Kaus Injured, Top 100, BasketCases

#5 posting 11.20.2008
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

SIGNINGS
D1
St. Bonaventure has signed 3 players
Chelsea Bowker of Salem Crestview, OH
guard Colleen Kiss of Pittsburgh Oakland Catholic, PA
guard Alaina Walker of Pomona Albertus Magnus, NY

D2
Alaska Anchorage has signed 5-10 forward Alex Coon of Colony, AK.

D1
INJURY
Creighton's Michelle Kaus (Eastview) was injured in the Nebraska game on Monday night in Omaha. She is out with the Second ACL tear on her Left knee.

FEATURES
Maya Moore exemplifies competitiveness, and work ethic as BMac links to a Sports Illustrated feature.

D2
Jill Young (Mitchell Christian) is hoping to make an impact at South Dakota State. From the Mitchell Daily Republic.

RESULTS
Pace beat St. Anselm 56-40. Megan Howard (St. Paul Central) had 14 points to lead St. Anselm.

UN Omaha beat Dana 79-51. Amanda Brodsack (Cedar Rapids Prairie) had 11 for UNO. Kalen Carlson had 12 for Dana.

HIGH SCHOOL
MINNESOTA: Lizzy Karp is one of two returning starters for Mankato Loyola. From the Mankato Free Press.

ILLINOIS: Kelly Buresh of Annawan is setting records as a junior. From the Quad City Times.
The QCT also has capsules on the Western Six Conference.

MICHIGAN: Pewamo-Westphalia is ready for a fight in the CMAC. From the Ionia Sentinel-Standard.

WISCONSIN: Four starters return for the 18-4 Hurley Midgets. From the Ironwood Daily Globe.

TOP BLOGS
LearningXL has listed the Top 100 College Sports Blogs. gbbrecruit is #41. (this is not a ranking of blogs, but a list).

BOOKSHELF
BasketCases: How Youth Basketball Can Lower Their Blood Pressure and Keep Their Sanity." It's the first book of its kind in the country written by a basketball official to make youth basketball a better experience for coaches and officials.
NBA referee Kenny Mauer wrote the foreword and its has been endorsed by Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, NBA Referee Steve Javie, U of M Men's Basketball Coach Tubby Smith and KARE 11 Sports Anchor Randy Shaver. Their testimonials and much more information is on the web site www.basketcasesbook.com.
Author Derek Wolden is also interview with Eric Perkins on KARE 11 Saturday a couple of weeks ago.

Next up: Round two clearing the deck.

2 Verbals, More Lawsuit, #9; Nicknames, and Raccoons

#1 posting 9.26.2008
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

THOMAS VERBALS
Jasmine Thomas of Flint Hamady has verballed Michigan State. Thomas averaged 9.7 ppg for the regional runner up. From the Flint Journal.

Thomas is the 20th player from the Michigan 2009 class to verbal and the 15th headed to a D1 program.

PATTERSON VERBALS
Megan Patterson of Columbus, Montana has verballed Weber State. The 5-11 guard averaged 16 ppg last season. From KXMC.

Patterson is the 1st player from the 2009 Montana class to verbal.

LAWSUIT
The drama at Southern Methodist increases with Jennifer Colli lawsuit vs coach Rhonda Rampola with new allegations. From TXCN.

COACHING
Marcus Heidorf has been named the new women's basketball coach at Lawrence. Heidorf was an assistant at Alverno. From the Appleton Post Crescent.

Concordia St. Paul coach Paul Fessler is #9 on the active winning % list for D2 coaches.

INJURIES
Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt has had offseason shoulder surgery. Summit injured her shoulder in a confrontation with a raccoon. From the Detroit News.

Whitney Houston of Colorado is out for the year due to an ACL injury.

NICKNAMES
USA Today looks at "unique" high school nicknames. Blooming Prairie makes the list. Of course they don't include the Devils Lake Satans in the inappropriate column because they are now Firebirds.

RECRUITING
Kentucky defeated a proposal aimed at curbing recruiting of middle school athletes. Coaches can still coach club (AAU teams)

SCRIMMAGES
The Bloomington Jefferson Varsity Jamboree field has been set. Scrimmages will take place November 22 on the varsity floor as well as the activity center which includes five full size wood floor courts. Teams involved include Bloomington Jefferson, Providence Academy, Burnsville, Rochester Lourdes, New London Spicer, Owatonna, New Life Academy, and Holy Angels.

FINALS
Grand Rapids, Michigan wants to host the Michigan State Girls Basketball Tournament. From the Grand Rapids Press.

PRESEASON
Metro State in Denver is picked for 2nd in the Rocky Mountain East Conference.
Chadron State's Sunni Busch (Todd County, SD) is picked for the first team.

CLINIC
Here is more on the Gophers upcoming clinic Saturday at the Powell Center in Minneapolis.

BIG 10 NEWS
Former Penn State player Kelly Mazante returns to campus this weekend.

Bill Cosby met with the Indiana women's basketball team.

Smithville has made a $250,000 contribution to the Indiana Women's basketball program.

Iowa's Kristi Smith is featured in the 24 Hawkeyes to Watch.

Iowa will be part of the ESPN Basketball Marathon on November 18 when the Hawkeyes face Kansas.

ONTARIO RESULTS
The Toronto Star has results from Wednesday and Thursday.

POINT PARADE WEDNESDAY
Adrianna Allen, Pickering 28 vs Notre Dame 45-53
Tea Rosic, Glenforest 26 vs St. Martin 57-41
Chenel Johnson, Notre Dame 24 vs Central Peel 59-13
Onisha Lyttle, St. Mary 23 vs All Saints 33-60
Jasmine Harris, Thomson 22 vs King 72-25

POINT PARADE THURSDAY
Shanice Duffus, Boylen 32 vs Fleming 41-32
Muna Nur, Maple 30 vs St. Theresa of Lisieux 46-35
Yvonne Duah-Amankwah, St. Basil 27 vs Loretto Abbey 38-24
Desiree Crawford, Cardinal Carter 23 vs St. Elizabeth 37-26

Next up: tomorrow unless news breaks

Grayson, Tucker Verbal; Belles Toll; WI Showcase Recap

#1 posting 9.18.2008
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

GRAYSON VERBALS
Olivia Grayson of Chapelle has verballed Tulane. The 5-7 guard averaged 16.2 ppg last season when she was named the Class 5A All-State Outstanding Player. From the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Grayson is the 1st verbal from Louisiana 2009 class that has come across my desk.

TUCKER VERBALS
Sami Tucker of East Lansing has verballed UW Milwaukee. The 5-11 forward averaged 12 points per game last year and was honorable mention in Class A. From the Lansing State Journal.

Tucker is the 12th player in the Michigan 2009 class to verbal and the 10th player headed to a D1 program.

GOING PRO
South Dakota State's Andrea Verdegan (Flambeau, WI) has signed a pro contract with Celetris Donar in the Netherlands.

INJURED
Tanisha Smith of the Gophers has injured her Achilles heel and will be out for the year. From the StarTribune.

WISCONSIN PREP SHOWCASE RECAP
The Wisconsin Prep Showcase is recapped with interviews and video. Sarah Eichler of Grafton and Taylor Wurtz of Ripon were co MVPs.

DEPTH & BALANCE
Rethinking Basketball looks at depth and balance as the WNBA starts their postseason.

GIVING BACK
Grand Valley State helped with a Habitat for Humanity project last weekend.

FOR WHOM THE BELLES TOLL
The West Liberty Belles will be no more. The girls teams are changing their name to the Comets just like the boys. From the Iowa City Press Citizen and Cedar Rapids Gazette.

PARTICIPATION
Michigan is 6th in nationwide high school participation. From the Detroit Free Press.

FALL LEAGUE
Here is the Standings and results in the Roosevelt Fall League. Hopkins is alone on top after beating Roosevelt last week 51-27. There is one more regular season round of games. The Playoffs start the next weekend.

AAU TRYOUTS
The Minnesota Metro Stars will be holding their second round of tryouts for their 16U Black and White teams this Sunday at the Bloomington Jefferson Activity Center from 6:30-8:30. If you missed the first tryout you can still come to the second one and try to earn a spot on one of the teams. More information can be found at www.mnmetrostars.com

Next up: tomorrow unless news breaks.

Somebody's Injured: Now What?

#4 posting 1.7.2008
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

Today Seashells and Balloons addresses a topic none of us want to think about – injuries.

Somebody's Injured: Now What?

It has been almost two months into the season and the games are really starting to stack up. And unfortunately, this is the time where injuries may slowly start to creep into a lineup, too. Injuries, from the season-ending, to a missed game or practice, can mean intense pain for not only the injured player. There are a whole lot of concerned parties. With all due respect to the Hippocratic oath, here are some humble prescriptions for everyone involved.

The Injured Player: Stay connected with your teammates. Attend all the practices (with your doctor’s approval) and show your support. It will mean a lot to your teammates to see they aren’t going it alone. At games, you can contribute even while sitting on the bench. Remember how much it helped to hear someone encourage you on the court? Do the same, especially for your replacement. Listen to your doctor and follow your rehab program to the letter. Listen to your body, and keep your priorities in line. Talk to someone else who has been injured. They can be a great friend. As hard as it is to wait, the most important thing for you is to come back healthy and prepared.

The Parents: This is your time to be the Silent MVP. Stay positive. Make sure your player is following doctor’s orders. Watch for signs of depression. They will feel left out, and let’s face it, you may too. Keep your feelings to yourself and be an advocate for your child if you feel they need to take off more time, or are ready to return to the team. No matter how bad you feel, find someone neutral to talk through it. Your kid already feels bad. Your job is to help them heal, help them gently see the life lessons, and make sure they don’t take their frustration out on the siblings.

The Teammates: You may have counted on the player a little too much. Now's the chance for someone else to step up. When treated the right way, an injury can actually make a team stronger. Keep the injured player involved as much as possible, and understand that no matter how much you still think of them as a teammate, they still feel awkward wearing street clothes on the bench. Give 100% when you are on the court and cherish each playing minute. And most of all, be empathetic; you never know when it could be you.

The Coach: Even though they may not believe it, you are hurting as bad as the injured player. But for now, it’s important to be as positive and as silent about the injury as the parents. (See above) You see, your opinion means the world to your players, but they may already be doubting enough on their own. Their pride is as fragile as their injured limb. They need to heal before they get back on the court, and there’s a fine line between gutting it out and coming back too early. Your thoughtful conversations with the trainer and the player will help you determine what is best. But you already know that.

The Trainer: Three cheers to the real MVP. You are treating so much more than a sprained ankle or a bruised shoulder. You are a grief counselor, you are an ally. One minute you are soothing a worried player, and the next, you’re reassuring a coach who is filled with questions. The great trainers are the careful listeners. You are an important resource at a time when a player doesn’t want to show weakness to anyone else on the team. Thank you for all the proactive steps you take, and for all the care you give. Make sure you have people in your court who take care of you the same way you treat the players. You deserve it.

Injuries are the defining moment for every team. How do players respond? Who steps up? How is chemistry affected? We all know that major growth points in our own lives have come when we have dealt with adversity. With a lot of positivity, hard work and team commitment, recovering from an injury can make a player and their team, hungrier and stronger than before.

Thanks Seashells & Balloons.

Here is hoping no one has to deal with this issue, but if you do, now you have a road map.

next up: Later this afternoon with the Grab Bag

Preseason Picks, Concussion, Peterson Saga

#1 posting 11.6.2007
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
The Breakdown now has their Minnesota Girls Basketball preseason conference teams and players of the year posted.

BREAKDOWN FALL LEAGUE
The Braham 8th/9th graders that are mostly members of the Minnesota Stars 13U team from 2006/2007 were moved up to the JV Division this past weekend. They beat the Stillwater JV then lost a close one to one of the Eden Prairie JV teams

CONCUSSION INJURIES
Females suffer more concussion injuries than males. This is a story about an ex-player in Michigan, Lisa Collison of Saginaw Heritage, her concussions and why she keeps on playing. From the Saginaw News.

POLICE BLOTTER
Here is more on the strange case of Kelsey Peterson and the runaway to Mexico. Peterson taught and was an assistant girls basketball coach at Lexington, Nebraska. From KHAS TV with video and USA Today.

Thanks to the readers for the help. If you have news, go to my profile and email me.

next up: Michigan Opens HS Practice

Season Ending Injuries,

#1 posting 9.12.2007
your daily dose of girls basketball news & information

SEASON ENDING INJURIES
The Sioux Falls Argus Leader continues its series on injuries with a look at the season ending variety.

INJURED BLOGGER
Some of you know I also coach volleyball. A few weeks ago a ball came up and bit me on my left hand "swear" finger. I could not straighten my finger, the tip was at a 90 degree angle. So yesterday, two weeks later, I saw medical help. Now I have a splint on that finger for six weeks. I will see the doctor in another six weeks with the possibility of an added four weeks. As you can imagine by blogging/keyboarding is now a bit slower than normal. I will keep plugging away. This is not a season ending injury.

Thanks to the readers for your help in making this the premier site for solid girls basketball news & information. If you have news, go to my profile and email me.

next up: college reports