Dubai Coast Conference Tournament
I had the privilege of coaching the JV boys basketball team at ASD; this being my first head coaching gig. Last year I tagged along as the assistant varsity boys coach and picked up valuable experience from Tarique Al-iesa... the head coach and ASD athletic director. My JV team was an absolute joy to work with, and we had a very successful season. The team was quite young, with 2 of my top players being 7th graders... and a few others in 8th grade.
The competition is limited here in Dubai, but we manage to pull together teams from the area and surrounding Emirates to field a competitive schedule each year. We play in a conference of 4 teams that are all American schools, and we add games against the local Dubai club teams (equivalent to American high school sports teams) and a school from Abu Dhabi. The real preparation is for the Dubai Coast Conference (DCC) tournament and the East Mediterranean Athletic Conference (EMAC) tournament at the end of each season.
We went into the DCC tournament as the #3 seed out of the 4 teams. Not exactly the big March Madness field of 64 teams... but we had our work cut out for us. Having lost to both of the top 2 teams in the regular season, I think we were slightly overlooked going into the tournament. As the coach, I certainly knew that we were much better than what we had shown earlier in the year. I felt all along that we'd be peaking as a team when we hit the DCC tournament... and I was right. We blew out Universal American School in the first game and moved on to the championship game to face our bitter rivals, Dubai American Academy (psh.... "academy"... so vain, right?). A week prior to the tournament they beat us pretty good on our court with some very hot outside shooting. We made some defensive adjustments during the next week of practice and came out ready to defend the shooters. What proceeded was nothing short of amazing... we absolutely hammered DAA and won the game by 25 points. It was wonderful as a coach to see everything you have been teaching and practicing throughout the season finally come together at such a crucial point. I knew the potential was there, but I had no idea we had that much fight in us. I was blown away by the growth of my players... and they continued to impress me in Kuwait the following week.
Here are some pics from the DCC tourney
(disclaimer: these weren't compiled for their photographic genius... just for a visual reference of how intimidating I look as a head coach)
See that gameface? Stone cold.
Since the game was already decided early on, we didn't have much of a celebration at the end. Just business as usual for ASD. But what's the deal... no Gatorade bath for the coach??
Kuwait (part 2)
As I wrote in my previous blog entry, I went to Kuwait for the East Mediterranean Athletic Conference tournament and got to stay with my buddy Mike and his lovely wife, Erin. Shifting to the basketball side of things, it was a very successful tournament for my guys. We came in as one of the youngest in a field of 5 teams, with very little EMAC experience on the roster. We played our best basketball of the season through the tournament and fought our way to the championship game. It was an exciting experience to be a part of as a first year coach, and I thoroughly enjoyed the festive atmosphere of the EMAC tournament. We arrived in Kuwait on Wednesday, the 18th of February, and played for 3 straight days, Thursday through Saturday.
We opened the tournament with round robin play, facing Cairo American School in game 1. They were a very well coached team with no shortage of talent and size. It was by far our toughest match-up of the season, and they made things difficult for us with some very clever traps and presses. We played tough and gave them a good fight, but fell short in the end. However, I came away certain that we would be facing them again in the finals on Saturday. As we continued round robin play through Thursday, and on into Friday, my premonition became valid as we handled the remaining EMAC teams with ease. On Saturday, after the tournament played itself out, we received our rematch with CAS in the championship. This time around, it was a very different game. Cairo did a tremendous job scouting out my players (something that I hope to improve on in the future) and they were ready to challenge our team strengths. Unexpectedly, they pulled back their presses and traps after we scored a few baskets and they shifted the game to a very slow tempo... which was contradictory to our team's style. We had developed a fast-paced, up and down game by the end of the season, and CAS made every effort to control the tempo and slow things down. They succeeded, and we were unable to hit outside shots in order to break their zone defense and get into our rhythm. We had some great moments during the game, but were unable to keep up with the size and experience of CAS. However, there was no reason for us to hang our heads... we had played a tremendous tournament, and put up a valiant fight against a very strong opponent.
The moment I will remember, and cherish, the most from the tournament was the scene I walked into immediately following our loss in the championship. As I gathered my things around the bench and exchanged pleasantries with the opposing coaches, I headed out the front door towards the cafeteria. It was there I found my entire team of 10 players hanging out together at one of the dining tables, joking, laughing, and carrying themselves with the kind of attitude you'd expect to see from the champions. It was my goal throughout the season to teach humility, graciousness, and sportsmanship just as much as I taught them about the game of basketball... if not more so. In that moment I was able to witness those important life skills being practiced and realized by my team.
Thank you guys for a wonderful and memorable season. You worked hard all year and gave everything you had right up to the final buzzer. I can't wait for next season to get started.
(Thank to Evelyn for providing the pictures from the event. I did not have a camera with me.)
Out on the town with the boys. Although, not a charming shot of Rashad, my starting center. Sorry bud.
On the bus headed to the American International School of Kuwait with Selma and Sean. Selma plays basketball with her full cover on.
Left to right... Myself with the JV girls coaches, Sean and Evelyn.
Spittin' knowledge during the championship game. Hasan is a 7th grader and was a very integral part of our success this season. He is a talented and respectful young player and I look forward to coaching him next year.
Couldn't quite pull out the victory in the big game, but everybody stayed in good spirits and the girls team was very supportive.
Kuwait City along the coast.
How awesome are these caps?
