Many of our local hoops teams are gearing up for a post-season run. It is a great time of year. I have seen several games, and I want to wish my friends the best of luck. There are a few surprises, and some teams are playing well. Props South. I plan to take a detailed look at the District IV boys and gals pairings in next week’s column.

I have been around the game of basketball for many years. I have so many great memories and thrills. I recently had a conversation with a former player. He was a stud. Our interaction made me smile. We couldn’t stop laughing.

Kevin Anderson did some impressive things when he was at St. John. He was named the PIAA A Player of the Year. Kevin went to play at the University of Delaware. Anderson is even playing professionally. I only coached Kevin for one season, but we stayed in touch. I did Paul Pectavage a solid that year and agreed to help him out at the very last minute. I was the JUNIOR HIGH BOSS for the Knights in 2013. One of my favorite assignments ever. No pressure to win, and we had a blast. I helped mold some outstanding young lads.

It was a lonely bench. My son Jensen served as our assistant coach. He was 4 years old. Sometimes, we only had 6 players for both contests. Maybe Kevin and Marty got into trouble. No worries. They learned from it.

I remember one night in particular. Our guys were just awesome. We picked up a surprising win in the 7th grade game. No time to celebrate as the same six had to suit up for 8th grade. We were competitive in the first few minutes. Then, it was starting to slip. I called a timeout and gave them some pep. “HEY GUYS. I AM SO PROUD OF YOU. KEEP SCRAPPING. YOU ARE REALLY PLAYING WELL. DOES ANYONE NEED A SHORT BREAK? (4 of the 6 hands went up) I will never forget that moment. I was dying. We went on to lose by 25. But it didn’t matter. My guys finished both games. Never underestimate the FBLA. The Future Business Leaders of America.

There was another game where I called a timeout and diagramed a simple play on the whiteboard. Jensen got mad. Because he used it to draw his circles. We needed a bucket, and I wanted to get one of the guys a look. “OUR BALL UNDER OUR BASKET. FISH TAKE IT OUT AND PASS TO THE CORNER. GOOSE PASS IT TO THE WING AND SET A SCREEN HERE. FISH YOU WILL BE WIDE OPEN. TEAM ON 3.” When leaving the huddle, one of our players asked, “Hey, Coach. I think it will work. Do you want us to run this play right now?” YES GOOSE. LET’S TRY IT RIGHT NOW. Man. I loved those guys.

The key to motivation is finding unusual and clever ways to relate to each kid so that they can play to their full potential. During halftime, I grabbed our star player. I took him to the side and offered him some words of wisdom. This was well before smartphones. No translation app. It was from the heart. “YO CUZ. THEY CAN’T STICK YOU. STOP SHOOTING DEM THREE BALLS. RIP THAT JAWN. ATTACK THE TIN. THOSE CATS CAN’T STOP IN THE PAINT BRO. CHIN IT. GET TO THE RACK. TRUST ME YO.” Now, I had no clue what that meant. The other seven players in that locker room thought I was strange. It worked. Kevin balled in the second half. He was fantastic. Anderson vividly remembers that locker room chat. We were laughing about it when we last spoke. He also recalls the time when I kicked his tail in HORSE. I was wearing #bluejeans. A hashtag that has stuck.

Great time of year, folks. Enjoy the ride. I look forward to the district and state tournaments. Cheers.