Players: Heed this Advice from Coach Wooden

Americans are increasingly busy.  Or so we are lead to believe, anyway.  I’m sure our predecessors who worked on farms or in factories during the 19th century would beg to differ.  The leisurely, simpler times of yesteryear are more myth than reality.  Maybe we are busier today but the pertinent question is:  busy doing what? […]

UCONN Women’s Basketball: A Beacon for All

March Madness jacked up the intensity as second round play began on Saturday.  There will be a new men’s basketball champion crowned this year as Villanova fell to Wisconsin.  Purdue blew a nineteen point second half lead as Iowa State charged ahead before the Boilermakers made enough plays down the stretch to pull out the […]

The Ultimate March Madness Bracket Guide

As the high school sports calendar hits a lull, so too will I take a break as I focus on another passion of mine:  the NCAA Basketball Tournament.  Selection Sunday is upon us, the dawn before the greatest three weekends on the national sports landscape. Like millions of Americans who love, casually observe, or have […]

Tourney 2017: Unsung Heroes, Heroines Lead Title Runs

The day after.  It’s a day that has become an annual tradition for me.  It’s a time to digest the feast that was forty-two games of the Northern Maine Class B, C, and D basketball tournament at Bangor’s Cross Insurance Center.  One doesn’t have to think long when reflecting upon outstanding performances of the week. […]

Favorite Tourney Memories Don’t Involve Basketball

This Friday night will mark my thirty-second year attending high school basketball tournament games.  Over that time I’ve witnessed well over a thousand contests.  Of course there are games that I’ll relive for a lifetime.  I witnessed the Lawrence boys’ major upset in 1986 over Waterville when freshman Troy Scott hit the shot to send […]

Is the Quality of Basketball Down? Maybe not

In numerous travels to gyms throughout northern Maine this winter, I’ve heard the mantra repeated by several veteran basketball observers.  Basketball is down.  Those who utter the expression may have good reason for doing so.  Then again, maybe not. Comparisons are the natural thought process of the sports fan, especially those of us who have […]

Players Resilient in Face of One-Sided Defeats

This past Thursday evening was similar to many other nights during the winter season in Maine, albeit the temperature was in the mid-forties and rain was falling.  It was around 8:30 and I was just arriving home from an evening of high school basketball.  On my phone was a message from a fellow veteran Maine […]