Courtland?s girls basketball players were expecting an easier homework assignment, but instead they received one that was downright painful to complete.
As the Cougars broke practice Thursday afternoon, coach J.T. Nino handed the players copies of game film from last year?s Group AA, Division 4 state playoffs.
They thought they?d be dissecting video of last year?s stroll-in-the-park state semifinal victory over Salem, their opponent tonight in the state championship game at VCU?s Siegel Center.
But what Nino gave them was copies of their blowout loss to Millbrook in last year?s title contest.
?We were like, ?Oh man, we already know how this is going to turn out,?? Courtland senior guard Jessica Hairston said. ?He only does it to make us feel what we felt last year, so we would know that we do not want that feeling again.?
The Cougars lost last year?s championship game, 63?38, and haven?t been able to shake the memory of the pain they felt afterward.
Hairston watched a replay of the game the night of the loss and chose not to view it again until Thursday night.
Courtland?s Janae McNeal hadn?t seen any replays of the game until Friday.
?It was hard to watch. I didn?t want to watch it, but I knew I needed to,? McNeal, a senior guard, said.
Nino didn?t want the Cougars to fill their minds with memories of their 70?30 win over Salem in last year?s semifinals. He wanted them to remember how much of a challenge it is playing on the biggest stage.
He wanted them to remember what it was like when, in their excitement, they rushed their passes and threw them out of bounds. He wanted them to remember what it was like to get out-hustled to a rebound, what it was like to miss shots they had made all year.
The state championship game is unlike any other game, and Courtland knows it?s easy to get wrapped up in the magnitude of it all.
That?s a mistake the Cougars vow not to make this year.
?Being able to experience a state championship game, whether you win or lose, the experience I think pays huge dividends as opposed to a state semifinal or state quarterfinal game,? said Nino, who won a state championship as Courtland?s boys head coach in 2009.
?There?s a completely different feel to it, so being able to go through that last year?whether it helps, I don?t know, but I think we?ll be more relaxed going into [tonight] than we were last year.?
Courtland (28?3) hasn?t shot as consistently as Nino would like, and the Cougars have yielded 50 or more points in each of their last two games?they allowed 50 or more only three times (all losses) in their previous 29 games?but he says his team is playing with high energy and doing the small things to pull out victories.
?I think we made plays that don?t count on the stat sheet?diving on the floor, getting loose balls, little things that pull us through in key games,? Nino said. ?We?ve been good in the state tournament, but we haven?t been great, so those intangible things have been getting us through.?
Hairston credits that to the focus the team has had all season.
?Our coaching staff is always telling us the people that dive on the floor, the people who go after those extra balls, they win the games,? Hairston said.
Hairston has been critical to the Cougars? run in the state playoffs. She has taken advantage of her opportunities to make plays as teams have made more of an effort to take McNeal out of games.
Hairston had 24 points and 17 rebounds in Courtland?s semifinal victory over Bassett on Tuesday night and is averaging 25 points in the state playoffs.
?Janae has done a great job trying to play well when she has two or three girls around her at all times, and it really has opened things up for Jess as well, and she?s made teams pay for it,? Nino said.
Salem (25?3) will try to stymie McNeal and Hairston with its matchup zone, and it will rely heavily on senior guard Tay Taylor, a Wake Forest commit, to generate offense.
Taylor, the River Ridge District and Region IV player of the year, is averaging 20 points in the state playoffs. She had 24 points in the Spartans? 51?38 semifinal win over Loudoun County.
?I moved her from point guard to the two-guard to give her less stress so she can score more for us,? Salem coach DeWayne Harrell said. ?Her jump shot has improved this year, and I think her defense off the ball has improved also.
?She?s playing well right now, and the girls are feeding off of her, which is a good thing.?
Harrell knows Courtland likes to run at a fast pace, and he thinks his team can handle that. What he?s most wary of, however, is the Cougars? ability to get to loose balls and convert those opportunities into quick points.
?They rebound well, and when they rebound, they push the ball up the court,? Harrell said. ?We?ll have to box out on offense and defense, and we have to get back on defense. We?ve got to limit their fast break and control the ball better.?
Nino talked to his players this week about re-focusing on defense, which has been the team?s calling card throughout its run of success the last few years.
The players know not to expect the same outcome as last year?s game against Salem. Defense and rebounding will be critical if Courtland expects to beat the Spartans again.
Hairston and McNeal are among the group of seven seniors that has one more opportunity to earn a state ring. They don?t want to take this opportunity for granted, because they know how quickly it can go away.
They have the tape to remind them.
?We learned that anything can happen, because last year we had that undefeated run all the way to the championship, and then we lost,? McNeal said. ?This year we know regardless of our record, anything can happen, so we have to go all out on the floor and give up everything.?
Nathan Warters: 540/374-5442
nwarters@freelancestar.com
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TUNE IN
DIVISION 4 FINAL
Courtland vs. Salem
WHEN: Tonight, 7 p.m.
WHERE: Siegel Center, Richmond
TV: Channel 50
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Source: http://news.fredericksburg.com/sports/2013/03/09/girls-basketball-2012-tape-keeps-cougars-focused/
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