I had the very cool, unique experience last night of sitting in the second row of bench seats for the game as well as being able to sit on the bench and watch the shoot around/walk through pre-game and have a couple of observations/notes I thought I'd share.
1) The amount of preparation that goes into creating a game plan for a team is mind boggling. I know that we as fans get frustrated with execution, or lack thereof, at times, but the work that the staff and team put in to create and execute a game plan is tremendous. I consider myself to be very intelligent when it comes to basketball, but watching that walk through and listening to the coach bark out plays, sets, defenses, etc. made me feel pretty dumb. Not just that I didn't know the plays, but it was really cool to see how much preparation the staff does on how to use those plays/sets to combat what the opponent wants to do. It was very, very cool to watch, and it definitely gave me a new appreciation for all that this team and staff does to try and win games.
2) Kipper is BIG. I mean this kid is jacked. Watching him work with the scout team during the walk through and how physically imposing he is got me pretty jacked up to see him suit up finally. He'll be back for the BYU game. I'm not sure if that's been mentioned on here yet or not.
3) Leron brings serious energy to this team, and not just on the floor. For those of you who go to the games, you know he's the guy who ends the "hype video" before the game with the "LET'S GOOOO" scream. But, before the game starts, he's twice as animated on the floor before the starters are announced. He's screaming and getting everyone fired up. I love this kid. I think they need his energy.
4) Josh Whitman realized how big last night's game was for this season. Once Coach Groce finally finished up with post-game interviews and headed back toward the locker room, JW was waiting for him and gave him a huge hug. They both had huge smiles on their faces. This was very cool to see.