Busy times!

Wow! Finally a chance to update the blog! The boys have been going from early morning to late at night, often around 12am after various functions and games.

The boys are in high spirits, and have taken the opportunity to enjoy the various cultural and sporting aspects of the USA. We have visited Disney and California Adventure, as well as Universal Studios and an array of shops.

The boys have completed their games. The results are as follows
Poly - JV win, Varsity loss
JW North - JV and Varsity loss
Crossroads - JV and Varsity loss
Mission Prep - JV and Varsity loss

Both teams have had 1 win, and have certainly learnt from the fine example of what hard work and 5 training sessions a week can do for a team! We have been fortunate enough to play against schools that regularly produce Division 1 College players, and in a couple of instances, NBA players.

At JW North both teams were highly competitive, and the school played their JV teams against our boys. We stayed behind for a few moments to watch the Varsity boys train. Earlier in the day the coach deemed their training session inadequate, and as a result the boys had to return at night for a second session. They were big, strong, athletic and highly talented. Thank goodness we did not play these men!

Against Crossroads HS the boys were taken on a tour (a highlight for many of the boys) and were exposed to a College/University type atmosphere of learning. All staff and students are on a first name basis. Many of the students come from Hollywood backgrounds. It was interesting to see famous people in the crowd whilst the boys were playing!

After moving through to San Luis Obispo, the boys witnessed one of the best shooting displays you will ever see from a player. This Division 1 College bound guard shot 5 of 5 LONG RANGE - 3 pointers in the first quarter. Before you ask, all of these shots were heavily contested, and his last shot was about 8 ft inside the half way line - nothing but net! After the game we visited a BBQ restaurant with the team, and the boys picked the brains of these players.

Overall the games and after match functions have proven to be a fantastic experience for the boys, and they have made some friendships and 'facebook' contacts!

Today we drove up to San Francisco, and have settled in for the remainder of the tour. Tomorrow we visit Alcatraz, and St Mary's College. Then our final NBA game on Friday, followed by another College game on Saturday.

Two Big Days

The boys have enjoyed an action packed two days in Anaheim thus far. On Thursday we were fortunate enough to be the team fan tunnel at the Los Angeles Clippers game. Basically as the Clippers ran out on the floor our boys formed a line on one side and high-fived the players as they ran onto the court. We overheard the boys mention not washing the hand touched by the likes of Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, but we will see!

To add to the excitement the man of the moment Josh Houwen was interviewed by the Clippers DJ and that was posted live to the Jumbo screens at the stadium to loud applause. It was a a great game filled with highlight plays!

Today we faced off with Rio Hondo Prep. The gym is new and very impressive! Unfortunately the JV boys let their counterparts get out to an early 8-0 lead, and never recovered from that point. Notwithstanding some jet-lagged turnovers, the boys would have been extremely close and can hang their hat on some gritty plays throughout the game.

The varsity boys were keen to avoid a repeat of our first sluggish start and came out with fire and intensity. The game was close throughout the four quarters, with our lead out to a maximum of 10 points before a comeback was eminent. To their credit all boys on the floor were aggressive and looking to make plays. TC was victorious in its first game and broke the dreaded first game jet lag result! Dinner with Rio Hondo afterwards was a highlight, with our boys taking the opportunity to interact with the players and coaches from Rio Hondo.

Well done to both teams.

More to come!

Andrew and Brett

Arrival in San Deigo

The group successfully arrived into the USA yesterday, although it must be said that the group as a whole were struggling to come to terms with two big flights, change of time zone along with little sleep!

Credit to the boys for being positive and taking the initiative to do the little things to help quickly get over the dreaded jet lag.

By this stage it was time to introduce the boys to a little retail therapy, and subsequently the boys are feeling a lot better at the expense of their cash passports.

Today we started at San Diego Sea World, where the boys enjoyed various shows and exhibits, including the Shamu Killer Whale show, Dolphin show and rollercoasters. Some boys learnt the hard way that 'splash zone' entails getting wet, very wet...

We followed up Sea World with a visit to San Diego zoo, where the boys safely walked 8km and enjoyed all that the zoo had to offer.

To conclude today's events we celebrated Josh Houwen's birthday at a local Italian Restaurant, where staff entertained the group with a original version of happy birthday, and a cake that can only be described as US Super size!

More to come.

Andrew and Brett

Expectations leading up to the tour

With the final fundraising out the way and the excitement of receiving the majority of equipment passed, the boys have been working in earnest to prepare themselves for playing basketball at the highest level. We have a limited amount of time to prepare and with the tour fast approaching we ask that all students adhere to the following:

• Students are prepared to follow team rules and ethos as specified in the tour playbook.

• Students are competent with understanding of the playbook, including offence and defensive structures. This should be studied and known inside out. It is obvious when students don't do their 'homework' and subsequently try to learn on the 'fly' at training; it slows the progression of the squad.

• Students where possible must attend all specified training sessions. Students are expected to prioritise training sessions over work. First and foremost the tour is about playing and experiencing basketball, and getting team structures in place and solidifying playbook knowledge is difficult when training sessions are missed.

• Hard work and dedication by students has not gone unnoticed by coaching staff. Some boys have gone out of their way to approach staff before and after training, as well as during the week to make sure they are comfortable with team strategy and seeking ways to improve and/or what areas to focus on improving.

We expect our boys to enjoy themselves in the USA, but make no mistake it is a lot more enjoyable when our teams play at the highest level and stay competitive. Our experience from previous tours is that students who take the time to learn the team strategies find it easier to control game day nerves, in game performance and often get more out of the games as they are not stressed about last minute learning.