Sept. 9, 2006
HELLO FROM SCOTLAND - DAY 3
Wow, what a day!! The weather here continues to be outstanding and mix that with four more sessions of our basketball clinic, then add a Men's Euro Cup professional game between Great Britain and The Netherlands, put in more discussions on the differences of American / European basketball at the local Pub, and top it off with a night tour of Haunted Edinburgh and you have yourself 15 hours of definite excitement. Also, you have yourself one tired Horned Frog!!
I was really, really pleased with the outcome of the clinic sessions as we had alot of input, comments, and participation from the Scots and they are much appreciated for their knowledge of the game. Fundamentals were the main key in our Saturday morning session as we covered it all in dribbling, shooting, passing, footwork drills, and rebounding. In the afternoon session we concentrated on post play and offensive set plays against man-to-man defense and zone. We saw a lot of coaches taking notes, so we feel we showed them something that they had not seen before and as a coach among their peers that makes you feel pretty good. We finished up with transition offense, always a clinic favorite. Again, I cannot thank Jim Littell enough for taking time away from the Oklahoma State program to help me with this clinic - he was outstanding and got his point across in many unique ways that were easy to follow and understand.
The Men's Euro Cup game saw Great Britain pound The Netherlands by 30+ and was a little surprised by that margin of victory. I spent some time with The Dutch coaches last night and those guys were really nice and know their stuff. But, during the game the players did not show very much intensity or all out hustle and it showed in the final score. It also shows that you do have to play this game with emotion and passion and not only have talent!!
At the Pub after the game, some more interesting comments about politics, basketball, and life were discussed!! Tony Blair resigning within the year is really big news here as he is held in very high esteem in this country. Gas prices here are unbelieveable - about $8 dollars per gallon, and we are stunned at paying $3 in the USA, a bottle of Diet Coke costs $5+, and a good steak dinner will run you in excess of $50. To use the computer at the hotel, it is over $20 per hour!! So, I learned on this trip not to complain too much about our prices!! As for the state of basketball in America, the international community really likes the way the American women play the game. Things like teamwork, the extra pass to the open person, athleticism, and focus were the main topics about our style of play.
In closing, Edinburgh is an awesome city and I would suggest it as one of the most fantastic vacation cities one could go to!! The historical aspects of the city, the haunted castle - that update will be in my next report - the quaint shops, the friendly people, and the beautiful views of the countryside and the North Sea are to good to pass up!! Until, next time - THINK PURPLE, THINK TCU!! Larry Tidwell
P.S. - Memo to Brent Lubahn in Marketing: I sold 10 season tickets in the Pub last night and all it took was my Texan version of Rawhide in the Karoke contest to get it done, always scheming to sell those season tickets!! And, I was listening to the football game on the Web site and the golden voices of Brian Estridge and John Denton came through loud and clear. As a matter of fact at Omar's Tent, Awnings, and Kilts . . . I found those two boys some purple and white kilts to wear while broadcasting our football games - now that is ESPN Sportscenter coverage material!!
