Two Flies on the Wall Jack Styczynski
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From the SelectedWorks of Jack Styczynski March, 2016 Two flies on the wall Jack Styczynski Available at: https://works.bepress.com/jack_styczynski/34/ 28 BASKETBALL TIMES Special Report Eleven years ago, Jack Styczynski spent a game day with coach Matt Brady for Eastern Basketball. Recently, he did it again for Basketball Times, except this time, he had a co-writer embedded with the opponent, as well. Two flies on the wall By Jack Styczynski and Jerry Beach It’s a universal truth in basketball – one team a couple of times, yelling “TODAY!” when defenders wins, one team loses. simulating Hofstra’s zone are slow to get into position, Occasionally, you’ll read a story where a reporter and letting everyone know they’re preparing for a shadows a team for a day, and while that perspective game – not an intramural game – when things get a is enlightening, you’re left wondering what happened little sloppy. He runs a skip-pass drill and calls out sets on the other side. named “Maryland,” “Texas” and “Carolina,” which Not this time. he later says are taken from teams in those states, not On Jan. 16, the two teams voted atop the Colonial necessarily the Terrapins, Longhorns and Tar Heels. Athletic Association in the preseason – Hofstra and The shootaround concludes with Brady reminding James Madison – met on Long Island, and better yet, the players that Hofstra eliminated them from the entered the contest living up to the hype. Hofstra CAA tournament last March in embarrassing fashion. boasted a perfect 6-0 record at home, while JMU “Kicked our ass,” he repeats. He wants them to was a spotless 5-0 in road games, so as we go back, remember that. The team then huddles up and chants, something’s gotta give … “ALL IN!” Approximately seven hours before tipoff, the Shortly after JMU leaves the court, Hofstra coach Dukes arrive at the David S. Mack Sports and Joe Mihalich can barely contain his anticipation, Exhibition Complex for a morning shootaround and bounding down the stairs for his team’s morning head coach Matt Brady is happy to schmooze. He shoot-around. He has been up for nearly six hours – wastes no time mentioning that his team plays better during which he has watched film, attended Mass and on the road than at home, to the point where he’s tried fit in a “breakfast” consisting of a croissant. putting everyone in a hotel the night before home Over the next 70 minutes, Mihalich’s actions are games, with little success. He admits that part of the that of the hands-on CEO of the Pride program. He reason is to collect players’ phones at curfew, but delegates responsibility – the shootaround is directed apparently late-night texting isn’t the problem. He’s by assistant coach Akbar Waheed, who spent the at a loss to explain what is. previous several days watching James Madison film – Anyway, Brady thinks his squad should be 15-3 but there is never a doubt that this is Mihalich’s team. instead of 13-5, pointing to two losses he believes Mihalich – carrying a shootaround schedule that’s should have been wins, while claiming there were no the result of two days and seven pages worth of note- lucky victories. Typical coach. Also typical is when he taking – begins by unknowingly copying Brady’s idea expresses concern about his job security. Warranted or to use last season’s results as motivational fodder. not, it’s the paranoia of the profession. “Last year, they made fools of us,” Mihalich The defensive walk-through is run by Rob says, referring to the regular-season sweep by James O’Driscoll, Brady’s top lieutenant for all 12 years Madison. “You can make fools of them by working of his head-coaching career, starting at Marist. The hard.” boss chimes in here and there, but the whole session The focus is simple yet layered on both sides of seems like an O’Driscoll clinic on the various ways to the ball. Defensively, the staff knows point guard Ron contain Hofstra perimeter marksman Brian Bernardi. Curry will get his points and his shots, so the bulk of Whenever a specific Hofstra player is named, 80 the attention is on James Madison big men Yohanny percent of the time it’s Bernardi. At one point, Brady Dalembert and Dimitrije Cabarkapa. Mihalich tells the team “we’re stealing that pass” on an interior mentions the pair’s meager assist total multiple times entry play, so it will be interesting to see if that and orders a collapsing double team anytime either happens in the game, but the main question is, will the player gets the ball. big focus on Bernardi pay dividends? “They’re not passing the ball back out,” Mihalich Several minutes later, Brady orchestrates the says. Rokas Gustys had 25 points and 20 rebounds. offensive session. Mostly calm, he does get frustrated Offensively, Mihalich spends several minutes BASKETBALL TIMES 29 putting his mathematics degree to use on the Pride’s feels he’s done a good job – with good kids, a good Flying Dutchmen, “VBK” lived a few blocks west of “two-high corner” scheme. He keeps switching graduation rate, a competitive team and one NCAA campus in a university apartment complex typically Juan’ya Green and Denton Koon at the top of the key, Tournament appearance – he just thinks he needs reserved for law students. Mihalich also has a picture constantly searching for the perfect placement. another bid to control his own destiny. When Brady on his office wall of a hunched-over van Breda Kolff “That one yard makes a huge difference,” finally leaves the table, he takes a lunch plate to his stalking the Hofstra sideline with the accompanying Mihalich says. wife, Mary. quote attributed to the legendary coach: Another focal point is Bernardi, who drained at Meantime, the Pride has gathered at the University “All I know is life isn’t much different than that least four 3-pointers in eight of the first 17 games. Club for its pregame meal. Within 15 minutes, the game on the court. If it’s run right—with precision, With the expectation that the Dukes will overplay players have headed back to their dorms. The only with good, honest effort—it’s a thing of beauty. I him, the team runs a few sets in which he cuts to the thing missing is the cartoon cloud indicating where know what it looks like and that’s what keeps me basket in anticipation of a backdoor layup. they used to be. going.” About halfway through the session, Mihalich “They don’t even taste the food,” Mihalich says Less than two hours before tipoff, James Madison decides he doesn’t like the way things are going and with a grin. is back at the arena in its spartan locker room. The raises his voice. Before exiting, each player stops by the coaches players get dressed, and from now until the game “Hey, how about a little energy?” he implores. table and exchanges fist bumps with each member of begins, time can roughly be divided into four segments “Let’s get a little locked in!” the staff. Mihalich has a specific greeting for everyone – two when the players are on the court warming up The urgency increases, and Mihalich looks – none more notable than the one he offers to center and two when Brady is addressing them. satisfied by the time the team scatters for sustenance. Rokas Gustys. Brady spends that entire stretch in the locker Less than four hours before tipoff, James Madison “This guy’s gonna get 20 rebounds in a game room, and for most of the time the team is outside, is at the nearby team hotel for a pregame meal. The someday,” Mihalich says. he’s joined by assistant coach Mike Deane. The players seem chatty, which is not always the case at Mihalich spends most of his time checking his two seem genuinely pleased to have a reporter with such functions, but Brady says this is a good group phone and occasionally, almost absent-mindedly, them. Otherwise, they say, they’d just be discussing of kids that gets along all the bad things that well. As a reward for could happen in the next their study hall progress, few hours. Instead, the they’d been to the movie conversation hops from Ride Along 2 the previous Brady’s increasingly evening. gray hair … to his desire Brady sits at a table for his sons to attend with a group including Catholic school as he bus driver Ben Shepherd, did … to former Hofstra radio play-by-play coaches Jay Wright and announcer Dave Thomas, Tom Pecora … to Drexel assistant director of coach Bruiser Flint’s athletics communications penchant for standing on Jason Krech and director the court during games of operations Dorian (and how unusual it is Long. The conversation that he’s lasted 15 years is as varied as the in a job without going to participants, within the the NCAA Tournament) context of sports, that is. … to the statistics most Topics range from the correlated with success injury that ended Brady’s … to the fracas following competitive one-on-one the previous night’s days to superstitions to shootout between Iona Wade Boggs to Emmitt and Monmouth. In an Smith to Michael Jordan interesting take regarding to Kobe Bryant. Of note the latter, Deane says about Bryant is that, as he thinks postgame a teen, he often played handshake lines are in the St.