really good?

To get from a pretty good team to a really good team, there are some things we have to do. You have to be superlative in at least one aspect of the game, and atleast adequate in all of them. Last year we were superlative in perimeter defense, but several parts of our game were sub-par, and must improve if we are to step up. Our shooting overall was not good. From the perimeter it was barely adequate, and overall it was just bad. That has to change. Also, defensively we had periods when we just went into meltdown, such as against Creighton. That cannot happen. You are supposed to be consistent on defense and be able to stay in games because of it, not get blown out of games because of it.

fast start

This team needs to be focused and intense from the first day of practice, and the seniors need to demand that that be the tone of the team this season. This is the best opportunity we have had in a long time to make a big splash, and we don't need to blow it by coming out sloppy.

We don't care

We don't care that we get no respect from the media and fans in general, who clamor for the fancy-dan, run-and-gun playground teams. We don't care that we probably won't have anyone on the preseason All-SBC teams. We don't care that we aren't trendy. We just play in-your-face, blue-collar basketball. UALR basketball.

Benchmarks

If I had to set a couple of benchmarks for what I hope our program can become, I would use Butler and Southern Illinois, both in terms of the type of basketball play and their consistency over time. Two really quality programs.

The Butler Way

Quote about the Butler basketball program:

A huge premium has been placed on finding kids who want to play unselfishly, who are respectful of their teammates,, who just want to win. This is a gym rat's program.

Shane Edwards bulking up

Shane Edwards has put on 26 pounds since last season. I can't wait to see how he looks. Since he regularly plays the 4, but really is too small for that spot, this ought to help him.

Just around the corner

The basketball magazines start coming out in just over a week. I'm ready! It has been a long off-season.