exhausting. Delta managed to make four field goals to our two, but we were able to get to the free throw line a few more times than them, and after the first quarter Delta was winning 9-7.
In the second quarter we ran some of our halfcourt trap defense and managed to go on a couple scoring runs from the turnovers we generated. Delta had a little scoring spurt of about six points during the period, but we regrouped and refocused and went on another scoring run of our own to take a 23-17 lead going into the half.
We made some halftime adjustments and came out with the same defensive intensity that defined the first half, holding Delta to their lowest scoring quarter of the game in the 3rd, and from there we never looked back. We were able to hold the Huskies to single digit scoring in every quarter of the game and wound up with the win 50-33.
Although we won by nearly 20 points, it never really seemed like the lead was safe, and I think that is a testament to Delta’s new mindset and culture around their team. It did seem like they were just within striking distance throughout the game even though the Bucs were in control.
Jarrett, Nick and Tino all reached double digit scoring for us with 16, 14 and 13 points respectively.
Saturday night’s game started very similar to Friday’s.
Delta Scored the first basket of the game, a three pointer, and had a couple more quick field goals. They were refocused and ready to make a point to us that they weren’t going to go away easily. Barrett and Grayson had a few nice buckets for us and helped us maintain a lead after the first: 13 to 10.
The entire first half was a battle. Both teams would go on runs, both teams would answer with runs of their own. Tino and Owen scored all the points for us in the 2nd quarter. We played smart offense, exploiting some mismatches in the post with Owen, who went on a 6-0 run by himself to keep us chugging along, but Delta was still right there with us. An even scoring split in the 2nd lead to Valdez maintaining that same three-point lead going into halftime: 26 to 23.
Something that I admire about the squad we have this year is the way we have played coming out of halftime. A mental practice we try to instill in these guys is to be a great 3rd quarter team. That extra break in game action during halftime can really plague teams. It’s something that affects teams at all levels, whether it be professional, college or even high school and middle school teams. Just being able to come out of the break with that mental focus to put your foot back on the gas, move on from the first half and continue to play at a high level can give a team such a huge advantage. Like I have mentioned before, basketball is a game of runs. Coming out flat out of halftime even for just a couple of minutes can be the difference in a 6, 8, or even 10 point swing in a lot of cases. It seems like this year our guys have bought into that mentality and in the majority of our games our 3rd quarters (and 2nd halves in general) have been some of our highest scoring quarters.
Today was no different.
That mental focus led to us having the two highest scoring quarters of the entire weekend, 19 points in both the 3rd and the 4th, while our defense also held Delta to it’s lowest scoring quarter of the entire weekend with 5 points.
That third quarter was essentially what decided the game, and we came out with the big win on Senior night: 64-45.
For our seniors:
Grayson ended the game with 10 points. He had a nice three pointer in the fourth that was really the dagger that ended any hope of a Delta comeback and did a great job attacking the defense and drawing fouls which led to many free throws that helped seal the win.
Barrett did a phenomenal job both defensively and rebounding. Rebounding is such a crucial part in a basketball game, and it really can be the difference in a game just winning the rebounding battle. Barrett has always had that huge spark of energy on the boards that often gets overlooked but plays such a huge role in our wins. He also finished with 6 points.
Owen finished with 9 points. That 6-0 run he went on by himself in the 2nd quarter made a huge impact for us. Delta was starting to go on a little bit of a run and Owen took that into his own hands and really stopped any hope for Delta gaining any momentum going into halftime, while also getting some of their guys into foul trouble. He also nailed a big 3 pointer for us in the 3rd that was another huge momentum killer for Delta.
Nick as always was the anchor of our defense. He’s done such a great job being a vocal leader and using his toughness to inspire all the guys around him. The mentality to dive on every loose ball, play some of the toughest defense we’ve seen, take charges, rebound – really just all those little things that don’t show up on the stat sheet that are instrumental to a team’s success- Nick has encapsulated that throughout his playing career. He also finished with 10 points on the night.
– And I know it’s Senior weekend but before we check out I just wanted to give Tino a shoutout too. He had what I’d consider the best, most complete game of his playing career tonight. He had his hands in every aspect of Saturday’s win with complete composure throughout the game. Intense defensive pressure the entire time, leading to a high number of steals, deflections, and blocks. Offensively he was patient and precise. Using the gravity of his scoring threat to find the rest of the guys in perfect positions to score the ball. Along with all the assists he also was crashing every rebound he could which was huge in getting us to push the ball up the court and get some fastbreak opportunities. Nothing was forced and everyone fed off that energy throughout the game, it was something great to build off of going into a big regionals tournament next week. On top of all of that he also finished with 21 points.
You know, I might as well just give everyone a shoutout at this point since everyone on our team has worked so hard the past few months!
Jarrett played a great game for us tonight as well. He finished with 8 points. If Nick is the defensive anchor and vocal leader of our team, then Jarrett is that for us on offense. He is an energizer bunny with the ball and is one of the toughest guys I know. Just pure relentlessness attacking with the basketball, and that can be so exhausting for teams to guard. Being such a great ball handler and shooter can put so much pressure on a defense and his scoring in the post gives him a lot of opportunities to help the team. That mentality to just give 100% energy the entire time no matter what’s happening and never stop can inspire the guys around him, and that kind of energy can be infectious to a team and a team’s success.
The Bench Mob – Jace, Brody, Rylen, Zach, Kian, David, Levi – These guys have been absolutely huge for us. They have what I consider to be 100% the toughest job in basketball. At the varsity level I think we all can understand that it isn’t necessarily equal opportunity as far as playing time goes. For the freshmen guys especially – It really is rare to have many, if any, freshman on a high school varsity team. What goes with that is a lack of playing time in meaningful minutes. Another quote I really admire (if you can’t tell by now I’m a big motivational quotes guy) goes like this: “Be great at the things which take no skill.” And one of those things is just being present and being a great teammate. It can really suck to be stuck on the bench, work your butt off in practice and get no playing time, and bitterness can breed resentment. The same way we praise the good energy and composure in our players being contagious to our success – the opposite can just as easily be true. Disgruntled players on the bench can become cancerous to a team’s mentality and unravel things at the seams.
These guys have done a better job than any of the coaches could have asked for. The positivity on the bench, the engagement, and the energy they bring to every game, even when they essentially get no playing time in return, has been such a huge factor for us in every single one of our wins. I’m sure I said it at the time, but I really look at that Bethel championship game earlier this season as an example. That arena was L O U D. Unbelievably loud. Our bench mob matched that, and more. I don’t really think I can properly convey in writing what it was like. I really credit the energy from those guys, from our defensive chants – having our guy’s backs the entire time and talking on defense can be such an overlooked and underappreciated thing – to just the general excitement of watching their teammates success was really the difference in that game to me.
We finished the regular season with a 19-5 record. Next weekend we head back up to Monroe to participate in our regional tournament against the rest of our conference: Eielson, Delta, Hutchison, and Galena.
Go Bucs!
