DEFENSE IS FUN

Coaches have different philosophies, and although I believe in defense winning championships, I have had my share of teams that try and outscore our opponents.

This year's team, however, is starting to have fun working hard on defense.

This past weekend we held two teams to an average of 42 points per game, the lowest I believe since I have been at Montana State.

This is what defense brings:

Fans off their chairs when Erica Perry gets a steal in the back court.
Our bench celebrating when Sarah Strand gets her 6th block of the night.
Our team's energy jumping another notch after a 30 second violation.

The best result of all though, winning our Thanksgiving Tournament. We still have a million things to improve on, but it's a good starting point.

Congrats to Sarah Strand, MVP of the tournament, Erica Perry and Katie Bussey for making the all tournament team, and most importantly our Bobcats!

I love to see a team have success for working and committing to defense.

And it IS FUN!

Coach Bin

Counting Thanksgiving Calories

I have been reading the paper and articles on the internet all week about healthier low calorie recipes for our Thanksgiving meal. All I have to say is REALLY?

I believe in healthy nutrition. Just ask my players, but I also believe in moderation and enjoying special occasions the way they should be enjoyed. It's like going to California every 6 months and NOT ordering an In N Out Burger just because it isn't as healthy as a salad. Are you kidding me?

Let me take it one step further. Changing your mom's (or dad in my household) buttery mouth watering mashed potatos and gravy for a cardboard 0% fat recipe is like NOT having a cake on your birthday! Are you going to skip the cake just because it has fat in it?

The holidays bring tradition, family, friends, and loved ones together, and we should ENJOY it. If it means a few extra calories on a day of special occasion, then so be it.

We will have 50+ people this Thanksgiving including our team, family, and friends. We will eat some healthy and some fattening dishes. I also know our players will work it off this week and the next two days following for our Thanksgiving Tournament.

For the rest of us, we can just add a few extra workouts so we can enjoy the company that have given us so much in life. Don't let recipes change what this holiday is about.

I am thankful for my family and friends, and especially my team this Thanksgiving. They are students, then athletes, BIG personalities, but most importantly women of strong character.

And because I appreciate what they do and who they are I may even let them have dessert!

Coach Bin

BOUNCE

This weekend we faced a BIG BYU team and pretty much got it handed to us. The good news is that we have a team of resilence and travelled to Moscow, Idaho to get back in the W column.

Successful seasons are all in how you bounce from the good and the bad. My job is to control the highs and lows, and to get out of the way for our team to respond to them.

We sure have character in more ways than one, and that makes my job a blast!

Coach Bin

Trip to California

We were the last flight to get out Thursday as Bozeman got 20 inches of snow that day. It's give and take when you land in L.A. and hit rush hour. We covered 8 miles in the first hour. My son said "California needs to have less cars on the road."

We opened at Cal State Bakersfield in front of the loudest of all fans, Gwen Perry, Erica's mom, yelling "they got no left hand!I see you Ash!, etc, etc." Justin Scanson was on the bench chuckling.

As we held off the roadrunners Friday, Saturday brought the Bobcats more good news with our release of our newest 2010 class. I want to say welcome to the family to Emily Allen, Kate Webb, and Ausha Cole. Emily and Kate are teammates, which I love as they have a sixth sense about each other's games. Then there is Ausha who is just as tenacious with a piranha like mentality on defense. What great fits to our program.

Saturday night was interesting as three fire alarms went off during the night. The joke by the players was that Rachel's snoring was lowder than the alarms.

Sunday was our last game for the weekend at University of Pacific. Pacific jumped on us early but with the character of this team and spark we have in every substitution we were able to come away with the victory.

The season has begun!

Great job Sarah!

Fashion Show/Alumni Reunion

Multi tasking is the #1 requirement to be a college coach, and boy did we pull multiple things off this weekend.

I'd like to first talk about our "Alumni" weekend. We started off Friday evening at the Best Western Gran Tree Hotel and then finished off the weekend with a scrimmage where our alumni mixed in with some of our players and scout guys.

Highlights:

• The history. Four alumni playing are in the top 15 in MSU scoring history. Nubia Garcia, Sarah Flock, Kathie Roos, and Kathleen McLaughlin (#1 in scoring and rebounding). Sam Fluss top 2 in 3 point field goals made, Hillary Scott, Whitney Connolly top 2 in career blocks, and Allison Bach.
• The irony. Allison cleans Amy's teeth and mine as well. I was nervous she was going to get a tooth knocked as she didn't have a mouth guard in.
• The competition. Sam blocked Erica Perry out into the first row of seats. I asked Sam if she would come teach our players how to box out.
• The entertainment. Erica Perry asked Kathie if they were in a man or zone defense. Kathie messed with her and told her man when they were in a zone.

We began the weekend at the Gran Tree thanking our Alumni for coming together to reunite with family and finished off the festivities there as well. What a great weekend, and thanks to all that came.

As far as the fashion show goes, I will keep it short, just like the fashion show itself.

• Began 11:00 and finished by 11:30. The athletes and coaches walk very fast just like our transition game.
• We had no injuries but a few meltdowns by Camryn, Coach Scanson's daughter. That many people watching you can be overwhelming unless you are our players.
• My kids were a riot. Brooklyn walked out on her own, while Justin and I skied down the steps in our winter gear. Todd got out of it to go hunting, although he never went!
• I can't really tell you much more than that since I didn't get to see our athletes and coaches walking out as we were all changing so quickly in between outfits.

It must have been a success though because we were asked to do this again for the spring clothing!

Go Cats!

RECAP

I am glad it's November and not March.

My husband is a Clint Eastwood fan so I will give you the "good, the bad, the ugly.

The Good:

• Our team never got rattled and has depth at EVERY position.
• We didn't have anyone foul out although Jamie and Erica (our two SENIORS) were close.
• It was an afternoon game so it was a perfect time to have a Diet Pepsi.

The Bad:

• Ramble On, by Led Zepplin was not played during our pregame warmup.
• We had 17 turnovers, most of them unforced.
• The Fieldhouse had the airconditioning on right over my head. It was freezing.

The Ugly:

• We gave up 17 offensive rebounds!
• We only had 8 steals and a defense that did not dictate or disrupt our opponent.
• We lost every player on the floor with lack of communication. Our fans must think we are mute.

My players know that I don't sugar coat anything for good reason. I will say it right here we will only be as good as our defense so we have some work to do between Novemember and March.

I LOVE THIS GAME!

Coach Bin

GAME DAY

Can you believe it's our first game?

Can you believe I am blogging right now?

What to expect in the first game of the Year

• Fouls-Coaches already decided it will be Ally Schmitt. She is going to be excited.
• Exhaustion-Our players will be ramped up to their Ipods, first game gitters, and will hit a wall on the court. First will be Ashley Albert! Don't worry, we'll recognize and get fresh legs on the court.
• Mistakes-I can handle mistakes this time of year. Otherwise you wouldn't need coaches. This part is fun. A healthy mistake and going hard, I love it!
• Fun-It's about time to get out on the court against someone other than scout and each other.

That's all I got for now. I have to prep for the Yellowjackets.

Go Bobcats!