BIRTHDAY WITH MY TEAMMATES

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COURTNEY JONES (10-19-09):
This past weekend was very exhausting, but at the same time fun. Beside the two-a-day practice held on Saturday, it was my 20th Birthday. What more could I ask for? I got to spend four incredible hours with my coaches going over drills and learning about our defense -- but that wasn’t the best part of MY day! Later that night I got to spend the evening laughing and joking with my teammates. We all decided to eat dinner at our local Outback Steakhouse and catch a movie.

At dinner we got a chance to relax and talk about things that were on our mind. We talked about a variety of things such as our favorite TV shows to our jean sizes. You could tell how empty our stomachs were by the way we ate because when our food finally arrived no one said anything. Then the waitress came out with a scoop of ice cream and candle while my teammates sang the Happy Birthday song. I was a bit embarrassed by their singing but I enjoyed myself. The movies were extremely packed that night. It was hard trying to find seats to watch the action-thriller “Law Abiding Citizen.” This film was very interesting. I believe this movie had everyone in suspense.

I really want to thank all of my teammates for spending their evening with me. They really helped make it an enjoyable and amazing one. If I could I would turn 20 all over again.

Filed under  //  Off the Court   Player's Post  
Posted by Bill Martin  

A Good Practice

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COACH STARKEY (10-18-09):

I'm not the kind of guy that gets overly excited about a practice but we had a really good one today. We pinpointed two areas that we were poor at yesterday and went to work on them today. We did something different today in that we divided practice up into two sessions. We started the day in the film room watching some clips on our defensive player -- specifically our ability to blockout and rebound. We always have an Emphasis of the Day and we post signs up everywhere reminding the players what the emphasis is at that time. We went with "Blockout & Rebound." We came out of the film session and went to work individually on rebounding techniques and then carried it over into some whole method 5-on-5 work. We were very aggressive in rebounding but more importantly executed well. Our perimeter players utilize a hit-and-go method while our post players use a hit-and-hold method. It was a great way to start practice.
 
We then headed back to the film room to watch some more clips. This time we zeroed in on our transition and motion offense -- specifically our screening. When the players returned to the court, they found we had changed the Emphasis of the Day to "Headhunt on Screens" which means we want to screen and put a body on the defense. We again worked individually on screening and cutting techniques. We worked one-on-zero and two-on-one before moving to some whole method five-on-five drills. We then play something called "Motion Game" where we give points for good screens. Of course the losing team has to run and it creates a really competitive atmosphere. The offensive execution was outstanding.
 
As we huddled at the end of practice looked at our team and said, "We got better today." There's no better thing to say at the end of a hard workout and they had earned it.
 
Today was not a perfect day today however. Taylor Booze received a call that her great grandmother had passed away. Taylor comes from a very close family and this is a difficult loss for her. Please join our team in keeping Taylor and her family in our prayers.

Posted by Bill Martin  

The Kind of Lady Tiger Alumni I Want To Be

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KATHERINE GRAHAM (10-18-09):

Our team has had a great weekend. It's the first weekend of practice, we hung out together at the volleyball game, and celebrated Courtney Jones birthday as an entire team last night. But maybe the best part of going to Temeka's WNBA Celebration Party on Friday night. Meek means a lot to our team. We always have a lot of alumni stopping in to watching us practice or play. Coach Starkey always has them talk to us and it's a great way to learn about the legacy they left. But nobody has been more involved with us than Meek. She's always around. And when she's not she will call, text or email one of us to check on us. Even at the celebration she spoke directly to our team. She spoke from her heart about how much it meant to be a Lady Tiger and that we need to know that now to help us enjoy the experience even more. She started crying as she spoke and we all got teared up. She's the kind of Lady Tiger I want to be after I graduate -- one that continues to come back and give to those who were the Purple and Gold -- Meek has shown us that this is The Lady Tiger Way!

 

Filed under  //  Alumni   Player's Post   WNBA  
Posted by Bill Martin  

Our Fast Break Club in Support of Temeka Johnson

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BOB STARKEY (10-18-09):

There are far too many reasons for me to say why I love our Fast Break Club and not enough time to jot down all the reasons they make a difference in our program but last Friday night was just one more event to show why they are a special group. They came out in full force on short notice, on a Friday night, to congratulate Temeka Johnson on her WNBA Championship. Of course that also speaks to Meek and her ability to get people to love and support her as well. But make no mistake about it, the love and support of our Fast Break Club is another aspect of THE LADY TIGER WAY!

 

Filed under  //  Fast Break Club   Temeka Johnson  
Posted by Bill Martin  

Leading the Nation's Best Band

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ALLISON HIGHTOWER (10-18-09):
Friday night was a special night for the Lady Tigers, both Basketball and Volleyball. First, we went to Temeka Johnson's Championship Celebration -- she did her thing and she deserved it ... hard work pays off!! After the celebration the team went to go support the Volleyball team in their Breast Cancer Awareness game vs. Arkansas and they won!! But the most exciting thing for me was that I got to conduct the Baddest Band from Tiger Land!!! They let me conduct the best band song ever "Neck" ...well I really did more dancing then conducting, but it was a good thing the band knew what they were doing. Until next time GEAUX TIGERS!!!!

 

Filed under  //  Off the Court  
Posted by Bill Martin  

Meek Visits Practice

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BRITTANY CARVALHIDO (10-17-09):

This is my second year on the LSU staff and the most impressive thing to me in those two years is all the alumni that are constantly coming back to see us...the visit us at the office...they come by at practice...they attend our games. It tells me that LSU is a special place to them. It's been a big weekend for Temeka Johnson and despite the fact that she must be tired from everything there she was at practice today. Visiting with our team and fans! I obviously wasn't here when she played but you wouldn't know by how she treats me. I know she is a great player but what I've discovered is she is even a better person! I'm learning very quickly that our LSU family is an extended one and that's part of The Lady Tiger Way!

 

Filed under  //  Temeka Johnson  
Posted by Bill Martin  

KRISTEN MORRIS VISITS FROM ACROSS THE OCEAN!

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COACH STARKEY (10-17-09):
We had a great surprise before practice today with Kristen Morris "called" from overseas to talk to our team. Gotta love Skype! Kristen over in Latavia playing and enjoying the experience -- I knew she would -- she always has a determined, positive attitude -- a really mentally tough individual! Everyone on the team got to talk to her before we got started and I think it really motivated our team to start of today's practice on a great note. Kristen was someone who gave her best everyday and I think "visiting" with her help refresh our team of her practice intensity. THANKS KRISTEN!

 

Filed under  //  Alumni   Off the Court  
Posted by Bill Martin  

PRE-PRACTICE -- A TIME FOR FUNDAMENTALS

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COACH MAYS (10-17-09):

We went twice today with this morning's practice concentrating on shooting. We went full speed in the afternoon with a good two and a half hour practice. One thing that I've really enjoyed since coming to LSU is something they've been doing for a lot of years -- "Pre-Practice." the first 30 minutes of each practice we split up by position and work on fundamentals and technique. Coach Landers and I work with the guards and we spend time with everything from ball handling, passing, dribbling, screening, cutting and individual defense. Coach Starkey has the post players and he's working with on ball handling, passing screening, cutting along with posting and sealing. It is this fundamental session each day that I think really helps our players to improved on a daily basis. We had a lot of coaches come by and watch today and they all loved the concept of pre-practice. It is something we do everyday the entire year so in January and February, even though we are preparing to play SEC games, we don't get away from fundamentals. Check out the photos below to get an idea of some of our pre-practice work.

 

Posted by Bill Martin  

EARLY MORNING SHOOTING PRACTICE

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COACH LANDERS (10-17-09):

We had a nice practice this morning. It wasn't long...about 80 minutes. We had a heavy concentration on shooting. We work with our players individually on the form and then work with shooting drills that are game-like. We also found some time to work on our C Play which is our ball screen action that Coach Chancellor ran while winning 4 WNBA Championships with Houston. Our approach to shooting is unique. Every shooting drill involves technique or is a shot that we get in our offense.

 
For example, our perimeter players will shoot shots off the down screen and the elbow screen like we do in our motion offense. The post players are shooting a lot of shots from the high post area because those are the shots they get out of our motion. We also spend a lot of time on "2nd Cut Shooting." We screen a lot in our motion so many times the most open player is the shooter. On the perimeter end we will have them set a down screen, hold it for a 2 count, and then make a second cut where they receive the ball for a shot or a drive.
It was a good workout. Lot's of energy. Now we have a little time to show some unofficial recruits our campus -- it's a beautiful day in Baton Rouge. Then it's a 2:00 practice that's open to coaches and we are expecting a great crowd. I hope you are enjoying your day as much as we are -- it's THE LADY TIGER WAY!

 

Posted by Bill Martin  

TEAM CAPTAINS

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VAN CHANCELLOR (10-17-09):
As you all know, Allison Hightower was one of our captains last year along with Kristen Morris. We went through the summer with Ally being our lone captain but during the off-season it was evident that Nicci Kelly had not only worked hard but has really gained a great deal of respect from her teammates. After a staff meeting, all of our coaches were in agreement that she had earned the right to be a captain along with Ally. We don't pick captains at LSU for the sake of picking captains. We expect these young ladies to be leaders -- and their role is one that is 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The normal fan understands that we want our captains to lead our team at practice and in games but the most important role of our captain is to lead our team when our coaching staff isn't around. They need to lead them in the weight room, at the meal table, on the campus, in the classroom, at the mall -- EVERYWHERE -- ALL THE TIME! And I think we have two captains that our team will be very proud of!

Posted by Bill Martin