WHAT DO OUR FANS SEE

Boys Basketball Practice – Wednesday, Jan 30

Our last game showed us that we were a little rusty running our offense against a man to man defense.  We also faced a 1-3-1 zone which we had not faced all season and had a difficult time attacking.  The coaches had already discussed implementing the 1-3-1 zone so this was the perfect opportunity.  This particular zone is designed to create turnovers near the half court line.  It takes a great amount of energy and can be beat so it is a defense that is not played all the time, but mixed in to create havoc.  We will try using it in our game tomorrow against Lake Park Christian.

The Free Throw Ladder was run for the first time in a couple of weeks.  Nate Johnson held on to the top spot for the fourth consecutive time edging out Matthew Pedemonte 7-5.   Ryan Brown, Alan Fox, and Daniel Zangmeister all knocked down 6 free throws and Caleb Robinson matched his season high of 5.  The team is shooting 63% from the line for the 8 games we have played which is better than Mempis (58%), the number one college team in the country.  I don’t think we are ready to play Memphis yet.  For the second practice in a row, Nate and Matthew made free throws to get the players out of running at the end of practice.

During the team huddle Coach asked the palyers what do the fans see at the games we play.  Most of the players talked about missed plays and missed assignments in addition to the good plays and some bad plays.  Coach explained the fans don’t know when we miss an assignment or mix up a play.  They do notice when we bang the ball hard on the court because we are angry with ourselves or question a referee’s call /no call.  Coach stressed the fact that this has not been a problem in the past and will probably not be a problem in the future.  The coaches are all in agreement that winning a game in not nearly as important as learning to control your emotions.  There are lessons to be learned in all situations and sometimes only experience can give you the opportunity to learn this lesson.

The game tomorrow night is at Lake Park Christian in Indian Trail.  Both teams have the same color of uniforms so you won’t recognise our team by the color.  We will be wearing black shorts and white shirts (that will be a little big).  Lake Park is going to be older and taller than we are.  Their team consists of grades 7-11 so we are expecting a tough game where we don’t match up very well.  It should be fun.     

TWO IN A ROW

Arborbrook 39 – Carmel Baptist 36

For the first time in school history, the boys basketball team has won two games in a row.  A modest winning streak but a winning streak none the less.  We have now won 3 out of our last 4 games and our record stands at 4-4.  We would have lost this game two weeks ago but our aggressive defense continues to show improvement game by game.  Carmel was older, taller, and stronger and we did not match up well.  So, how did we win?  We were faster and constantly beat them down the floor.  Carmel had problems with our defense all night long and we ended up with 15 steals for the game.  Carmel scored their points off second, third, and fourth shots because of their height and bulk advantage.  Caleb Farmer, as usual, was the smallest player on the floor but came up with 7 rebounds.  He was whacked, smacked, and knocked to the floor but countinued to go after loose balls and mix with the big boys.  You will never find a more exciting finish.

The Falcons started out slow in the first quarter and fell behind 6-2 before Nate Johnson got on track.  Nate made some great drives and knocked down 3 free throws while Mitch Moore added another basket and we took a 11-6 lead into the 2nd quarter.  Our defense was awesome and Carmel’s offense became frustrated.

The 2nd quarter was tight but Carmel could not break into the lead. Nate, Mitch, Josh Black, and Hank Booth all scored in the quarter and the half time score was 20-14 in favor of the Falcons.

Carmel scored the first 4 points of the 3rd quarter before we went on a 10-0 run. Mitch made a couple of nice shots, Nate found Josh under the basket and then hit a 3 pointer, and Caleb Farmer made 3 of 4 free throws after getting knocked to the floor twice on two fast break drives. Carmel is a good team and did not panic facing a 12 point deficit. They cut the lead to 8 going into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter was not for the faint of heart. We played most of the quarter without Nate but our defense kept us in the game. We went cold from the field and lost the lead with less than two minutes to go in the game. Nate was able to re-enter the game and tied the score with 2 free throws with a minute to go. Carmel quickly drove down the floor and with a great drive to the basket regained the lead at 36-34. Nate was fouled with 30 seconds left and for the first time this season, missed both foul shots. Coach called a time out and instructed the players to go for the steal or foul. With 21 seconds left on the clock Carmel went to the line on a one and one. They missed the foul shot but the ball took a long bounce into the cornor of the court where Trey Barnes out hustled the Carmel player for possession of the ball. Trey quickly passed to Nate who drove the length of the floor, made the shot and was fouled. 14.7 seconds was left in the game when Nate went to the line. His shot was true, we had a one point lead, and the longest 14.7 seconds of the season began. Carmel’s best player took the ball and headed straight for the basket hoping to score or pick up a foul. Our defense came through one last time, forcing the Carmel player to loose control of the ball. Nate was fouled with 1.9 seconds left and we still held a one point lead. Coach backed our players off the foul line to prevent and accidental foul and Nate knocked down both shots. Falcons 39 – Carmel Baptist 36. It doesn’t get any better than this.

For the record:  Nate scored 24 points with 14 rebounds, 5 blocked shots, and 2 steals.  Mitch was our second leading score with 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 steals.  Josh scored 4 points and added 5 rebounds and 1 steal.  Caleb Farmer played his best game of the season scoring 3 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals.  Trey Barnes did not score but added 5 rebounds and picked up several loose balls.  Hank Booth added a basket in the 2nd quarter.

Next game is Friday, Feb 1 against Lake Park Christian.  This will be their first game in their brand new gym.  

HOW TO MEASURE SUCCESS

Boys Basketball Practice – Monday, January 28

Practices on Monday are not nearly as fun as a practice any other day of the week.  Limited gym space dictates drills and conditioning with an occasional new play tossed in.   The drills become repetitious and at times it’s hard to maintain your focus.  With that in mind, we try to introduce new drills as much as possible.  The time has come for us to try a couple of 3 point shots in a game.  Trey Barnes made four 3 pointers in our scrimmage last Friday.  We implemented a new inbounds play that will open up either Trey or Nate for a three point attempt. 

The team huddle centered around success since there are only four weeks left in the season.  The players were asked if they thought the team has been a success so far and what it would take to be successful the last four weeks.  How do the coaches evaluate success?  How do the parents?  How does the school?   If the players take the principles thay have learned on the basketball court and apply to their life off the court and their life in the future, then the season has been successful.  Go the extra mile, play with all your heart, don’t ever give up, are just a few but they can change the direction of your life.

Conditioning is the least fun thing in basketball but the most important.  On Monday’s we do defensive slide around the half court.  None of the players like this drill because it takes so much out of you  and your legs get tired very quickly.  The players run a set then continue walking around the court until the next set.  Coach called four 5 sets with the opportunity to shoot their way out of the last three.  As the players were walking around the court Josh Black stepped to the line and knocked down the free throw.  The pressure is extreme on the shooter because if he misses, they run.  Coach called for the next player to step to the line.  Nate Johnson stepped up and once again made the free throw.  The players were down to one set left and were still walking around the court.  Coach  stated that if the next player shooting made the shot, practice would be over.  Matthew Pedemonte walked to the line, calmly eyed the shot, and swish – end of practice. 

The game tonight is scheduled for 7:30 at Carmal Baptist.  Players should be dressed and ready to go by 7:00. 

MARCH MADNESS

St. Stephen’s 18 – Arborbrook 17 

It may have been only January 25, but March Madness was in full swing for the Lady Falcons on Friday night. The Lady Falcons had split the previous two games with St Stephens and were looking forward to another great game. With Mariah and Johanna out of town, the team was ready to step up big and fill the gap.

The Lady Falcon’s intensity was set early by Victoria Rogers. Her tenacious and gutsy defense set the stage right away, and left no doubt, that Arborbrook was here to play ball. While St Stephens out shot the Lady Falcons by a great margin, the Lady Falcon defense and rebounding made it difficult for those shots to come from a high percentage area.

On the offensive side, the Lady Falcons struggled at times to execute against St Stephen’s high pressure defense with aggressive penetration and confident shooting. But in the style of March Madness, the Lady Falcons found themselves two points down, with the ball, and just seconds left looking at a full court press. After a solid inbounds pass from Siara, Olivia took the ball the length of the court driving deep along the baseline. As the last second clicked off the scoreboard, Olivia exploded from underneath the backboard to drop a ball just over the rim as the buzzer went off. The game went to overtime!

The game continued to be a real nail biter for the entire three minute overtime period. The game again came down to seconds left with the Lady Falcons using their last time out to set up a final inbounds pass and an attack to the bucket. St Stephens high pressure defense of the passing lanes proved too much this time as the Lady Falcons ran out of time, coming up short by just one point to end the game.

The team continues to improve every game and looks forward to the next game that will be played this Saturday, February 2, at Weddington United Methodist Church at 6:00pm.

FALCONS WIN

Arborbrook 52 – Fletcher School 28

Arborbrook improved its record to 3-4 yesterday with an easy win over Fletcher School.  Eleven of the twelve players scored for the Falcons while each player made a major contribution to the victory.  This game is a barometer of how far we have come as a team.  We had taller and better athletes on the floor, but we have had that before.  Our team is just now understanding how to play the game of basketball.   Remember where we started.  Most of the team had never played organized basketball.  They did not know how to dribble, pass, run or shoot.  Most of them did not even know the rules.  If we had played Fletcher the first game of the season the score would have been drasticlly different. 

Our starting five overwhelmed Fletcher in the first 5 minutes of the game building up a 17-2 lead, then found themselves on the bench for the rest of the first half.  This was a chance to give all the other players significant playing time.  The 1st quarter ended with the Falcons leading 17-4.

The second quarter started out slow for both teams.  We must have had 5 or 6 shots roll off the rim but our defense was excellent and we were the more aggressive team.  The score at half time was 21-10.

We mixed our starters with our reserves for the 3rd quarter and put the game away by scoring 18 points.  Nate Johnson, who played only 3 minutes in the third quarter and less than a quarter for the whole game, was very effective at setting up his teammates.  The Falcons made 8 free throws in the 3rd quarter lead by Mitch Moore making 4 straight in a 20 second spand.  The quarter ended with the Falcons leading 39-19.

No member of the starting five played in the fourth quarter but it made little difference.  All our players had gained confidence and we continued to pull away.   The final score was 52-28.  Sports is all about confidence.  Sometimes it takes a game like this to build the confidence you need in order to successfully compete.  We may have turned a cornor, we will see.

Highlights and stats:  Mitch Moore and Nate Johnson lead the team in scoring, each with 14 points.  Nate also had 10 rebounds, 2 steals and was a dominate pressence on the floor.  Mitch played less than a quarter but was all over the floor as usual.  Mitch had 4 rebounds, a steal, a blocked shot, and 2 assists.  Daniel Zangmeister added 5 points along with 7 rebounds and 2 steals.  Daniel is starting to learn how to play defense.  Matthew Pedemonte scored 4 points along with 4 rebounds and 2 steals.  Matthew played outstanding defense this game.  Ryan Brown came from off the bench to play his best game of the season.  Ryan scored 4 points on 2 baskets but helped control the boards with 7 rebounds and picked up several loose balls.  Hank Booth continues to improve also scoring 4 points .  Both Hank’s baskets came off missed shots that he rebounded and put back in.  Joel VanDusen scored 2 points and was also a force under the boards.  Joel came up with 8 rebounds and once again played solid defense.  Trey Barnes played less than a quarter but still knocked down 2 free throws and grabbed 2 rebounds.  Caleb Farmer scored 1 point playing limited time but contributed 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 rebound.  Josh Black also played less than a quarter, hit one free throw, came up with 2 steals and 1 rebound.  Once again, Josh’s defense was outstanding.  Alan Fox had the most hard luck of any player on the floor.  Alan is a 5th grader and the smallest player on the floor.  Alan scored 1 point and made some outstanding plays and some great drives to the basket.  He had 3 shots that rolled around the rim and just wouldn’t drop.  Alan is the future star of this team.  That leaves us with Caleb Robinson who did not score but turned in his best game.  We are having trouble getting Caleb to take any shots but his presence in the game is always felt.  Caleb made the best block of the game and one of the best of the season.  A Fletcher School forward was driving to the basket and put up a shot that Caleb blocked and then caught the ball in the air and quickly passed to our point guard.  It was a great play.  It was a great game.   Our next game is Tuesday, January 29 at 7:15.  We play Carmel Baptist on their home floor.