Game day

Well its game day here in Sioux City, Iowa. Once again, I'm stationed here in the upper deck (this time with full "media only" blockades so that we really have our "own" space) thanks to Corey Westra and the crew here in Sioux City who just love our Lady Wildcats! The pep band is playing, the crazy Ozarks fans are painting their faces and taking hundreds of pictures of themselves, and the mascots are running through the stands....typical day here in Iowa. If you were around last year to read our blog, you may remember a blog I wrote about the pep bands rendition of "Hey Baby." Well you'll be happy to know they are still playing that song....as I type this. Some songs never die.

Because we play a later game, the girls had a chance to sleep in a little this morning. I stepped into the elevator around 9 this morning to go workout (pointless if I'm taking the elevator....I know) and a couple of the girls hopped on board so they could travel down to the continental breakfast. The conversation went a little like this:

Jessica: "So where are you heading?"
Me: "To the workout room downstairs."
Jessica: "What?! Why?"
Me: "Uh...to workout."
Jessica: (emphatically with large hand motions) "BUT ITS A VACATION!!!"

So, needless to say, the girls obviously have a fresh attitude and aren't coming into this with worries or stresses. Its comforting knowing that we are here supporting a team that hasn't walked into Sioux City with a chip on their shoulders and the pressure of a championship. They are here to play the game they love to the best of their ability....and to enjoy every minute of it.

Thank you, Jessica, for reminding me that win or lose tonight, you girls are having a good time. And thank you, random pep band, for encouraging the awkward college students in giant black labrador costumes to hop over seats and pick on fans... and for giving me Wednesday night 80s flashback. Always a pleasure.

IWU 1st Round Preview

The third-seeded Wildcats face the sixth-seeded William Jewell Cardinals in the first round of the NAIA National Tournament Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. EST. The following are three keys to the game in order for the Wildcats to advance to the second round.

1. Control the Tempo – William Jewell is known for their up-tempo pace that includes a full court press to try to speed up the game, create turnovers, and finish with easy lay-ups. IWU would prefer to slow the game down and run their half court offense to full efficiency and end up with an open shot. The Wildcats’ slower pace has helped them allow the lowest points against average (51.3) in NAIA DII as the offense acts as a second defense. If the opponent does not have the ball, they cannot score. As cliché as it may sound, IWU has to play their game, a style that has led to an NAIA No. 11 ranking, to win in round one of the tournament.

2. Don’t Let William Jewell Score – Sounds John Madden-ish, doesn’t it? Of course, the Wildcats do not want the Cardinals to score, but the point is to keep William Jewell out of their full court press. If the Wildcats NAIA top-ranked defense can shut down the William Jewell offense, they will inversely slow down the game and not let the Cardinals set up their traditional full court defense.

3. Break the Press – IWU head coach Steve Brooks has been training the team in practice to break the William Jewell full court press. The key is to “turn-and-look.” Back to key number one, Coach Brooks does not want to allow William Jewell to force his team to play at a frantic pace while trying to break the press. Once the press is beaten, IWU will to look to set up their offense and play at their slower pace. If the Wildcats can follow Coach Brooks’ instruction, they will be well on their way to “turning-and-looking” into the second round of the tournament.

Letting Loose

After a long, long, long day of driving Stephanie and I have arrived in Iowa just in time for the Banquet of Champions. Since this is my first time at the National Tournament it was a new experience for me to go to the opening banquet. I was really impressed by the way the City and the NAIA has laid out the red carpet for these wonderful young women. To see the looks on their faces how this one night was a night for them and to celebrate their achievements. For tonight they can all dance the conga sing silly songs and wear funny hats. Tomorrow they will become opponents on the court. We are quickly working to bring you all of the updates from today and try to remember what time zone we are in. Check out the pictures page and the videos page for some of the banquet highlights.

Packing Our Stuff

The task of packing all our equipment is almost done and we even threw
in the kitchen sink. We leave on Tuesday at 7am for the 11hr trip to
Iowa. Keep up with Wildcat Central to follow the Lady Wildcats.

Live via Webphone

We are testing a new webphone setup to take to Iowa. We will use it
for a live interview with coach for Wildcat Week.