The Demon basketball team arrived in Lubbock and immediately visited the beautiful 15,000-seat United Spirit Center to get the feel of the digs for Saturday afternoon's contest against Texas Tech.
The Demons worked out for two hours Friday morning in a gym on the Texas-Arlington campus before hitting the highway west to Lubbock. After a ride more than five hours, it was time to stretch the legs and get in some shots, but not spend too much energy 18 hours before tip.
That was left to others.
Coach Mike McConathy took the players back to the locker room for a little motivational message after about 20 minutes of shooting. It was a players and head coach only session, by design. Not that Coach Mike wanted to keep the rest of the staff outside, he just wanted to focus the team on the message he had.
Meanwhile, back on the court, a classic 3-on-3 matchup unfolded.
It was a runaway win for the "Six Million Dollar Boys" over the "Sless is Moore" threesome.
The family trio of assistant coach Bob Austin, his father Lou and Bob's younger brother Matt used superior everything to smack assistant coaches Mark Slessinger, Jeff Moore and student manager Rickey Doyle.
It was hardly full tilt basketball. It was pickup ball at its ... OK, it was a typical street clothes pickup game. And it was a blast to watch. Among the audience, Mrs. Lou (Joanne) Austin, who heckled her husband throughout.
I dubbed Team Austin as "The Six Million Dollar Boys" in tribute to their prowess and one of the best TV shows of my youth, showcasing Steve Austin, the "Six Million Dollar Man." No relation to these Colorado-based Austins, BTW. But let it be said that once Lou loosened up, he fit right in with his two sons.
"Sless is Moore," just a play on words leaving out Rickey, which is what happened on a lot of offensive possessions anyway. The rust on Slessinger and Moore was a pivotal factor. But the fun they had left us all chuckling, and it captivated the team as they returned to the court to pack up to check in at our hotel.
Hey, at least they were out there playing. Seeing as my knees have reduced my mobility to that of one of those stately oaks near the three columns on campus, I am a non-combatant in these sort of things.
On the other hand, Demon play by play man Patrick Netherton was meeting us at the hotel after traveling to West Texas with his dad, who has a hunting lease nearby. The 6-foot-4, Charles Barkley-esque (in terms of his build, not his game) Netherton was extremely disappointed he missed a chance to pound the paint, and doubtless will encourage another throwdown Sunday in Stillwater.
Life on the road ...
Doug Ireland, SID
Friday, December 28, 2007
Westward bound with the Demons
Heading west toward Lubbock on the year-ending Big XII Conference bus tour for the NSU Demons, who play Saturday afternoon at Texas Tech and Monday afternoon at Oklahoma State ...
... Movie selections are always key on bus trips. Two winners today: The Bourne Ultimatum and Rush Hour 3, entertaining in vastly different styles, except both featured some exciting chase and fight sequences always sure to appeal to a bus filled with young men. Don't expect to screen "The Notebook" with this team, but it's a good bet on the Lady Demon basketball bus. I'll leave that confirmation to Matt Bonnette, who probably doesn't get a vote on the movie choices, but with a wife and two daughters, he's used to it!
... The Demons had a fullscale workout at 9 in Prather Coliseum Thursday morning, then pulled out about 12:45 heading north. A lunch break in Shreveport was the first of two halts in The Bourne Ultimatum screening. The second came at the Tyler Junior College campus, where the team had a shootaround. Head coach Mike McConathy believes a key to shaking out of the Demons' doldrums is getting the players more shots in practice, and now's the time before classes resume mid-January. After the shootaround, we enjoyed the conclusion of the third Bourne film and debated whether there will be a fourth (consensus is, absolutely, we hope so!) before graduate manager and movie maven Patrick Self loaded Rush Hour 3 into the DVD player for the drive to Dallas ...
... The vibe on the Demon bus, except when the team is headed to the games, is relaxed, as you would expect around Coach Mike. As we got into the DFW metroplex, he pointed out a LaQuinta Hotel that was the first road home for one of his teams, in his first year at Bossier Parish Community College (1982-83). The first road game was in the metroplex, and the BPCC team didn't even have uniforms yet, having to use the Bossier High School gear to play in the game ...
... Restaurant choices are sometimes settled in advance, but when there's no plan, it sure is nice to have the new "TomTom" GPS tracker that assistant coach Mark Slessinger got for Christmas. He located a nice restaurant row near Six Flags Over Texas and senior Colby Bargeman was asked to pick the spot - he chose Steak and Shake, in between a couple of mid-range steakhouses and a Chinese buffet. Most of the group went with Colby, Coach Mike and crew, but a few braved the light drizzle and chill to explore other options ...
... Friday's schedule includes a 9:30 workout on the stage at Texas Hall on the campus of Southland Conference cousin Texas-Arlington. Ironically, UTA will be the first SLC foe for NSU on Saturday, Jan. 5 in Natchitoches.
... After cleaning up following what figures to be a 90-minute workout, the team should head to lunch in the metroplex and then west for the five hour drive to Lubbock. More tomorrow night on this year-end road trip with the Demons...
Doug Ireland, SID
... Movie selections are always key on bus trips. Two winners today: The Bourne Ultimatum and Rush Hour 3, entertaining in vastly different styles, except both featured some exciting chase and fight sequences always sure to appeal to a bus filled with young men. Don't expect to screen "The Notebook" with this team, but it's a good bet on the Lady Demon basketball bus. I'll leave that confirmation to Matt Bonnette, who probably doesn't get a vote on the movie choices, but with a wife and two daughters, he's used to it!
... The Demons had a fullscale workout at 9 in Prather Coliseum Thursday morning, then pulled out about 12:45 heading north. A lunch break in Shreveport was the first of two halts in The Bourne Ultimatum screening. The second came at the Tyler Junior College campus, where the team had a shootaround. Head coach Mike McConathy believes a key to shaking out of the Demons' doldrums is getting the players more shots in practice, and now's the time before classes resume mid-January. After the shootaround, we enjoyed the conclusion of the third Bourne film and debated whether there will be a fourth (consensus is, absolutely, we hope so!) before graduate manager and movie maven Patrick Self loaded Rush Hour 3 into the DVD player for the drive to Dallas ...
... The vibe on the Demon bus, except when the team is headed to the games, is relaxed, as you would expect around Coach Mike. As we got into the DFW metroplex, he pointed out a LaQuinta Hotel that was the first road home for one of his teams, in his first year at Bossier Parish Community College (1982-83). The first road game was in the metroplex, and the BPCC team didn't even have uniforms yet, having to use the Bossier High School gear to play in the game ...
... Restaurant choices are sometimes settled in advance, but when there's no plan, it sure is nice to have the new "TomTom" GPS tracker that assistant coach Mark Slessinger got for Christmas. He located a nice restaurant row near Six Flags Over Texas and senior Colby Bargeman was asked to pick the spot - he chose Steak and Shake, in between a couple of mid-range steakhouses and a Chinese buffet. Most of the group went with Colby, Coach Mike and crew, but a few braved the light drizzle and chill to explore other options ...
... Friday's schedule includes a 9:30 workout on the stage at Texas Hall on the campus of Southland Conference cousin Texas-Arlington. Ironically, UTA will be the first SLC foe for NSU on Saturday, Jan. 5 in Natchitoches.
... After cleaning up following what figures to be a 90-minute workout, the team should head to lunch in the metroplex and then west for the five hour drive to Lubbock. More tomorrow night on this year-end road trip with the Demons...
Doug Ireland, SID
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