Michelle Roof: System Coach

It is always interesting to hear a coach's reaction to their first System game.  So I thought you would like to hear Michelle's insights regarding our first scrimmage last Friday.

She did a great job handling the team, taking input from the assistants, answering players' questions, and remaining (outwardly) calm.  Michelle has such a  professional demeanor on the bench,  but here's an insight into her what was going on on the inside as she shares what her thoughts  during the scrimmage.  Enjoy!
 

On Friday night we had our first team scrimmage against Doug’s old team, Olivet Nazarene. 

Coming into the game I was a little uneasy about a few of our concepts, primarily the back-side of our press and half-court trap. Let’s be honest … I was nervous after only two weeks of practice about pairing our girls up  against a team of scholarship athletes that has been running the system for 9 years.

Although I felt confident in our ability to attack and get shots on the offensive end, I was very worried about giving up easy lay-ups due to our lack of communication or experience running our trapping defense. This week was "Press Week" in practice, and we spent 4 whole days teaching them everything they needed to know about attacking, denying, trapping, anticipating, rotating … you get the picture. Plenty of time, right??

As the game began, I couldn’t believe the tenacity I saw in my team as they attacked and smothered ball-handlers in the full-court. I could see their confidence build with every trap and forced turnover, and the excitement in their eyes when they (and I) realized it actually worked!   As their confidence grew, so did their aggressiveness! We weren’t always trapping with the closest two people, rotating correctly, or even remembering to always have a safety, but the chaos and confusion we created for the offensive team was so much fun to see. 

On the offensive end we were a little hesitant. Players are not naturally inclined to catch and attack immediately in the half-court, and we passed the ball around a little too much instead of driving to the hoop and creating shots. We got a little better as the game progressed and created so many fast break opportunities with our pressure defense that we still ended up getting great shots … and scoring 94 points in our first game!

All in all, the pace of the game was so fast!  I was especially pleased with how effective we were at running the System after only 10 days of practice. To say that the game was fun is a total understatement … it was the MOST FUN I have had coaching a team in 11 years on the sidelines!! And the players had a BLAST playing! The energy and intensity they played with and the excitement in their faces at the end of the game was unlike anything I’ve seen.   Our players were so enthusiastic during the game--both on the court and on the bench--and although we didn’t win, they gave it their all and enjoyed every second of it. They can’t wait to get on the court and play again, and neither can I!