Do you go to basketball games and think you’ve got what it takes? Ever suffer through watching the team be behind in points screaming in your head, “PUT ME IN, COACH”? We thought so too, until we were thoroughly schooled by all the complexities that go into XU basketball. Her Campus Xavier graciously accepted the invitation to join about 80 women and the basketball coaching staff at Basketball 101, an annual Xavier event for women including food, drinks, and lots of basketball talk. From a tour of Cintas to coaching through drills, they didn’t let us off easy without breaking a bit of a sweat.
1. Having Cintas on campus is so cool. Really, the amount of stress we avoid since we can just walk to the games is amazing.
2. People of all age groups love Xavier basketball. I wore my XU spirit gear and boots, but that girl, her mom, and her grandma are wearing matching sweatshirts. That’s dedication.
No more questions, please.
3. Women can be even more passionate about the sport then men. I didn’t think I’d ever find myself discussing ideal vantage points in Cintas with a stranger, but here I find myself.
4. A lot more goes on than you would think. Recruitment, pre-season, tournaments, strength training, practices, plays, warm ups, games… It boggled my mind trying to process it all.
5. Speaking of recruitment, Xavier competes for the best of the best. Coach Mack gave a great presentation on how they recruit, and let me tell you they’re not messing around.
6. Not only do we compete FOR the best of the best recruits, but we also are going up AGAINST the best schools for these recruits. The challenge of living in “the breadbasket.”
HCXU meets Coach Mack… and maybe fangirled a little.
7. There are parts of Cintas I’ve never even imagined existed. Even as a senior who has been around the Xavier block a couple years now, who knew there was so much usable space down in the basement?
8. The locker room is gorgeous. Don’t believe me? I’ll let some pictures do the talking.
9. Brad Redford really knows how to shoot a free throw. I mean I knew this but I didn’t really know this until he made four in a row during a demonstration.
10. Following up to that, turns out free throw shooting isn’t as easy as it looks. As Brad makes four in a row, I promptly air-balled four in a row.
11. But, if you’re good enough at hoops, like me, you may end up on Cincinnati.com. Or, if you are 4’3” and have never shot a basketball in your life but are in the right place at the right time, you may end up on Cincinnati.com.
What a perfect layup, done by yours truly.
Photo Credit: Sam Greene, Cincinnati.com
12. There is a science behind the perfect arc. It’s 45 degrees, if you’re curious.
13. We’re fortunate to live in such a big, bustling city like Cincinnati with big-name sponsors like P&G and Kroger. Think of how different our lives would be without the Skyline toss! Thanks to these great companies for supporting the Basketball 101 program.
14. Coach Mack and his wife Christi Mack are hilarious together. If the Q&A session had anything to say about it, dinnertime at their house must be a riot.
15. Xavier basketball is our happy place. Just being down on the court, even without the players and thousands of adoring fans, the place was electric. We can’t wait to go back… even if it is in the student section instead of center court.