DENVER - The wait is just about over for the Pioneers, who leave for Spain tomorrow morning. Today marks the 10th and final practice day the team is allowed prior to departure, and the players worked as hard as they do every time they hit the court.
The bus pulls out just tomorrow after 10 a.m., and the Pioneers will fly to Dallas before the long flight to Madrid, which lands around 10 a.m. local time the next morning.
The Pioneers will have a day to get acclimated before playing their first of six games on Thursday night against Real Canoe.
"We're looking forward to it," junior guard Brian Stafford said. "It's going to be great opportunity to see how far we've gotten the past couple of years, and I'm looking forward to seeing where we are now going into this year."
While everyone is excited about the trip, head coach Joe Scott took a moment to explain the purpose of taking this team to Spain.
"From a pure basketball standpoint, we're going on this trip to take other step in growing up and being a mature basketball team," Scott said. "In the last three years, we have won more games every year, but we've also lost certain games. We should know by now that every single game is the hardest game we're ever going to play. Every single game, the other team is trying to do the same thing to you: throw you out of the way, bully you, have their way with you from a physical standpoint. We're going on this trip to get a head start on saying, 'We're not going to let that happen to us anymore.' We need to know that every time we step on the court, it's about knowing that's what the game is going to be like and caring so much about being so physical, aggressive and disciplined, and doing it the University of Denver way."
Playing six professional teams should allow the Pioneers to improve from a physical, aggressive and discipline standpoint, and to do so long before the traditional first official practice of the year in mid-October. Playing these games should help create good habits that can then be carried into the season.
"We're taking this team because this team has shown the ability to grow, to stick with it, to fight through some hard times and to get better," Scott said. "As that's gone on, they've shown off the court that it's important to them. They've done a nice job off the court. We've worked hard here to not beat ourselves, on the court or off the court. If you want to take a trip like this, you've got to go with guys that know it's about being honest and being truthful and being good decision makers. Now they're going to learn that when you act that way, this is the type of opportunity you get. When we're over there, we're going to act that way, too."
Fans who have watched the Pioneers during the past three seasons have seen the progress. Since Scott took over a team that won four games the previous season, the Pioneers have constantly improved, going from 11 wins in 2007-08 to 15 wins in 2008-09 and finally to 19 wins last season. Additionally, the Pioneers have excelled in the classroom, combining for a 3.32 grade point average last year.
"These guys have worked hard on the court, and they've worked hard off the court. And we've gotten better," Scott said. "Usually in life when you do things that way, good things come to you. Having the opportunity to go over to Spain with their teammates, whom they like, and play games, see a foreign country and have an experience like that, that's a pretty lucky thing to be able to do. I think they understand that, so we're going to go over there, and we're going to have fun on and off the court."
As for the teams that Denver will face, Spain is known for having one of the top leagues in European basketball, so the coaches and players know each game will provide a good challenge.
"We know we're playing some really good teams," Stafford said. "Spain has one of the best leagues in Europe, and we're going to play two teams from the top league in Spain, so we know we're playing some really good players out there. It will be a good test for us, and we're all looking forward to seeing how well we can do."
Teams in Liga ACB, the Spanish basketball league, are split into divisions. Teams in the lower divisions can move up if they play well, while teams in the upper divisions can move down if they play poorly during a season. In American terms, it's the equivalent of a Triple-A baseball team playing very well one season and taking the spot of a Major League team that struggled during that year.
Usually, the top tier teams do not play touring college teams, but the Pioneers will face a pair of them in Cajasol Sevilla and Lagun Aro Gipuzkoa BC. DU will also face four teams from the second and third divisions.
"We're playing a couple teams that are in the top league," Scott said. "I don't know how we got them to play us, but because our school year starts later, it's a good time to go because it matches up better with their preseason training camps. We got lucky in that regard, and we got lucky that we have a good mix between the divisions. But like I told our guys at the end of practice today, I don't care who we're playing. We need to get to the point where we don't care who we're playing, we don't care who they have and we don't care what their name is. We always walk on the court to play Denver basketball. We're going out there to care about ourselves and to constantly work on that. We're going to go over to Spain, and that's what we're going to do. I know this trip can help prepare us to get better in the areas we have to. It's hard to believe it's here, but we had our practices and we're ready to go. We'll be ready to play our first game on August 26."
The bus pulls out just tomorrow after 10 a.m., and the Pioneers will fly to Dallas before the long flight to Madrid, which lands around 10 a.m. local time the next morning.
The Pioneers will have a day to get acclimated before playing their first of six games on Thursday night against Real Canoe.
"We're looking forward to it," junior guard Brian Stafford said. "It's going to be great opportunity to see how far we've gotten the past couple of years, and I'm looking forward to seeing where we are now going into this year."
While everyone is excited about the trip, head coach Joe Scott took a moment to explain the purpose of taking this team to Spain.
"From a pure basketball standpoint, we're going on this trip to take other step in growing up and being a mature basketball team," Scott said. "In the last three years, we have won more games every year, but we've also lost certain games. We should know by now that every single game is the hardest game we're ever going to play. Every single game, the other team is trying to do the same thing to you: throw you out of the way, bully you, have their way with you from a physical standpoint. We're going on this trip to get a head start on saying, 'We're not going to let that happen to us anymore.' We need to know that every time we step on the court, it's about knowing that's what the game is going to be like and caring so much about being so physical, aggressive and disciplined, and doing it the University of Denver way."
Playing six professional teams should allow the Pioneers to improve from a physical, aggressive and discipline standpoint, and to do so long before the traditional first official practice of the year in mid-October. Playing these games should help create good habits that can then be carried into the season.
"We're taking this team because this team has shown the ability to grow, to stick with it, to fight through some hard times and to get better," Scott said. "As that's gone on, they've shown off the court that it's important to them. They've done a nice job off the court. We've worked hard here to not beat ourselves, on the court or off the court. If you want to take a trip like this, you've got to go with guys that know it's about being honest and being truthful and being good decision makers. Now they're going to learn that when you act that way, this is the type of opportunity you get. When we're over there, we're going to act that way, too."
Fans who have watched the Pioneers during the past three seasons have seen the progress. Since Scott took over a team that won four games the previous season, the Pioneers have constantly improved, going from 11 wins in 2007-08 to 15 wins in 2008-09 and finally to 19 wins last season. Additionally, the Pioneers have excelled in the classroom, combining for a 3.32 grade point average last year.
"These guys have worked hard on the court, and they've worked hard off the court. And we've gotten better," Scott said. "Usually in life when you do things that way, good things come to you. Having the opportunity to go over to Spain with their teammates, whom they like, and play games, see a foreign country and have an experience like that, that's a pretty lucky thing to be able to do. I think they understand that, so we're going to go over there, and we're going to have fun on and off the court."
As for the teams that Denver will face, Spain is known for having one of the top leagues in European basketball, so the coaches and players know each game will provide a good challenge.
"We know we're playing some really good teams," Stafford said. "Spain has one of the best leagues in Europe, and we're going to play two teams from the top league in Spain, so we know we're playing some really good players out there. It will be a good test for us, and we're all looking forward to seeing how well we can do."
Teams in Liga ACB, the Spanish basketball league, are split into divisions. Teams in the lower divisions can move up if they play well, while teams in the upper divisions can move down if they play poorly during a season. In American terms, it's the equivalent of a Triple-A baseball team playing very well one season and taking the spot of a Major League team that struggled during that year.
Usually, the top tier teams do not play touring college teams, but the Pioneers will face a pair of them in Cajasol Sevilla and Lagun Aro Gipuzkoa BC. DU will also face four teams from the second and third divisions.
"We're playing a couple teams that are in the top league," Scott said. "I don't know how we got them to play us, but because our school year starts later, it's a good time to go because it matches up better with their preseason training camps. We got lucky in that regard, and we got lucky that we have a good mix between the divisions. But like I told our guys at the end of practice today, I don't care who we're playing. We need to get to the point where we don't care who we're playing, we don't care who they have and we don't care what their name is. We always walk on the court to play Denver basketball. We're going out there to care about ourselves and to constantly work on that. We're going to go over to Spain, and that's what we're going to do. I know this trip can help prepare us to get better in the areas we have to. It's hard to believe it's here, but we had our practices and we're ready to go. We'll be ready to play our first game on August 26."
No comments:
Post a Comment