Chemistry 101: Cleveland 76 Bradley 61

[BackyardLegend]

Either I'm gettin' old and have lost my eyesight....or it's amazing that NOBODY has posted about the Cleveland Bradley game last night. Anytime Bradley plays Cleveland in anything...then surely it's worth posting....right? Anyways, from reading the topic title...ya'll can see that Cleveland beat Bradley last night. Besides the rivalry itself, this game really had no importance unless Rhea County shocks the world and upsets Bradley next week. If that happens, then Cleveland would be first seed in the District tournament and Bradley would be second. Bradley should beat Rhea County and that would give the Bears the regular season championship and secure the first seed in the tournament.

 

The biggest newsworthy thing about last night's game lies deeper than X's and O's. The ol' Backyard Legend strongly sensed a Chemistry problem on Bradley's home front. This squad is very talented. Oglesby is a tremendous basketball player. Keith Dodd and Wes Adams are solid in their own right. It just seems that if you have 3 players of that magnitude, then you shouldn't be dropping 10 games in this area of the state. The Bears have also dropped 3 in a row and 2 district games in a row. There is something there. I saw a bunch of "finger pointing" looks from Bradley players toward each other.

 

I don't believe that it's coaching. Kent Smith has proven himself as one the premier coachs in the state. I don't beleive that it's talent. As I stated earlier, Oglesby, Dodd and Adams are good players. I strongly believe that it lies in the area of team Chemistry. Basketball is a team sport. You must have 5 players understanding their role and those 5 must be willing to sacrifice their personal gains or accolades for the good of the team. It's not about everyone worried about their stats. Not everybody needs to be scorers...but they all need to contribute by utilizing their strengths (Defense and Rebounding...etc.)

 

Most people would say that Cleveland was probably less talented than the Bears, but last night they each played their role in Coach Greens game plan to the best of their ability. Goldston and Dodd are probably the closest Cleveland has to a star, but their role players stepped up. I don't know the stats, but Preston Scoggins battled hard on both ends of the court last night. Houston Phillips really didn't have one his better games, but he came up big down the stretch. Cleveland just wanted it more last night and they showed a lot more team unity.

 

District tourney time is just around the corner. If Bradley is to have success in the post season, then they better make a better grade in team Chemistry 101. Chemistry 101 in basketball is not a Kent Smith thing....It's a player(s) thing. It's gut check time for the Bears. Cleveland seems to be playing better. They have a big test this week at McMinn Central. Central has laid "L's" on the Raiders twice this year. It should be a good measuring tool for Coach Green and his squad. Good luck to the Bears, Raiders and the Walker Valley Mustangs in the tournament. It should be a great one!

 

Until next time...The Backyard Legend is out.

[ChairOKey45]

Hey Legend!!!! Good post, but you're still missing the real reason the Bears are struggling. The Bears are like the Mets in baseball. They recruit the best players from other schools. Then they have supposedly "built" a great team. Just as the Mets, they can't win because of the "everybody is a star" mentality. Other schools' head coaches should take warning to the Bears substandard season. This just means the Bears will hit the recruiting trail hard and heavy in the off season. Better keep you players close to your vest.

 

Go Cherokees!