Las Vegas wasn't built on winners and the Broncos proved that on March 6th. We had no "pep" versus Pepperdine. The pride of a 20 win season evaporated quickly. The eleven point loss belies that we were out of this game early. We scored five points in the first nine minutes.
For whatever reason, we weren't ready to play. OK, we were banged up with two starters hobbled and one, a no go. But after watching the previous game against Portland, Bronco fans were looking for the same type of effort and action.
I'm sure we had a game plan, but, from the start, we played like it was a pickup game vs a post season game. We put an "I" in team with a one-on-one display of turnovers and poor shooting. It was a replay of the loss to LMU at Leavey in front of many SCU basketball alums from the early great years.
Those teams practiced in Seifert Gym, an archaic, iconic building with brick walls, one universal weight machine that was usually broken, a locker room the size of a small conference room and a training staff led by cigar smoking Henry Schmidt. No frills.
Play.
Contrast to today, with bigger training, medical and coaching staffs, academic advisers, real weight rooms, nutrition guidelines, individual strength and conditioning plans, and video reviews of everything. A complete package for players. Soon the Athletics Excellence Center will open and will be a no compromise facility for our team to rebuild a once storied program. We will have it all.
Our talent is noticeably better, but with six WCC teams having 20 win seasons, the talent is getting better across the league and we all know talent alone doesn't ensure winning. Talent got us seventh place in the WCC with a 6-10 record. Only twice in the past 20 seasons has our team lost six straight games in league. The worst being the 2011-12 season losing 16 straight.
The only thing we may be missing is the one thing you can't coach and the fabric of what takes teams to a higher level - Heart.
My simplified definition of Heart is a "refuse to lose" chip on your shoulder. A visceral, deep in the gut desire to bury opponents. Wait, there's more. It's a complete trust in yourself and your teammates to do their job on the court. A stop when you need it. Making an important shot to regain momentum. It's not "hero" time trying to be the man, that's earned, not given. It's a belief created from the stench of hours of sweat in practice to never let your team down.
Just reference Mark Purdy's great Mercury News article this past Monday, March 16th, recapping SCU's improbable win over Arizona in the 1993 NCAA tournament. He quotes Steve Nash's teammate Pete Eisenrich "we don't have anyone 7 feet tall like Arizona, but it has something to do with heart too."
Our coaches have it. You can see it and hear it as the tempers boil over in timeout huddles. It's a fervor and a fever that they need to infect this team with.
We did have significant injuries to deal with. Every team does. That said, we let at least three get away, with frankly, poor play. We don't seem to have a reliable "go to" when games start going south. The top six in the WCC have "go to's."
Enough ranting...
Add it all up and 20-13 is a step up in wins even though a step down in league standings. I worry that some feel that we are now back on track to attain bigger things. IMHO, we've barely laid the foundation for consistent success in Men's Basketball.
To get Bronco Basketball to a top tier program in the WCC or NCAA, everyone - the University, Trustees, Athletic staff, season ticket holders and fans will need to get into the "refuse to lose" mentality and be "go to's" on the way to better. Either all in or not.
And that's The "Heart of the Matter."
You are spot on. We agree with every single thing you said, most eloquently, I might add!! We were also at the tournament and every single home game (& some away). We can only hope the University and Athletic Dept. reads these words and as you stated; Find their HEART & their GO TO GUY! Please keep on blogging & GO BRONCOS.
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