"We Are, A-R!" Weekly Update #6

With two scrimmages next week, we’ve been going with more intrasquad scrimmaging in practices lately.  As I’ve said before, we have an inexperienced group so we need to put them in game situations as much as possible so when the real games start it’s hopefully not as overwhelming.

What has the result of these intrasquad scrimmages been like?  Mixed.  The talent level is still evident, when we get shots we tend to make them but we’ve been a little too reliant on our perimeter shooting thus far and settling for a quick shot instead of finding a better one later in the shot clock.

With that said, there’s definitely a give and take as we’ve been turning the ball over far too much in practice as well.  Hopefully we can get that under control or we’ll have to employ the “shoot it before you turn it over” offensive philosophy.

One good thing from our scrimmaging is the intensity of practices has picked up considerably.  The monotony of doing drills can wear on guys so when they get the chance to run up and down more their energy level really picks up.  We need to carry that over to drills as well, but at least we know the guys will compete hard with the scoreboard on.

On Tuesday, November 1^st we’ll be scrimmaging at North Central University in downtown Minneapolis, then on Friday, November 4^th Crown College will be coming to Anoka-Ramsey.  Both schools are NCAA Division III and should give us a good idea of where we stand and what we need to improve upon before our first two games in Iowa.

We’ll have an update on the North Central scrimmage next week.  Also, we hope to get some more photos and player features up on the site soon, so keep checking back in the coming weeks.

Say it with me...

“We Are, A-R!”

"We Are, A-R!" Weekly Update #5

The injury bug has struck. 

Last week sophomore forward Max Wessel rolled his ankle and is likely out until mid-November.  We’re hopeful he’ll be back in time for our first games in Iowa on November 11-12 but we’ll have to take it day by day. 

We have some other bumps and bruises, nothing terribly serious, but enough to have an impact on practices.  They guys are really starting to discover the grind of being a college basketball player as well as a student.  It’s not easy juggling life, school, and basketball all at once and our guys are getting a heavy dose of that lesson.

We’re also discovering that we’re not in as great of condition as we thought initially.  We’ve been trying to make up for that at the end of every practice so hopefully we can get where we need to be conditioning-wise in the next three weeks.

Despite some of these issues, our outlook is still extremely positive.  The talent level hasn’t wavered; it’s just a matter of consistently bringing the right level of energy and the right mental focus day in and day out.

Also, check out the new Health and Wellness Center Construction page on the left hand menu.  We’ll post pictures of the progress that is being made every once in awhile.

Say it with me...

“We Are, A-R!”

"We Are, A-R!" Weekly Update #4

The JUCO Jam on Sunday was a real benefit to our players.  They got a chance to face some other competition for once, and since we have a relatively inexperienced team it was good for them to get some game action with officials, score, clock, etc.

Officially we went 1-2 on the day losing to Southeastern and Southwestern before defeating Sauk Valley in our final game.  That final game was a fantastic team display.  I don’t remember the exact numbers but we won by about 25 or so and I’m pretty sure we held Sauk Valley to less than ten points in the second half (games were two 20-minute running time halves).

The highlights of that final game:

1)      Jimmy Sauser hit 4-5 threes in the second half alone

2)      6’0” guard Lemuel Doe had a drive down the lane from the left wing with a power one-handed dunk in traffic

3)      Shortly after that dunk, Doe stole the ball around mid-court on the left sideline, pushed the ball up 2-3 dribbles and hit a streaking David Hicks up the right sideline for an alley-oop dunk

Overall there was inconsistency in our play and the guys had a chance to face some adversity they weren’t accustomed to, but those things were expected by us coaches.  But there was also some fantastic team play and some positives to take away from the experience. 

The best part was the guys coming together in that final game to end the day on a high note.  We also got some great feedback from other college coaches on our team and players.

We have a few weeks now before our first exhibition game on November 1^st and the guys are excited to continue working toward improving as a team.

Say it with me...

“We Are, A-R!”

"We Are, A-R!" Weekly Update #3

This week’s “update” isn’t much of an update since not a whole lot has changed from last week. 

The guys are excited to head to Iowa on Sunday for the JUCO Jam.  Here is the schedule for the day:

1:00pm – vs. Southeastern (IA) Community College – Court 6

3:00pm – vs. Southwestern (IA) Community College – Court 2

5:00pm – vs. Sauk Valley (IL) Community College – Court 4

Southeastern is a NJCAA Division I school and according to the NJCAA website, they finished 26-9 last season.  Southwestern is a NJCAA Division II school and finished 15-13 last season.  Sauk Valley is another NJCAA Division I school and they finished 14-17 last season.

So we’ll have some good competition down there.

The games will be played at the University of Northern Iowa Wellness and Recreation Center.

Next week’s update will focus on how we performed in Iowa.

That’s all for now.

Say it with me...

“We Are, A-R!”