BASKETBALL: Catching up with Coach E - 1/3/2013

We are heading into the 2nd semester of school which means we are about to begin conference play! We obviously had a tremendous first semester going (13-3) and finishing ranked #6 in the state. There were so many great highlights throughout the 1st semester, however, one of the best was when I was told our team GPA is a 2.68. I am certainly very proud of our team working hard both on and off the court. This shows they are not only focused on winning but also graduating and preparing to move on to other institutions and representing the State College of Florida.

This past weekend, after only 3 practices, we gutted out a tough win against a very good CCRI team at Palm Beach State College. We have 4 non-conference contests left that we cannot over look before heading into the Suncoast Conference games. We head up to Daytona Beach on Saturday to face a much improved Daytona State team. They were playing well going into the break and anytime we go on the road in Region 8 we know it will be a tough one.

After Daytona, we have a rematch against Central Florida here in Bradenton that I know our team is really looking forward to. Central Florida is (15-2) and currently ranked #4 in the state.  We lost a heartbreaker to CF in our first road game of the year. The final score was 103-105 which I think really helped our team come together because it gave them a sense of just how great this region is. It also helped them to see how important it is to stay together and be focused for every practice and every game.
 
We then go to Gainsville and play a difficult road game against Santa Fe who gave us all we could handle here at Hal Chasey Gymnasium. They are a very well coached team with solid group of players led by point guard, Bobby Hunter, who is top 5 in the country in scoring. Hopefully, we do not overlook this game with conference play beginning in one week.
 
We wrap up our non-conference schedule, Saturday, January 19th, during the State College of Florida Homecoming weekend. We host Webber International University at 4pm. That should be a fun day with a lot of the former SCF players coming back to meet our current team.

Catch up with me next week!

Coach E