Somewhere in America

[Serafino74]

It's time for Morgan State to visit us, a historically black university, like ours, from Baltimore, but in the meantime something very sad happened, a likeable student of the university lost his life without the causes of death being known. Terric Carr, a sophomore music major was a member of the University’s Show Choir. Τhe moments were very difficult for all of us and we were looking for ways to find the strength to move forward. R.I.P.

Morgan State belongs to Mid-Eastern Athletic with a 12 prestige something that doesn't scare us, but their roster is very strong and objectively is a clear favorite against us, especially in the psychological state we were in because of Eric's death. We started numb with our minds out of the court, with a lot of missed shots and with wrong choices, and normally we reached the half time staying 20 points behind (26-46). Everything seemed to have already been judged. During the break, I didn't talk to them about basketball at all, my primary objective was to bring the team into a state of oneness.

In the second half the guys moved me a lot with their effort, we came very close to turning the game around but we missed the last shot 2 seconds before the end (76-77). I planned the last play so that the madman Reggie Horwath got the shot but an extra pass out of the plan forced him to make the shot under very difficult conditions! Simon Tarver(SF 3.5 overall) who gave us 15 in the previous victory was overwhelmed by the loss and was left without points without even shooting a single shot in 11 minutes. Τhe starting Center Aaron Bland (1.5 / 2.0) that I generally didn't have much respect for, replacing him often with the two tall Power Forwards was the pleasant surprise scoring 14 points being the team's top scorer in the game. Reggie Horwath is the most stable player in the first two games, scoring 12 points today with 4/8 three points.

[Wayne23]

Teams develop. It's good to be flexible and to watch carefully to see who exceeds your expectations and who doesn't meet them. If I may make a suggestion, next season, during the week of November 6, play 2 exhibition games and not who plays well and who doesn't. I do that and give my top 10 players 20 minutes each and then just sim the exhibition games. I learn a good deal from this.

[Serafino74]

Thanx for the advise Wayne!

[Serafino74]

It's time for our third game, the second in a row at home against the Salukis from Southern Illinois, a team with a developed prestige (33) in an even more respectable conference (Missouri Valley, prestige 44). But Salukis? Where can this name come from?

Salukis are one of the earliest dog breeds, dating back to 3600 B.C., and rose to prominence during the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt, when they frequently appeared in ancient Egyptian artwork on tombs. Therein lies the natural tie to Southern Illinois, a region which is frequently referred to as "Little Egypt." I hope they know how to swim well to get through the Mississipi!

However, they come with a very strong roster and a lot of depth on the bench and our mission will be really difficult. We will not have Donnie Bond(PG 1.5-2.0) with us (a sore arm, out for 6 days) but he had 1.0 point and 0 assists in 8 minutes on average so........ Chris Simmons (SF 3.5) will start in his natural position as Tarver's super performance in the first game did not show the whole truth, and I do not want to spoil the psychology of our best player by leaving him for the second game out of the starting five(even if his performance in both games was below average and well below expectations). Mark Ford (SG 2.5) will start at Point Guard position cause has better handling and passing from Jenkins (PG 1.0/3.5). I tried it at the beginning of the first game and it didn't work but i will try it again now.

In the first 2.5 minutes, Mark Ford already made 2 turnovers but also scored 2 points, Center Aaron Bland (1.5 / 2.0) has two fouls and crazy Reggie missed the first shot and is constantly asking for the ball, he will obviously indulge in a ruthless shooting spree!
Ιndeed this is the case and the second consecutive finds the target. Chris Simmons is not taking any initiative at the moment but he is dominating the rebounds. Two minutes after Aaron Bland makes his 3rd foul and I turn him on the bench, from the morning he didn't look in a good mood and he proved it early! Matt Marsh who replaced him drills the trifecta. Αnd it's the third consecutive game to try and score a three-pointer. Strange for a center in old-fashioned basketball that I teach.....

At half time we lose by 6 points (30-36). Mark Ford has made four turnovers and has permanently canceled my experiment. I look at him with a look like Bobby Knight would look at him on the day of his most painful defeat! I changed him with his brother, Robert Ford, who sits on the bench as the fourth shooting guard, and he did much better. Mark was even angry with his brother, who is a gentleman in and out of the court.

In the second half, a very poor quality game was played, with many turnovers on both sides, but the Salukis shot with very bad percentage (only 35%), the fact is that our good defense also played a role in this. We won 66-56. Our main PF, Travis Day, was the only one to have a double-digit number of points (13) while center Aaron Bland dropped 9 rebounds. I'm just happy with the altruism we showed, especially when the madman Reggie Horwath was resting on the bench.

[Serafino74]

The white sports car rolled slowly into the fog and headed for where the patrol car was. The car was driven by Mark Ford. He tried to stay cool with the flashlight blinding him. He decided that the ideal plan for the police not to search the car was to admit from the beginning that he did not have a driver's license. However, the dialogue with the police officer sowed panic in the young shooting guard. So he made a change, got back in the car, turned on the engine, and drove away at high speed. After a few minutes, Mark Ford quickly reached a crossroads on the boulevard and lost control. He first hit a "stop" sign and then a "no parking" sign before it became a ping pong ball among parked cars in the neighborhood. He jumped out of the car and started running but in vain because everyone knew which university he was attending and the only easy thing was to find him. In his panic he forgot to throw a vial of cocaine which was in the car locker. It all happened the night after the game! A young man reacted in the worst way to the frustration of his poor performance and what followed. My job, but also my obligation, was to help him with all my strength. I told the police what had happened before and did what I could to persuade everyone to give him a second chance!

[Serafino74]

Eventually everyone realized that the kid had made a big mistake in his frustration, and because he hadn't bothered anyone again with his behavior he was given a second chance by everyone.
It's time for a trip to Florida to play with Florida Atlantic University (Prestige 20) from Conference USA(Prestige 44). Τheir best player, Brodney Dyce(PF, 3.5 Overall, 11.5 PPG,9.0 RPG) has a minor injury and looks set to miss the game, something which of course favors us, while coming from a heavy defeat (58-80 from the Alabama Crimson Tide). A heavy defeat either brings the team together or discourages it, you can never be sure what is going to happen!

Boca Raton, Florida, is the southernmost city in Palm Beach County. Τhe seaside place made the guys more carefree, with the mind constantly focused on the beautiful girls we met on the street. To be honest, it didn't bother me at all, these are young dudes and it's very normal, after all, we are not in the special forces of army, we play basketball.

42-42 at Half Time, very high score, and I wonder how we manage to stand up to their very good percentages (6-12 threes and 64% field goals). Αll of our players were on the scoreboard except Mark Ford who is basically with his head bowed but we all give him courage!

In the second half, the owls gained a difference of 10 points, and did not lose it until the end. Final score 71-79. They killed us with three-pointers (11-24) while their supposedly injured Brodney Dyce(PF, 3.5 Overall, 11.5 PPG,9.0 RPG) played normally without any problems with his energy. Mind games............ Chris Simmons (SF 3.5) had his first double double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. We now stand at 2-2.

In the evening we all drank plenty of beers together at ''Barrel of Monks Brewing'', South Florida’s most popular microbrewery. Their products are inspired by traditional Belgian beers that have remained largely unchanged for centuries. Travis Day (PF), our tough dude fell asleep in the bathroom............

[Serafino74]

The Florida trip was the beginning of four away games. In the second of the four we will visit the Southern Illinois to face the university of SIU-Edwardsville, the Cougars have only 2 points of prestige and record 1-3 while they are playing in Ohio Valley Conference(prestige 33).

We visit the Volo Auto Museum where it is on display a Dodge Charger from the "Dukes of Hazzard" television show with the Confederate flag painted atop the vehicle. The flag is increasingly viewed as a symbol of racism. NASCAR has banned it and it's being removed from the Mississippi state flag. But the Volo Auto Museum says the famed "General Lee" from the first season of the TV show isn't going anywhere.

There is a problem of injury, the madman Reggie Horwath will not be with us for a week. In his honor, he decided to follow the team and not to be relaxed. This is an opportunity for Andy Williams, the player who is first on the team at Efficiency, to take more time and show how far he can go.

In the first half we shot very very badly (9/31 field goals, only 27%, the worst half until now, and 1/10 threes.......). We lose by 12 points (33-45) and if we weren't good in rebounds and in drawing fouls we would have been completely humilated!

They finally humiliated us in the second half (58-80). We have a clear problem with the position of playmaker, and while we have plenty of shooting guards, no one seems to know the role properly except for the injured Reggie Horwath. Οur percentages were simply trash (19/58 with 3/17 three-pointers). The only survivors of the shipwreck were our two main tall ones, our main PF, Travis Day, who made 15 points while center Aaron Bland had 10 points...
Τhis is the first time since the beginning of the season that there is concern, the problems seem permanent and it is not a matter of a bad day ...........

[Wayne23]

It takes time to build the team you want. And injuries don't help. For me, Ball Handling, Defense and Rebounding are the things I focus on most. I pay little attention to scoring; that seems to take care of itself. For big men I look for Defense and Rebounding. For guards I look for Defense and Ball Handling. Others play differently, of course.

[Serafino74]

I will probably understand some things as the game progresses, because now it seems a bit confusing to me, I'm trying to see how the attributes affect the players in the game, and I have to make them clear (and this should be the case for almost any aspect) because the game becomes addictive as you eliminate the ''random'' feel as possible. But this is something that definitely needs imagination as well!

[Serafino74]

We are getting ready for the first real crash test, we are going to play with the three-star South Carolina with prestige 57 from a very strong conference(Southeaster, prestige 77). I was instructed to present ourselves without stress, after all we come from a series of defeats with opponents of lower strength than them, we will play in an arena with 18000 fans (Colonial Life Arena) and all we can do is have fun and play as best we can.

But inside I was anxious to see who would play well in such a difficult game, whoever managed to overcome it will be considered very important for me and the team. I'm very sorry that the crazy Reggie Horwath will lose this game due to his minor injury. Of course, in the roster comparison we are weaker in all positions!

We started very well in the first 10 minutes, we were motivated, we played very good defense, probably at the same time our opponents treated us with great relaxation, they underestimated us. In the second ten minutes of the first half they managed to get a difference of around 10 points, but we did not show any signs of collapse in any case. Andy Williams who replaced Reggie Horwath at the starting five, he plays very good with 7 points, 3 assists and 2 blocks in 14 minutes!
In the second half, they took our underpants(55-86), we couldn't score in any way while they did anything they wanted in the court. Our very bad percentages (nearly turns into a curse) continued in this game as well, 22/58 FG, 3/14 3 Pointers...........Chris Simmons (SF 3.5) had 14 points and 8 rebounds, Simon Tarver(SF 3.5 overall) 11 points and 5 rebounds. Our two natural point guards very rarely manage to give more than one assist!