MAINTAINING NORMALCY
By Stan Heath, Arkansas

 

Are we excited to be here? Absolutely. However our goal was not simply to make the NCAA tournament. We want to have success.

When I was an assistant coach at Michigan State, being a part of March Madness was a regular occurrence. Advancing deep into the NCAA tournament was an unbelievable experience. It was also an invaluable experience.

There is just no substitute for experience. Having gone through the rigors of the NCAA tournament has helped me in preparing this team for the challenges that lie ahead. First and foremost that means the Bucknell Bison.

But there were other points of emphasis this week. Among them is the idea of keeping it simple.

There is so much hype and attention surrounding the NCAA tournament, which is what makes it the great event that it is. However, in the end it’s just basketball. The game is still forty-minutes. The length of the court is still ninety-four feet and the basket is ten-feet from the floor. It’s still the same game. Only the environment has changed.

For us, and every team in the tournament, it comes down to one simple truth -- You have to dance with the one you came with.

The selection committee extended invitations based on what you did during the season. Not what they think you may decide to implement now. That last thing you want to do is get away from the things that made you successful. Stay the course. This isn’t the time of the year that you want to start changing things.

And if anything, we want to maintain a sense of normalcy.

I am sure I am not alone when I say that it is important for your team to have some balance. I don’t want our players to be uptight, but I don’t want them to be too loose either. As coaches we want to approach it like “business as usual.”

For our players this is all new. For our opponent, it’s something they are very familiar with.

Coach Pat Flannery’s has a veteran that has the advantage of having been through it all, just twelve months ago. Not only do they have the experience of going through it all, but they also experienced the taste of victory in the NCAA tournament. In the twelve months, since beating Kansas, Bucknell has lost only four games. They won at Syracuse, went undefeated in conference and enter the tournament with a record of 26-4.

The more you watch them on tape, the more you appreciate just how good they are. They do such a nice job of spreading the floor and making their opponent work defensively. And after running the clock down, they get a good look at the basket. However they will take a shot early in the possession, if they get an open look.

Patience and execution are keys to their success. Therefore we will also need to exhibit some patience on the defensive end. We cannot give away possessions. We have to try and disrupt their offensive flow, but we have to be smart. They are very good at taking advantage of anything you give them.

This tournament is wide open. There are a number of teams that could find their way to into the second weekend of the tournament and beyond. I believe that you can make a case for both Arkansas and Bucknell, to be among that group.