Solitary Man

[Wayne23]

12/19: 75-60 at Bryant. It was a battle for 30 minutes, 22 lead changes, 12 ties. At that point we went on a 10-0 run and that settled the issue. 19 for Hill, 10, 6, 4 for Vank, 9, 11, 4 for Spen. Another good defensive game for Ward, and good bench play. +15 RBs, 11 TOs.

No idea what I was thinking a couple of weeks ago when I said we had 2 pre-conf. games left. NOW we have 2 left.

[Wayne23]

12/26: 72-48 over Penn here. We were only up 1 at the half but we had a terrific 2nd half, 41-18. 20, 9, 5 for Vank, 11, 7, 4 for Hill. +12 RBs, 12 TOs.

Registered for my next two law classes. I'll start right away on Jan. 2.

Tim Sales, Bench Coach: Coach Blake is really working magic so far. We have 4 players and a bunch of role players and he's making that work to the tune of an 8-2 record, including a win over LSU. He has a nice touch with subbing in games, seeming to know just when to make the switch, and just when to put the starter back in. Given that we don't have the strongest bench this amazes me. At practice he is an excellent motivator. He doesn't yell much but he gets his point across and the players listen to him. I'm learning a lot about coaching from him.

[Wayne23]

1/2/2049: 70-68 at Long Island. Another close one. They led by 9 with 6 minutes left. We slowly cut it, then we tied it with 42 seconds left. They worked the clock and missed a shot. We brought it down, got it to Gar Spen, and he hit a 12 footer at the buzzer for the win. Cory Ward led us with 15. Spen, Vank, and Hill had 11 each.

We end the pre-conf. season at 9-2, RPI #92. +5.2 PPG, +3.9 RBs, -2.8 TOs, but a lousy 14.6. Hill leads us with 18.3 PPG. Spen gets 7.8 RBs and Vank gets 7.2. Wilk gets 4.4 assists.

[Wayne23]

1/9: 69-66 over Montana here. We were down 16 early. We got it to 9 at the half and slowly cut it down further in the 2nd. We took our first lead with about 10 to play, then built a good lead, as many as 13. They came roaring back and cut it to the final margin with a last second three. Gar Spen led us with 22 and 7. Hill had 14, 3, 3.

Montana isn't close to being the best team in Conf. J so it could be a struggle this season.

[Wayne23]

1/12: 68-78 at Cleveland ST. Back and forth for 30 minutes. We led by as many as 8 at one point. Then they went on an 11-3 run and we never got back in. Their SF really hurt us. Ward couldn't stay with him and Lutz was worse. 17, 5, 3 for Hill, 11, 7 for Vank.

Lutz has the flu. He should be back for our next game. I just hope he doesn't spread it to the other guys.

1/15: I got a letter from a prisoners' rights group. They're one of the dozens of groups I wrote to when I was sentenced and they never answered. Now, after all this time they're writing to say that they have decided my case has merit and they want to meet with me. They'll be here on Friday.

Do I dare to even hope?

[Wayne23]

1/16: 68-82 at NC-Greensboro. We stayed with them for about 15 minutes and then they took over. Their PG lit us up. We had 22 TOs. 20, 2, 4 for Hill, 14, 9 for Spen.

It's early but I'm not sure we have enough talent to compete in Conf. J. I'm splitting time at SF three ways for the next couple of games. Let's see whether Ward, Lutz, or guard Cory Kest jumps at the chance.

I'm prepping for my meeting with the lawyer from "Born Free." I want to present what happened and what I see as what should have happened and what should happen now to free me, and I want to present all of it in as logical and succinct a way as possible.

[Wayne23]

1/19: 49-67 at Hawaii. Nice trip. Beautiful island. Awful game. Down 22-41 at the half. We shot a horrific 27.5% with 24 TOs, 15 of them by our guards. Kest had 13, 2, 3, but 4 TOs. Hill had 18, 4 but 7 TOs.

I'm running out of things to try.

1/20: The lawyer from "Born Free" was a young woman, the first woman I've seen since I got locked up 7 years ago. As invested as I am in the hope that I can wind up getting a retrial or a re-sentencing I have to say that I was more than distracted by seeing a woman.

I apologized to her after a while because i knew it had to be obvious.

"Look, I'm sorry. I haven't seen a woman in seven years. I'm a gentleman and I'll act like one, but it's very distracting to speak to a woman and to even look at one."

"Would you prefer we send a male next time?"

"No! I can handle it, and I'll do all I can not to make you feel uncomfortable. I just wanted to get it out there."

That kind of cleared the air.

She stayed for two hours, which was allowed because she's viewed as my attorney now. We were in a room with a guard. I was handcuffed to the table we were at "for her protection." Not unreasonable, I suppose.

She seemed to think there were legal avenues we could pursue. There was no question that I had killed both Mike and my wife, but she and "Born Free" thought the sentence was a terrible injustice.

We'll meet again in a month on 2/20.

[Wayne23]

1/23: 62-47 over Santa Clara here. Up 13 at the half. Nice to win one for a change. 16, 10, 4 for Vank, 22 for Hill. 11 TOs.

Gabe Lutz: Coach has screwed with me about every way it can be done. He just told me Kest and Ward are getting pretty much all of my minutes. I'm thinking about leaving the team. Who needs this crap.

[Wayne23]

1/16: 60-61 at La Salle. Very tough loss. We didn't play well or shoot well but we lost it on a halfcourt shot. 11, 12 for Spen, 16 for Vank, 12, 3, 3 for Hill.

We're 2-4 in conference play and one loss away from last place.

Bench Coach Tim Sales: We're doing horribly in Conf. play but we've played a lot of the top teams and most of the games were on the road. I think we'll play at least .500 ball in Conf. Even that is disappointing since we were picked to win it, but at this point it looks good.

[Wayne23]

1/30: 72-65 over George Mason here. There were lots of lead changes but the last 7-8 minutes were ours. 17, 4, 6 for Hill, 15, 9 for Spen. 11 TOs.

We looked good tonight. There's no place like home, I guess.

Cory Kest: I played 24 minutes tonight and I thought I did well. I shut my guy down and scored 6, with 7 RBs. I'm a guard, more a PG than anything else, but I think I'm doing okay at SF.