Honors and Awards

Today the eurobasket.com awards came out for germany and I was nominated. I made the Honorable mention all eurobasket.com team and I was the only one from my team to get any votes. Kejuan Johnson was named player of the year.

http://www.eurobasket.com/Germany/basketball.asp

Home Sweet Home!!!

Well, I flew home from Germany Monday April 26, and I think it could have been my worst flying experience Ever!!!! I really miss all the friends I made and the players I coach.

First, Rupert and I drove to Frankfurt and got stuck in traffic for about an hour. Second, when I got to the airport I found out my 11am flight was cancelled and changed to 1pm. Third, I had to pay an extra 50 Euros because the club forgot that I might be taking more than one bag home and every extra bag costs!! :( Fourth, 8hrs on a plane sucks. Fifth, when I got to Philly my transfer plane left in an hour after landing so I had to RUN through the Philly airport and it's not little. I ran from International flights to C Gate. Then I found out that the plane home had bee changed to gate A14 and nobody told me. Sixth, so I RAN to Gate A14 and found out that my Plane to Vegas had been delayed 2.5 hrs and wont be leaving until real late. Seventh, by then I was sweating, Literally dripping with sweat. Literally! Eighth, had no US dollars to buy food so I was starving the whole day once in Philly. Ninth, on the plane to Vegas, NO FOOD was served. Tenth, 6hour plane ride from Philly to Vegas with no food and a dead laptop battery.

So, that was my flying home experience BUT I was glad to be home and hear all the familiar voices from family and friends.

Last Game

We played our last game of the season last night at home against Oldenburg. Even though the game was meaningless for us, because we are in 8th place, Oldenburg was playing for moving up into a the next highest league. The last time we played Oldenburg we lost by 3 at their place and it left a bad taste in our mouth. As a team we really wanted to come out and punish them and send a message that we are the better team even if the record doesn't show it. Also, I personally wanted to come out and have a great game because it was my last game and I wanted to leave Germany on a high and keep my motivation high going into the off season.

We won the game 80-67 and we controlled and dominated the whole game. From the start Oldenburg never had a chance. We were playing on a lot of emotion and energy on both ends of the floor. We really wanted this game. I lead up with 20pts 4ast 2rbs 1stl and 2TO in 25min of play. Max and Kevin both had 14pts and Jan Both (6'10 center) finished with 13pts to round out the scoring. Oldenburg's American's combined for 34pts.

We ended the season on a positive and that's just how coach Hansi and us wanted to do it. The season started off very poorly, with us going 0-10 but finished very positively with us winning 7 out of 10.

I leave tomorrow to go back home and I just wanted to thank all the people I met for helping me have a great first time German experience. Danke Schon.

Keep me and my family in your prayers as I fly home.

Update!!!

Update!!!!

Vienna, Austria

My 16U and 14U teams had the opportunity to play in one of the biggest basketball tournaments in Europe in Vienna, Austria. My 16U team played very well but lost in the second round of the playoffs after winning their pool and the first round game. They won by an average of 29points but were stopped by a very good team from southern Germany. They finished the tourney with a 4-1 record.

I took over 100 pictures in Vienna but I will only post the ones of me and the teams.

1point Loss!

Sorry so late on the post but I have been in Vienna, Austria for the past week coaching in a tourney. Anyways, last Saturday we lost to ALBA Berlin at home by one point, 63-64. I didn't play much, but when I did play I played well, I thought. I controlled the came as a PG on offense and defense. I finished the game with 4pts 6ast 5rbs 2stl and 2TO on 2-6 shooting in only 20min of play. Our next and last game isn't until April 24 against Oldenburg at home. I plan on taking the next 2weeks before our game to really get focused and in the best shape I can before the last game. I want to really go out with a BANG!

Thank you for reading my blog and please keep me and my family in your prayers.

Another Win!!!!!! Video Blog

Here is my new video blog, I hope you like it. Let me know what you think.

Live Feed

Coaching Playoff Loss

Today I coached my 16U team in a home playoff game against one of the top teams in Germany. We lost 64-58 but we had several chances to win. We made a couple "silly" mistakes down the stretch of the game that we shouldn't have made. Our next game is against Cologne of western Germany.

The whole season our team played either up to the level of competition or down to it. We were almost beaten by the worst team, 0-15, in our league and we beat the best team in our league, 14-1. We've lost to a couple teams we should have beaten, but its our own fault. When we lose it's not cause the other team is better than us its because we make "silly" "dumb" "simple" mistakes that hurt us. Here are a couple examples of what I am talking about. We beat a team by 55points one game then the next time we played we were losing the whole game until the last 3 min and won by 6 and they had the same team both games. No new players. Here's another example. We beat a team by 18points holding them to only 11 second half points (9pts 3rd qtr and 2pts 4th qtr) and we lose the next game by 14. Again, same team with no new players. Third example. We lose to one of the best teams by 3 and then get beat by one of the worst teams and have 33 turnovers and about 25 of those turnovers were unforced. Meaning we just threw the ball to the other team or dribbled off our foot. It's little things like that that have cost us the season. we are now playing in the "losers" bracket sort of speak; meaning the next three games are meaningless for us.

These kids are a GREAT "TEAM", when they play together on offense and defense. When they don't however, anyone can beat them because they are not great individual players, yet. I hope we can with the last three games of the season and end the season on a high note. They have a tournament in Vienna, Austria at the end of the month that will be very exciting.

I hope we can get it together this week and get focused.

Thanks to Jens Scholz who took the pictures of our game today.

3rd win in a row!!!!

Today we played a home game against BG Magdeburg from Northern Germany. The first time we played them they beat us in overtime 90-93 at their place. However, the circumstances were a little different then because we had several player out with injury and we have added some new guys since then. Max (captain 13ppg) was out with injury, Jan Both (6'11 center) was out with injury, Tobias Schmidt (broken finger), Kevin (new American) wasn't signed yet, Nico (20U German national team) wasn't signed yet, Robert Dill (6'9 1st league player) wasn't signed yet, and we had to bring up a NBBL (18U youth league) player to fill a roster spot.

Today's game we had a full roster and the "swagger" of winning the last 3 out of 4 games. We started the game trying to play fast and up tempo but Magdeburg was well prepared for out fast break offense at the beginning. The first quarter was poorly played by both teams, with both teams missing easy layups and easy shots. The first quarter reminded me of a boxing fight with both teams trying to feel the other team out and trying to see how each other played. The first quarter ended with Magdeburg leading 16-14. The second quarter continued the same way the first did with both teams struggling to get into a rhythm and a groove. I picked up my second foul with 9:23 remaining in the second and I had to sit the rest of the quarter to be safe I didn't get a 3rd foul. During the second we struggle to get into an offense and we played a lot of one-on-one, which hurts us because we begin to be more selfish than think about the team. By halftime we were down 11points 37-26 and we had played awful and not as a team. I had 4points at the half.

The third quarter I decided I was going to be a lot more aggressive offensively than I had been in the first half. I decided to try and put the team on my back and maybe that will get US going for the second half. I hit a couple jumpers and free throws and began to warm up shooting wise. By the end of the third quarter we had taken the lead 48-54, which is a 17point swing in our favor. I scored 14points int he 3rd quarter.

The fourth quarter had them looking tired and we began to get our "swagger" and confidence back. We controlled the whole fourth quarter defensively and offensively. We scored almost every time down the court and we held them to one shot on defense. We began to play as a team on offense and defense with every one sacrificing for the betterment of the team. We all wanted to win and we could taste it.

We won the game 65-78 which makes 4 out of the last 5 games we've won. We are playing very well as a team and we are enjoying ourselves. I finished the game with 25pts, 5ast, 2rbs, 2TO while shooting 7-13 from the field and 8-8 from the FT line to lead us. Max scored 13points and Kevin and Robert both had double figure rebounds (Kevin 12, Robert 10). We held their 2 Americans to a combined 23points.

Our next game is away against Rostock, which is a nice 6.5hr drive.

Tomorrow my 16u team plays in the playoffs against one of the best teams in Germany.

Thanks to Jens Scholz for the pictures again.

Please keep me and my family in your prayers.

Another Win!!!!!!

Tonight we had our first game in a couple weeks against Itzahoe and it felt good to get back out on the court against someone besides ourselves. The first time we played Itzahoe we lost by 6 at their place, but we were missing 4starters with injury and I had to carry the load. This game however we had those 4 starters back plus 3 new additional players, Rober Dill (6'9 center), Nico Adamcyck (former 20U German national player) and Kevin Reed (new american guy). Itzahoe has the leagues leading scorer Kejuan Johnson, who averages close to 30ppg. He had 47 on us the first game, but this game we held him to 33points....haha...held him....haha.

Today we came out with a lot of intensity and energy on both ends of the floor. We jumped out to a 30-15 lead at the end of the 1st quarter and we pushed the lead to 20points by halftime 58-38. The second half we again controlled the tempo and flow of the game on both ends of the floor and half way through the 3quarter we had pushed the lead to 23points, 71-48. However, Itzahoe would not go down without a fight and they chipped away at our lead by the beginning of the 4 quarter we were only up 11 points.

We got our "marbles" (as coach Hansi says) together and closed Itzahoe out, winning 95-78. I played pretty good, I didn't have a breakout scoring night but with all these new players I don't have to score as much anymore and I can play my natural position of point guard. I controlled the tempo of the game offensively and defensively, which I am pretty happy about. I wish coach Hansi would let me loose a little more but i'm cool with it because we're winning.

I finished the game with 10pts, 6ast, 3stls, 3rbs, 4-4 FT and only 2TO in 22min of play. We were very balance with our scoring and with the number of minutes played by the team (minutes leader was Kevin with 27). Nico lead us with 15pts, followed by Julian Schmidt's 13, Kevin's 12, Max's 12 and Jan Both (6'10) finished with 10pts and 5rbs.

I am very please with the way our team is playing as a "team" and being very unselfish. We all have a goal of finishing out the season on a high note and not at the bottom of the league. We have won 3 out of our last 4 and we plan on continuing that for the rest of the season.

The pictures were taking by Photographer Jens Scholz and I would like to thank him for taking alot of me so I can post them to my blog for everyone to see. Thanks Jens (Danke).

Spanish Dinner

Last night the family of one of the kids I coach from my 14u team invited me over for a authentic spanish dinner. The family is originally from Spain but they have lived here in Gottingen, Germany for 8yrs. I was very excited to eat something other than sandwhiches, yogurt, and soup.

The dinner consited of many different types of meats; pork, 2 different spanish sausages, beef, and chicken that were sliced very thin to be placed on home fresh baked bread. Along with the meat they served an egg/potato/onion/zucchini omelette that was very good. The side dishes consisted of choices of shrimp, a fried meatball thing (picture tatortots but with meat) and fried whole little baby fishes (deboned and deheaded of course). For dessert, their daughter made a vanilla cream with real sugar melted on top(the sugar turned into caramel), which was very good as well. It reminded me of vanilla pudding.

The meal was AWESOME and I was able to practice my Spanish and German with them which was awesome too. I was so stuffed after the meal I thought I was going to throw up I ate so much, but it was good cause I needed a good "home cooked" meal. The family gave me a tour of their house, which had amazing architechture from their two winding staircases to the spanish art they had on the walls. After the meal the dad educated me on Spanish history and geography. I ask a LOT of questions about their culture and country because it was very interesting to me. The showed me a short video of the "running with the bulls" and how it came about to be as popular as it is.

After all that was done we finished up with a couple German card games that reminded me of "uno" but with a little twist to it. It was fun and I would have started winning because I was getting the hang of it after the first couple games.

I really enjoyed myself and was please to be able to go over there for a meal. I would like to thank the Medina Family for their hospitality and generosity. Danke Schon=German Thank You
Gracias=Spanish Thank You

Another Win!!!!!

Yesterday we won our third game of the season against Wolfenbuttel, a team who beat us the first time by 18pts. We played great the whole game until the end of the third quarter. However, being down 18pts in the fourth quarter we battled back to win by 1pt in regulation.

I didn't play much, but I played good when I was out there. I finished the game with 7pts 3Rbs 3ast 1st and 2TO in 19minutes of play. Nico led us with 21pts. Our 6'9 center Robert scored 15pts and had 9rbs and our new American, Kevin, had 13pts. The game was a total team effort and I'm glad we could put our ego's aside and come together to get the victory.

After battling back from 18pts we were down three points with 1minute left. Kevin drew up a play in a time out and we excecuted it perfectly and Nico hit a 3 to tie the game with about 40 seconds left. Wolfebuttel came down and missed their shot we rebounded it and Enoch, our 7ft center, was fould with 3seconds left. He hit 1-2 FT's to put us up by 1pts. Their last desperation shot didnt go and we won. However, there American, Chris Rodger, scored a game high 40pts.

We have a couple weeks off before our next game and I'm hoping we can win 3out of the last 5 games to get us out of last place.

My 16U team has won their last 3 games and we are going into the playoffs on a nice little hot streak. I hope they can ride this momentum all the way through the playoffs.

Thanks for following and please continue to keep me in your prayers.

Tough Loss

This weekend we played a team from Berlin, Hermsdorf, at home. The first time we played Hermsdorf we lost 63-64 at the buzzer, in a game in which I didn't play very well. This game I wanted to redeem myself and help us get a win. We signed another American player this week, Kevin Reed, who played in Belgium the last couple years. He's a shooting guard who can really rebound for his size at 6'2.

We started the game on a 15-1 run and finishing the first quarter leading 20-4. We controlled the whole first quarter with our fast paced offense and our extremely high energy defense. However, when we get leads in games we tend to get comfortable and we lose our intensity at both ends of the floor. the second quarter Hermsdorf made a little run to cut the lead to 8pts, 22-30 at halftime.

The third quarter we held on to the lead but Hermsdorf was closing the gap with a high energy press and very hot shooting. We on the other hand played with very low energy and very poor shooting. Hermsdorf cut our lead to 7 at the end of the third quarter, 41-48. Our coach wasn't pleased with our play and tried to get us motivated to close out the game and get a win.

The fourth quarter went the same way as the third quarter did, with us shooting very poorly and Hermsdorf starting continuing to shoot very well. Hermsdorf tied the game at 62-62 with 1min left in the fourth quarter. We came down and missed our shot Hermsdorf rebounded the ball and converted their shot taking the lead 64-62 with 47seconds left. We came down and I was fouled with 20 seconds left giving me two Free Throws to tie the game. I made the first free throw and "some how" missed the second. However, we got the offensive rebound with 20 seconds left and had three opportunities to win the game but we missed all three shots. I missed a runner in the lane. Max missed a reverse layup and Kevin missed a three pointer at the buzzer.

I felt really bad after the game for missing my FT to tie the game. I finished the game with 10points 2ast 2stl and 2TO while shooting 4-10 from the field and 5-7 from the line. Niko lead us with 16pts and Enoch, our 7ft center had 14pts and 8rbs. The new American Kevin was 0-9 from the field and finished with 2pts from free throws. I believe he was just nervous/anxious and needs to get used to our team and our style of play.

We play next Saturday in Wolfenbuttle, a team we HAVE to beat in order to get out of last place. We need to win at least 4 of our last 6 games.

SECOND WIN!!!!

Hey there, tonight we played a home game against Bremen and we got our second win of the season. If feels good to get another win because I was starting to forget what it felt like to win a game. The first time we played Bremen they beat us by 17pts at their place, but tonight we won by 16pts. We picked up a new player this week, Nico Adamczak, who was a former German national team player with the 18U team.

The game was pretty close the whole first half and it ended with us leading 45-41. We came out strong in the second half and never let Bremen get close. We controlled the whole second half with our defense and team oriented play. We were all focused on one thing tonight and that was getting the win. We won 94-78 which sends a good message to the rest of the league that we are better than our record says we are.

I led us with 28pts on 10-17 shooting. I also had 5rbs, 3ast, 2stl with only 1TO. The new guy Nico added 13pts and Max had 12pts, but it was a total team effort with every player scoring at least one basket but one. We looked really good tonight and I think its a sign of good things to come for us. I want to thank God for helping me personally because for a moment there I was stuggling to find myself and he guided me back on the right path.

I'm excited about our next couple games to see if we can get some momentum going here in 2010.

Thank you to everyone who supports me and follows my blog. I greatly appreciate it.

ANOTHER LOSS!!!!

The title says it all. I played bad, the team played bad and we LOST again....I'm getting SO sick of this its driving me crazy.

First Game of 2010

Yesterday were had our first game of the new year againts Oldenburg in Oldenburg, who is currently in third place in our league. Oldenburg is normally 3hrs away but because of the snow storm that has hit it took us about 4hrs. Oldenburg has 2 Americans, a center and a guard, who are the main focus points of their offense. We felt going into the game that if we could control their 2 Americans we would have a great chance to win.

We started the game with great energy and intensity on defense, jumping out on them 11-2. However, Oldenburg battled back to cut our lead to one at the end of the 1st quarter 19-18. The second quarter Oldenburg really came out aggressive on defense and patient on offense, which helped them build a stong lead 29-40 with about 4minutes left until halftime. We battled back with our defense the last 4minutes and cut Oldenburg's lead to 5 points 35-40 by halftime.

The second half there was 8 lead changes with both team playing well and both team playing very poorly. I sprained my ankle in the 4th quarter and Oldenburg went on a 12-0 run and pushed their lead to 84-77. I came back in the game with 1:56 left to try and help us come back but it wasnt enough. We lost 84-89 but we could have easily won the game. After the game their coach told me that our team is better than our 1-10 record shows.

I finished the game with 18points on 7-13 shooting, 3rbs, 3ast and 4TO. I did however get a "first" in my basketball career, when I hit not 1, not 2, but 3 buzzer beaters. I hit a jumper with 1 second left in the 1st quarter. A 3 pointer with 1 second left in the 2nd quarter and another 3 pointer with no time left in the 3rd quarter. It was kind of weird cause we always had the ball when time was running out.

The pictures are of my sprained ankle and it hurts REALLY bad. Hopefully it will heal enough this week to play on next Saturday.

Back in Germany

I just got back here to snowy Gottingen, German. I left Vegas on December 31 and arrived in Frankfurt, Germany on January 1, 2010. I missed the whole New Years celebration and I wish I could have spent it with friends and family, but hey, there is always next year. I really enjoyed my time back home and I wish I could have had more time with my friends and family. When I arrived in Frankfurt the weather was cold but nothing I couldnt handle. However, when I got off the train in Gottingen, to my suprise it was covered in snow. Not just a little snow here and there, Gottingen had at least 6inches maybe more. I walked home from the train station cause my German cell wasnt working but it wasn't that bad cause I live only about a mile from the station.

After I unpacked my things I needed to go to the store and get food because I ate and threw it all away before I left. Now, I was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and we get snow every year. The difference however is in the US we shovel our streets and throw salt down and to my suprise the streets were covered in snow. I made my trip to the store and to my suprise, my little VW Golf did pretty well.

I'm excited to be back because I have big plans for myself in 2010 as long as I can stay FOCUSED. I hope my teams, coaching and playing, are as excited as I am about 2010. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I take on the second half of my Euro experience.

The pictures are of outside the store and my apartment.