Watching College Basketball - 10 Keys to Expert Viewing
College basketball’s popularity is at an all time high. The game offers many strategy and plots undetected by the average fan. Through the eyes of a successful college coach, learn how to intelligently watch college basketball this season.
1. Do Your Homework- Print a page of information from ESPN’s web site on each team and review it. Study each team’s record from last season, current record, schedule, leading scorer, rebounder, and play maker. Note the respective coaching backgrounds and records. Extensive information is available in many magazines prior to the season.
2. Study the Coaches- Personalities come out in coaches and their players during games. How long have they been head coaches? How successful have they been? Check for clothing styles. Do they wear traditional suits or do they dress down with a sweater or turtleneck. Do they sit or stand during the game? Are they calm or crazy on the sidelines? Do the players emulate the personality of their coach on the floor? Notice how they deal with officials, especially early in the game. Coaches will fight for turf early and throughout the game. What are the contract terms of the coaches? Notice the difference between a new, energetic coach and an established coach. How does a coach in the last year of his contract react under the bright lights? If the Athletic Director is sitting directly behind the bench, it’s usually not a good sign for the coach!
3. Watch the Players- Players wear emotion on their sleeves during games. Watch for facial expressions, frustration, exhilaration, body language, and determination. Notice the length of their shorts, headbands, and hair styles. This will tell you a lot about who they are. Tattoos are commonplace these days and the variety is incredible. Determine who is the captain and shows leadership on the floor. Who are the freshman and which players are experienced? How do they come in and out of the game? Players covet playing time. Do they show emotion as they hit the bench or during time outs?
4. Don’t Watch the Ball- This skill separates the novice fan from the knowledgeable fan. If you’ve never done this, try it. You will find that it is much more difficult than you think. Most of the real action occurs away from the ball. Train yourself to not watch the ball, but focus on the other eight players. Where is the ball going next? A knowledgeable fan can anticipate the next move on the floor by watching away from the ball. Who are they setting picks for? What play are they running and why? Do they want to get the ball inside to the big men and are they successful?
5. Be the Coach- Being a student of the game will make you the coach. You can coach from your Lazy Boy chair! Make strategy part of your viewing enjoyment. Know the time and score at all times. Decide when you would call timeout, what you would scream at the officials, when you would substitute players, and how you would utilize your coaching staff and bench. Is your best player getting enough shots? Why or why not? If the opponent’s best player is killing you, what adjustments will you make to slow him down or stop him? Will you play man to man defense or a zone? How about a box and one junk defense? At the end of the half or the game, what play will you run to get a sure basket. At the end of the game, choose your best defense or best offensive strategy to win the game. Good luck, you’ll need it! CHALLENGE-Pretend for one night that you are the head coach. Take ownership of the game and the outcome. Become the coach before, during and after the game. Imagine the emotions and excitement that are a real part of coaching. Experience the pregame nervousness and anxiety, the game time sweat and roller coaster of emotions, and the post game highs or lows. Remember, you will take credit for the loss and give your players the credit for the win. In losing, you must answer to the media, your administration, alumni, fans, and your wife. A daunting task, don’t you think? Give it a try and you will have a tremendous appreciation for all coaches and players who play competitive athletics at this level.
6. Analyze Timeouts and the Bench- These are emotionally charged situations. During timeouts notice the player’s attentiveness or lack of interest. Is the head coach or an assistant coach doing the talking? Is he coaching or venting frustration? When players come out of the game, does the head or assistant coach assist them, or do the coaches even acknowledge them? Do they sit by the coaches or down the bench? Are they content with returning to the bench? Notice how teammates react to them.
7. Feel the Passion- Put yourself on the floor, on the bench, and in the locker room at halftime. There is a lifetime of emotion poured out in one single game. Television can never do justice to what actually goes on during a game. Feel the passion!
8. Be a Free Throw Coach- Analyze the various styles of free throws. Which styles are most efficient? Most players have a routine before shooting. For fun, go run a few miles at a fast pace, then try to shoot a free throw in front of a hostile arena filled with 15,000 fans screaming for you to miss. It’s not as easy as you thought, huh?
9. Style of Play- There are a hundred ways to play the game of basketball. Each coach is comfortable with a specific style. These could be conservative, run and gun, or any combination. Playing styles often times reflect the coach’s personality and background. Defensively, some coaches drop players back to protect their goal, while others send five players to the offensive boards. Some employ zones while a majority of coaches play man to man. Some coaches press full or half court and some don’t press at all. Some play only 7 players, while other coaches use all 12. Some shoot the ball quickly in the shot clock (35 seconds), while others milk the clock for a good shot. As you watch games, determine which style leads to consistent success. What are the common threads among teams who consistently come out on top? You may be surprised!
10. Most Importantly, Don’t Forget the Treats!- Remember, you don’t own the outcome of the game. Putting food on the table and keeping your retirement home will not be determined by whether your team wins or loses. Watch games for their high entertainment value and soak in the enthusiasm the games create. Enjoy and come back tomorrow night for more action.
Article Summary- Millions of people are attracted to college basketball on television. A small percentage of people truly know how to watch the game with all of its passion, drama, and strategy. This article will give you the opportunity to become a knowledgeable fan and office expert. These guidelines will help you add enjoyment and expertise to the art of watching your next game.
Randy Brown has passion for the game of basketball. He works as a basketball consultant and mentor for coaches. Visit him at http://www.coachrb.com for free resources, Q & A, newsletter, and coaching programs. A speaker and writer, he has authored 75 articles on coaching and is nationally published. His 18 years in college basketball highlights a successful 23-year career. Mentored by Basketball Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson at Arizona. Resume includes positions at Arizona, Iowa State, Marquette, Drake, and Miami of Ohio, 5 Conference Championships and 5 NCAA apprearances. His efforts have helped develop 12 NBA players including Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott, and Jaamal Tinsley. To contact Randy, email him at rb@coachrb.com.
Get Into Coaching Basketball
Do you love the game of basketball? Are you too old to play competitively? Do you simply want to help out others? If this sounds like you, becoming a ...
3 Girls Basketball Dribbling Drills For All Positions
Being able to dribble the basketball is a great skill to have, even if you are tall and considered a post player. In the past, tall players were autom...
Basketball College Recruiting
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in the world today. It is the dream of every student to find his or her name on a reputable College Baske...
College Basketball History Part 1
The term college basketball is typically referring to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The first recorded college ball game was i...
Origin of Basketball - Part 1
Basketball is a sport with a history that is very different from many modern sports. While many of the present day team sports evolved from variation...
March Madness Bracket Viewing - New Ways To Watch The Tournament
How will you be watching your March Madness bracket this year? There are quite a few options in this day of modern television. For the fanatic, you wa...
College Basketball Betting
Its all about March Madness. The rush of excitement. The thrill of victory. The crushing agony of defeat. However, first teams must play out a full se...
Keys to Girls Basketball Point Guard Success
I have been fortunate to have played with and coached some great point guards. Being a shooting guard myself, I really appreciated having a point guar...
College Basketball Analysis
College basketball is fun, but betting on college basketball is even better. However, you need to be good at analyzing games to win on a consistent ba...
Gerald Green: Sean Williams Is NBA Material
Many people were shocked to hear that Sean Williams has been permanently kicked out the Boston College mens basketball team for violation of the team ...
World Games
The United States is looking to win the World Games for the first time in over a decade this year. In the past they have been stifled by teams with be...
Basketball, not Football, is truly King!
Any time of the year is a great time to talk about Basketball Handicapping. Thats because it most likely has the greatest impact of all on a sports be...
The Demise Of The Bounce Pass In Basketball
In every sport spectators have their favorite play. In baseball, it might be the squeeze play or the inside-the-park homer. In football, it might be ...
History of Basketball
The history of basketball is much easier to trace than other sports. It is clear that Dr. James Naismith is credited with creating basketball and muc...
Becoming a Basketball Agent
Is this the business that you want to get into? If you have a knack for talking and communicating well with all sorts of people and different language...
12 Steps on the Path to College Coaching
In the last 25 years, I have aided over 80 coaches to reach their goal of coaching in college. Over the years I have developed a system that will give...
Top Basketball Stadiums - Staples and MSG
The Staples Center, located in Los Angeles, California, is the home court of three teams: the Lakers, the Clippers, and the Kings. It contains a tot...
Habits That One Should Avoid While Playing Basketball
It is very necessary for a basketball player to inculcate some good habits and avoid the bad ones in order to be successful.Just like the good habits,...
Friendship And Basketball
One of the best things about the game of basketball is that it is a team sport. If you want to win games you are going to have to do your part, but yo...
Basketball Books
If you like to read, and want to learn about the game of basketball, you may want to look into buying a book or two on this subject. Every year severa...