Wayne23

June 26: We found 20 recruits on our initial list who we feel can meet our entrance requirements- actually, 5 are junior college so it is not relevant in those cases. Others will be added over time. We have 7 PGs, 2 SGs, 2 SFs, 5 PFs, 4 Cs. Aug. 17: We offer to 2 PGs, an SG, 2 PFs, a C. Sept. 11: Time for home visits. Sept 18: 4 of our potential recruits seem quite interested. We have a schedule. I seek victories this year so I asked Athletic Director Maranville not to schedule very many difficult opponents. We will visit preseason #22 North Carolina State, as well as traditional rival Boston College. The schedule is well balanced as to home versus vis-à-vis road games. Sept. 25: Two recruits commit. One goes elsewhere. Max Lee, PG, currently #108, commits, as does Tony Mast, PG, currently #68. Both are very serious students, with GPA of 4.0, which is the reason we were able to convince them to come here. We lost #62 SG Dan Cook. Oct. 2: Two more commitments and no losses. #70, C Bay Sand, GPA 3.8, and #441 PF Josh Ayle, a Junior College player shoes stock slipped from 182. He may rise again. Today was the first day of practice. I believe we shall be competitive in the Ivy League this season despite the fact that the so called experts are projecting that we shall finish last in conference. Interestingly enough our goals include winning the Conference Tournament- yes there is one.) It appears that I will very likely have eight players in my regular rotation. However it is early. We shall see what develops. Oct. 23: Cris Zinn, #67, PG, committed. One left to fill. We now have 3 PGs, a PF and a C, and we’ve offered to another PG. Our desire would have been for another inside player but that may not happen. Nov. 6: We play our exhibition games and adjust accordingly. We shall probably continue to adjust as the season proceeds, especially at SG. There is some doubt on the part of staff that we have resolved the issue of who should get minutes. We’ll see what transpires. We withdrew the offer to the guard. Our sixth scholarship is now being offered to a PF.

June 25, 1968: A great deal has occurred since my last entry. Indeed I had not planned to be remiss in writing but the demands upon my time have exceeded expectations, which I thought were rather high. Coaching staff has met almost daily during these initial weeks. I have found the input of all three coaches valuable but Coach Krimmel is especially insightful. His experience, as well as his excellent communication skills lead me to seek his advice regularly. I am quite comfortable making the final decision but I do wish his input before doing so. Coaches Howard and Sheinfeld have also made significant contributions. We have worked through all of the basics and many of the variations to our offensive and defensive sets. We do not want needlessly complex formations but are mindful of the need to be ready for any surprises, complications… Coach Howard has been looking at film of our conference opponents and has compiled folders of information for each team. Teams do make changes from season to season but if the coach remains in place these adjustments are usually relatively minor. Again, data is our friend, and Coach Howard is supplying it in both quality and quantity. Coach Sheinfeld and I have discussed the manner in which we will work together. A major portion of his work load will be devoted to translating my basic plan for each practice into a working outline, measuring carefully both the time each given activity will take, who will lead said activity, how we will transition in and out of activities, and how we will evaluate the success of a given activity. Once again, accurate and complete record keeping will produce a great deal of invaluable information. During games Coach Sheinfeld will sit beside me and we will consult regularly throughout the game. We will spend the first fifteen seconds or so of each time out deciding what information to communicate to our players. I have visited each of our players at his home, being certain to time this visit so that I would be able to meet with the entire family. We want family support and the best way to achieve that is to make families understand that we have the best interests of their son at heart and that we welcome and value the family’s presence in our endeavors. Of course many other details have required my attention. The facilities here at Harvard are adequate but little more than that. At some point in the near future some work should be done to modernize both practice facilities and the locker rooms. Neither of these is a crying need but I have made Athletic Director Arthur P. Maranville, IV, aware of the situation. Dr. Maranville has been most cooperative and helpful in all regards. We chose not to attend any summer camps. Recruiting officially begins tomorrow. Coach Krimmel has had a list of recruits drawn up for some time and we add to it on a daily basis. Given the constraints mentioned above regarding admission requirements we shall be prepared to look closely at every player who we feel can meet said requirements.

I will feature a balanced attack, focusing upon the Princeton (about 55%) and Triangle (about 45%) offensive formations against the zone, as well as our man to man offense, and will utilize man to man and 2-3 zone defense about equally. We will rarely press but when we do it will be about 50-50 between 1-2-1-1 and man. We will run offensive sets about 70% of the time. I will favor inside, but not heavily. I am at 10 in Player Rotation and Def. Crash Boards, 8 in Off. Crash Boards, 6 in Off. Pace, 5 in all other categories. My “numbers”: Off.- 15, Def.- 20, Recruit- 55, Scout- 90 (Since this rating never changes I start artificially high and balance in other categories), Recruit- 55, Player Development- 25. This places me in the “Amateur” category, all in all. I am Very High in Ambition, Academics and Integrity, Average in Discipline and Temper. Reputation is 37. Among the many academicians with whom I consulted when coming up with the above plans was one Jerry Tarkanian, Ph. D., at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas. With $115,000 in the budget after hiring my assistants I have decided to buy the Gold East Report, the basic National, and basic International reports. Since academic qualifications are of the utmost importance I felt that we would need to scour the world. I do realize that the information we will receive will be minimal outside of my local area, but I am comfortable with my decision. We will be left with $60,500 for recruiting and that seems more than adequate.

May 1 (Continued): I began by engaging three assistant coaches. I decided that it was worthwhile to spend a bit of money on my first assistant, my recruiter, and was able to hire Nick Krimmel, who has a recruiting rating of 63. Hopefully this will bear fruit. He was the #2 assistant at the University of Massachusetts. His challenge, of course, will be finding quality athletes who are able to meet Harvard’s rigorous entrance requirements. My second assistant is Jermaine (Jed) Howard. He will scout for us, a job he held with Boston University. My #3 is Val Sheinfeld, who will serve as bench/practice coach. Duties will of course overlap somewhat. I had hoped to secure Nick’s services for more than a single season but was unable to do so, with him or with any of the others. My first season will undoubtedly prove challenging. We have only ten athletes on the team, only one of them a scholarship senior. We have two senior walk ons. The rest of the team is comprised of 3 juniors, 1 sophomore, 3 freshmen, all on scholarship. I will keep no walk ons after this first season. There are no superstars, and indeed, no stars. We will aim for a collaborative effort, which I consider to be paramount toward success in group endeavors, but it would be nice to have what is referred to in the vernacular as a “go to guy.” I feel we do have a modicum of talent, at the very least, probably more so among the guards than among the inside players. A bit about my own strengths and weaknesses. I am, of course, analytical by nature. I was constantly told by Coach Martin that I am a very good game coach, in that I am able to see the court and what is happening, and am further able to very quickly pick up on changes in a given situation, and upon what is working and not working at a given moment. Further, Coach Martin said I made good decisions regarding making necessary adjustments in adverse situations, as well as when to “ride out the storm” so to speak. Another of my strengths is evaluating talent. In this regard data analysis, and isolation of key variables are both key. Coach Martin praised my ability to teach the particulars to my players both in individual and group situations. He said that I expressed myself clearly and communicated necessary information, even when complex, in a very efficient manner. He particularly liked the way that I both encouraged and responded to questions, as well as the fact that I adopt a “learn by doing” approach as opposed to what some students have called “death by lecture.” As a graduate assistant I quickly learned that students learn little by lecture. I address a teaching point and have my students- er players, immediately practice same. I know my weaknesses. I am scholarly, aloof, and not possessed of what are known as “people skills.” I can appear standoffish although I do not mean to. I simply do not normally understand emotional outbursts and the need for petty disagreements. Knowing this about myself I have encouraged my assistants to form close relationships with the players. This way, when difficulties arise as they no doubt shall, each player will feel that he has an ally on the staff. We will let this process happen naturally rather than assigning a coach to given players. If a player does not bond with any of the coaches this will be addressed and a resolution will be forthcoming. Finally, yes, I am seen as cold, and lacking in a sense of humor. My students, not realizing I was aware of it, called me both “Professor Hartless,” (A rather clever play upon my last name) and “Mr. Spock”, the latter apparently being the name of a robot-like emotionless alien in a television series popular with the age group. I have never seen the program. I am what I am, but I shall attempt levity from time to time.

May 1, 1968: I am Professor Leland Hart, 25, Harvard University. I have decided to keep this journal in order to document my progress regarding this fascinating experiment which I have taken on. I completed my Ph. D. in statistical analysis, here at Harvard, in December. I was able to design my own program which included research into game theory, sports statistics, and any number of other areas, all with the intention of determining which factors have the most relevance when it comes to success in competitive athletics at the Division I collegiate level. After a good deal of study of the various sports involved I settled upon basketball for any number of reasons: (1) There are only five players in the game at any given time. (2) A team can be successful with as few as six players in the rotation, and rarely is it necessary to have more than eight, or at most nine. (3) The schedule is relatively short, usually 27-33 games in a given season. (4) While baseball provides the opportunity for the greatest depth and breathe of statistical information, I determined that basketball provides the most relevant data. (5) I was able to participate as a graduate assistant coach of the basketball team here at Harvard during each of the last three seasons, thus gaining practical experience in the field. (6) Upon the retirement of my basketball mentor, Head Coach Granville Martin, I applied for and was given the position of head basketball coach. While considering this enterprise an experiment in statistical analysis, and while keeping as much relevant data as possible, I am indeed the head coach and will function as same. I have kept the title of professor, but I intend to coach for an indefinite time, and indeed, should the opportunity to move up to a better school, regarding basketball, as there is no better school academically than this one, I shall do so. My “dream job” is Stanford University since it so successfully combines absolute top notch academics with high level athletic programs. My theories will be explained as the season progresses.

Stony Brook, 20-10 is up first. This won’t be pretty. March 16: 86-47. As expected. #9 seed, 18-13 Cincinnati is next. March 18: 72-46. Again, no contest. We head for the Sweet Sixteen, and now the games will be competitive. Time to get serious and get focused. We were for the first two games but it’s difficult to play teams that aren’t in our weight class. That will no longer be the case. #5 seed, #20 ranked Stanford is 20-10. Very good at SG. We beat them by 39 at home but this will probably be tougher. March 23: 86-73. Their SG kept them close for quite a while but we had too many weapons. Our D could have been better but our O was all I want it to be. Too many TOs, 15, but 44 RBs (+22). Indiana in the Elite Eight. Two close games, beat them by 7 there and then 15 at home. If we play our game we should win but we need to be focused. They do have a starter and a sub hurt. Starting SG will be hobbled, if he plays at all. March 25: 78-69, and back to the Final Four! We never trailed, and we were up by 17 with 6 min. to go.

13-15, Minnesota in the round of 8. Beat ‘em by 10 and 21. Greg Bray is back to 100%. It was a tough injury but it happened at a good time. March 10: 78-56. No stand out performances but everyone played well and the D was solid. All the favorites won. We’ll play 16-12, 9-7 Iowa in the semis. Beat ‘em by 39 at home but later only by 10 there. March 11: 78-52. Never a game. Again, a real team effort, everyone contributed, on both ends. It will be #23 West Lafayette, 22-7, 12-4, for the title. I really thought Indiana would beat them even though they finished 2nd. We won by 11 at their place in our only meeting. March 12: 86-60. We were at our best. 29, 5, 5 for Witt, 21, 3, 7 for Kann. +9, +6. The only question is whether we’ll be #1 or #2 overall. We are ranked #2, RPI #1. I think we’ll be #1 in the East. North Carolina got #1 overall. I’m kind of surprised. We’re #2 overall, #1 in the Midwest. (As always, if everyone wins the two best teams in the nation will play in the semifinals not the finals. This has been wrong since the very first edition of this game. Can’t imagine that it would be that hard to fix.)

10-13, 4-8 Minnesota is here. We won by 10 there in not one of our better games. Feb. 9: 75-54. Good games for all 5 starters, not much from the bench. Never a game. Feb. 12: Mike Chad is #6 on the Norton List, Duke Kann #10, Cam Flyn #12. At 14-10, 8-5 Iowa. Beat ‘em by 39 at home but this won’t be so easy. They’re tough at home. Better outside than in. Feb. 13: 68-58. Whew! They controlled the 1st half but we adjusted at halftime and took charge. 22, 8, 2 for Kann. 2 up on West Lafayette, 2 to play. At 9-16, 3-11 Nebraska, the bottom of the conf. Only won by 13 at home. On paper it’s a blowout. Feb. 16: 76-57. Never a game. 26, 13, 3 for Chad, 20, 2, 2 for Witt. Greg Bray got a badly bruised sternum out 2-3 weeks. Feb. 19: Back to #1. RPI #1 too. #8, 19-7, 10-5 Indiana is in to close out the regular season. We won by only 7 there. They have some talent. Feb. 20: 63-48. We couldn’t make a shot in the 1st but we went inside in the second and took control. 17, 10, 3 for Chad, 15, 10, 2 for Flyn. 9, 41. We end the regular season 26-3, 14-2, 2 up on West Lafayette, at least 4 on everyone else. Feb. 26: Ranked #2 for some reason. RPI still #1. March 5: Duke Kann, Cam Flyn, and Bo Free all declare for the pros. (So why can’t I recruit to replace them since I have three free roster spots? A definite flaw in the game, as others repeatedly point out.) Mike Chad is #6, Duke Kann #9 on the Norton List. On to the conf. tournament.

FYI: I'm thinking this may be the last season for this dynasty. When a team reaches this level they win so often it takes the challenge out. If people are following it and wish me to continue, let me know. In that case I would start a second dynasty and work both that one and this one. I have done that sort of thing in the past.

We need to bounce back. We’re at 8-11, 3-5 Penn ST. If we can make some shots we should be fine. Hopefully the cold streak is over. We’ve been making them in practice. Jan. 26: 73-53. Well, we shot 38.3%, not great but much better. 22, 4, 5 for Witt, 16, 7 for Kann, 13, 13, 4 for Chad, 11, 7, 4 for Flyn. 8, 38. Lead back to 2 games. Jan. 29: Our recruits all hit the SAT score, as expected. Mike Chad is #7 on the Norton List, Duke Kann #12, Cam Flyn #15, L. B. Witt #26. We’re ranked #2, RPI #1. #19, 14-7, 5-4 Ohio State is here. They have a very good C and an almost as good SG. PG does a nice job. Deep bench. We’ll need to bring it tonight. Jan. 30: 73-38. D was incredible. We simply gave them almost no open looks and we shut out their C. Mike Chad was terrific on D and had 16, 10, 3. Best move I made all year was shifting him from PF to C early on. 20, 6, 2 for Kann. 3 TOs, 39 RBs. Great game, best in a while. At 9-12, 4-6 Evanstown. We’re the better team, easily, but it’s a road game. Feb. 2: 77-70. As good as the D was in our last game, it was that bad tonight. We were lucky to escape. Their bench really gave us fits, 33, 11, 9 to 4, 4, 1. L. B. Witt’s 40 points saved us. Flyn had 20, 6, 3. Not a great night. Lead is now 3 games. At 13-11, 4-7 Michigan. Beat ‘em by 25 at our place. Good inside game. We’ll need to turn them over. Feb. 6: 70-71. Poor D for the second game in a row. We just gave up too many open shots and too many bunnies inside. LOTS of work to do, all of a sudden. We trailed most of the way. No details, they don’t matter. We just need to work. Lead is 2 over 2 teams. Nice to be back home. It was not a fun road trip. Speaking of not fun, that would define our practices. We’re working the guys hard. Not exhausting them though, that would be counterproductive. We’re just working in short bursts, focusing almost entirely on D. Demanding total focus, on being in position, reacting to what’s happening, getting on shooters, not falling for fakes, working through picks and switching off when that doesn’t happen. Very intense. Archie is king of the house and the little rascal knows it. He’s been great for Mandy. She laughs and giggles when she’s with him, which is lots of the time. As do all cats and kittens, he sleeps quite a bit but when he’s awake Mandy is playing with him. It’s a delight to see Mandy being a kid. She still spends plenty of time on math, and pursues her interest in all things academic, but now we see some balance. Ray really does NOT want Archie around. He wants to be in his room with the door closed to keep him out. We’ve never allowed that. He’s too young for that kind of isolation, particularly given how internally focused he is. We don’t force sociability upon him but we want him to at least have people around. Lucy, the not nanny, and I all try to keep Archie away but kittens and cats love to be where they are not supposed to be. Oh well, some life lessons, I suppose. Still, we do all we can to minimize Ray’s frustration with Archie.

At #5 Indiana. Solid team. They look good at 1, 2, 3, and 5, and they have a decent bench. We’d better come to play! Jan. 12: We led all the way, by as many as 20. They closed the gap at the end but it wasn’t as close as the final score. 19, 5, 4 for Kann, 14, 10, 2 for Chad, 13, 10, 2 for Flyn. 20 TOs, which is completely unacceptable. #19 Illinois, 13-5, 3-2 is here. Good outside, weak inside. Jan.16: 82-62. 7 guys all played well and put up good numbers. 5 TOs. Yeah, we worked on that! 41 RBs. Indiana lost so our lead is 2 games. 11-7, 3-3 Wisconsin is here. We think we’re a much better team. They don’t have a go to guy. Jan. 19: 66-53. We couldn’t make shots- all night. That made it closer than it should have been (30.5%). 8 TOs, 43 RBs helped. At 12-6, 4-3 West Lafayette. Good team. Balance, good bench, no stand out player but lots of good ones. Jan. 23: 57-68. Horrible shooting again tonight. You can’t win if you don’t make shots (29.8%, 4-32 for three point range). We could have played better D but it was the shooting. Don’t know how to coach that. All I can do is work on taking good shots but we had open looks all night. They just didn’t drop. We’ve been working on encouraging Mandy to find her “kid side” and Montessori is doing the same. We’ve found some games that hold a bit of interest, but they need to be complex games, ones that you’d think would be way beyond her- they aren’t. Prof. Maltby also recommended a pet so we got a kitten. Mandy has fallen in love with it. I stopped talking about Tail a long time ago because he got old and eventually died. We didn’t replace him. Mandy called the new guy “Archimedes,” no surprise. We all call him “Archie.” Mandy is more a kid with Archie than we’ve ever seen her being at any other time, in any other circumstance. Good call, doc! Prof. Vinson continues to express amazement at Mandy’s rapid progress, her understanding of incredibly complex concepts, and her intuitive leaps. Ray doesn’t have a lot of interest in Archie and he REALLY doesn’t like it when Archie tries to play with Ray’s building materials.

#18, 9-4 Michigan is in to start conference play. They’re strong inside. Dec.29: 88-63. Easy win. 25, 6, 3 for Flyn, 20, 5, 4 for Kann. 7, 35. Jan. 1, 1984: Happy 1984. Orwell was right on target. Luckily my family is insulated from most of it. At 6-6 Minnesota. It’s a road game and that’s always a concern, but we are easily the better team. Jan. 2: 65-55. We led most of the way but it wasn’t easy. 16, 12 for Chad, 17, 6 for Kann, but we weren’t at our best. 8-5, 2-0 Iowa is in town. They have a decent outside game but they’re weak inside. Jan. 5: 79-40. 22, 5, 3 for Flyn, good performances for the rest. 13, 41. 7-7, 1-2 Nebraska is here. Pf is their player but he doesn’t get much help. Jan. 9: 71-58. Whistle happy three blind mice kept this closer than it should have been, 51 fouls called. Ridiculous. 26, 11 for Chad. Employees at “Someplace Special” did even better with this year’s profit sharing than they did last year, VERY well indeed. The business is at or near capacity almost all the time. Profit sharing payments go out every three months but calculations for the year, for income tax purposes, are done in January.

Dec. 4: Back at #1, RPI #1 also. #7 Stanford, 5-1, is in. Their SG is All America level, and their PG can dish. Dec. 5: 88-49. 26, 4, 4 for Flyn, 18, 9 for Grow, 16, 5, 2 for Chad. Held their SG to 11. +12, +12. 2-4 Kentucky is here. They’re having a shockingly bad season. Dec. 8: 79-62. 21, 3 for Flyn, 12, 13, 5 for Chad, 12, 7, 5 for Kann, 17, 3 for Bibb from the bench. We’re 9-1. #10 Arizona, 6-2 is here. Very good SG, he gets 32.8 per game. Dec. 12: 76-65. They led by 5 at the half. SG got 33 in the first half. We doubled him in the second and he wound up with 40 and we took over the game. 18, 10, 3 for Flyn, 18, 8, 2 for Chad, 12, 6, 2 for Grow. +7, +5. #12 Georgetown is here. Very good inside game. Dec. 15: 75-54. Pretty even inside but our guards took over, 23, 1, 5 for Kann, 16, 1, 7 for Witt. Good bench play. One more pre-conf. game, at #7, 9-1 UCLA. Very good outside, esp. at PG. We should dominate inside but it’s a road game. Dec. 19: 81-66. Interestingly enough our guards went crazy, 27, 7, 7 for Witt, 18, 5 for Kann. We were good inside, too. +12 RB. We finish the pre-conf. season at 12-1 and we have 10 days off. Dec. 25: A nice holiday, the way we like it, quiet and not overdone. Everyone on Dean’s list except for transfer Tad Yard. We’ll get him there.

Oklahoma State, 4-0, jumped ahead of us to #1 on strength of schedule by winning the Coaches Classic. They’re here. Tough at all 5 spots and a decent bench. Definitely very strong inside so that will test us. We think we can turn them over. Nov. 21: 72-48. Didn’t expect a blowout but that’s what it was. 26, 4, 3 for Flyn, 13, 15 for Chad, 10, 7, 4 for Kann. Witt was flawless in running the offense, 1 TO. +6 TOs, +10 RBs. We looked really good. A little rest will be good after 4 games in 4 days with a flight from Hawaii to Michigan after the third game. #7 Duke, 3-1, is here. Strong at C and SG. Nov. 24: 74-61. We led pretty much all the way but they hung in. Foul trouble for both Witt and Kann didn’t help us. 21, 18 for Chad in his best game yet. 8 TOs, 39 RBs. Back at #1. RPI #5 and rising quickly. At my old team, Auburn, #4, 4-1. First time back there. They could give us a battle inside but I think we have a solid edge outside. Nov. 28: 70-79. I was wrong. They won this one outside, but we didn’t really beat them inside either, it was about even there. The refs killed us, calling 24 on us, 14 on them, and fouling out both Kann and Witt, but frankly, tonight Auburn was the better team. Only very good bench play kept it as close as it was, and we never led, never tied it after 0-0. -11 TOs, -6 RBs. Win streak stopped at 61. Things to work on. That’s what we do best, work. Not discouraged. Grow will start at PF for Bray. He’s been playing better all year. #12 UConn, 4-0, is here. Tough inside. Dec. 1: 77-43. 19, 14, 3 for Chad, 15, 7, 6 for Kann, 18, 3, 3 for Witt. 2 TOs- for the team! Our little math wiz has far surpassed Lucy’s and my ability to even understand what she’s talking about. She still tries to teach us, but it’s rough going. Ray is getting more and more into building things from blueprints and other instructions, doing some pretty complex things, actually. Again, Montessori provides the challenges and stays out of the way until and unless he either asks for help or shows signs of frustration.

#22 Arkansas is here to start the season. Let’s see what we have. The three guys who will play PF and C are all freshmen. I think they’re all terrific but they are untested. Nov. 14: 79-58. No challenge but some “growing pains.” Greg Bray was not impressive at C but Kev Grow was excellent backing him up. Our other 4 starters all played really well. Too many TOs- 16. +9 RB. Sometimes it takes a few games to jell. No panic here. At the Hawaiian Shootout. We brought the family. Interestingly enough Mandy wanted to stay home so she wouldn’t miss her time with Prof. Vinson. She lost that battle. We start with 1-0 DeLaSalle. Not much to go on but their C and SG look good. Nov. 18: 70-41. Never a challenge but I’m not getting what I want from my inside game. Grow is playing better than Brya. Not ready to make a change yet but it’s a consideration. Great play from PG L. B. Witt, 12, 9, 3, and SG Duke Kann, 16, 5. 8, 10 for Mike Chad at PF, and Grow had 12, 4, 2 from the bench. We decide to switch Chad to C and Bray to PF. Oregon State, 1-1, is next. They have a good outside game and a decent C. Nov. 19: 85-54. The right guy in the right spot? Mike Chad had 16 and 10 in his debut at C. Bray had 11, 5, 2 at PF. Great switch! The other starters, Bibb and Grow all had really good games. 4 TOs, 45 RBs. Western Michigan, 2-1, upset #7 ranked Duke so we’ll play them for the title. Not the game we wanted but what can you do. We play Duke next week anyway. Nov. 20: 67-43. 16, 8 for Chad, 13, 5 for Grow, good games from the rest. Now we play mostly top 10 teams. Mandy is thrilled that we’re headed back home. She had fun here though. We had some time during the day to do the “Hawaii thing.” Beautiful place, and she definitely did some playing. Ray, too, but in his usual quiet way. Lucy was on the phone at least twice every day with “Someplace Special.” Everything seemed to run smoothly in her absence. She has some very good people in management.

May 1: Buying the usual reports. June 5: We’re looking at a couple of transfers. June 9: Got one. Tad Yard. 4 ½ to 5 star Soph C. Finished. We need guards and there aren’t really any here. June 26: Eddy Root went #3 in the draft and Del Ned #4. Dave Ank, who we red shirted, went #9. We have 3 to offer. Going for guards. Looking at 7, 4 PG, 3 SG. Aug. 7: SG Duke Kann is #6 on the Norton List, SF Cam Flyn is #7, PF Mike Chad is #8, PG L. B. Witt #14, PF/C Greg Bray #18. Aug. 21: We offer to 2 PGs and an SG. Sept. 11: Home visits. Sept. 18: Got 2, SG Troy Snow, #5, PG Kris Wall, #19. We have a schedule. Going to the Hawaiian Shootout. VERY strong schedule. Sept.25: Got the last one, SG Shep Daniels, #18. Oct. 2: First day of practice. Pre-season #1 and I think we can live up to it. We’ll play 7 guys and they are all players! Nov. 2: The Montessori folks brought in a math professor from here at Michigan State to speak with our 5 ½ year old daughter. It seems they spoke for almost two hours. He asked to meet with Lucy and me. In short, Professor Vinson told us Mandy is a math prodigy. “She ‘sees’ math in ways that only the world’s very top mathematicians see it. She makes intuitive leaps. Obviously she’s too young for some of the most complex types of math but in other ways she sort of already understands all of that stuff. She has the potential to do some incredible things. I’ve had the honor of working with a few math prodigies- never one this young, but some as young as 8 or 9. I said, ‘never one this young.’ I must also say, never one at this high level. I would love the opportunity of working with her. I could come to the school two or three times each week to do that if I have your approval.” We asked for a little time to think about it and speak about it. “Of course, but I wonder why you would hesitate.” “… Professor, Mandy is such a serious child. We worry that she’s missing out on being a little girl. That’s something Lucy and I speak of often.” “I don’t pretend to be a psychologist but that seems like a separate issue. I respect your feelings about that, and I suppose I’d feel the same way. On the other hand she is who she is. She’s going to hold onto and pursue this fascination with math unless you forbid it so-” “No, Professor, we would never do that. The worst thing is to try to force a child into something, or to stop the child from being what she is, doing what she wants to do.” “I’m pleased to hear you say that, Mrs. Jones.” “Give us just a little time, Professor. I think the idea of speaking with a child psychologist is a good one. Don’t you agree, Mack?” “I do.” Lucy did some homework and found Prof. Grace Maltby, again, here at Mich. ST. The Prof. has a wonderful reputation. She’s considered to be at or near the top of her field. We met with her and loved her. She strongly encouraged us to have Mandy pursue the opportunity with Prof. Vinson. She also encouraged us to do a few other things to bring out Mandy’s “kid side.” It was a very helpful meeting. We will have her meet Ray as well. Nov. 6: Exhibition games. Ready to defend and go for that threepeat!

We beat UConn by 23 at our place in December. Very balanced attack. Ned is 100%. Lucy and the kids are here in Miami. The kids won’t be at the game but I wanted them along. They know all the guys and I thought the trip would be fun. We brought our “not nanny” along. She’ll be part of everything we do and will watch the kids during the game so Lucy can be at them. April 1: 70-56. They played really well. 14 was our largest lead. For most of the game our lead was between 8-14 but they got it to 4 once and 5 a few times. In the end we were too strong. 21, 6 for Root, 15, 5 for Kann. 12, 34. Going for our 2nd straight title and my 5th in 6 years. It’s #6 ranked, #2 seed Georgetown, 31-7, 12-4. We beat them by 43 in December, which I’m hoping my kids will forget. It won’t be that easy. Their PF is their best player and he played 9 min. due to fouls. They’ve won their last 12. We need to stop them inside and turn them over. We are a 12 point favorite, and that worries me as well. Everyone on both sides is healthy. April 3: 78-65 and another title! This wasn’t as close as the final score but it was close for 34 min. or so. We went on a run at that point and got the lead to 23, and that was that. I got to play everyone, which is always nice in the title game. Real balance, six guys had between 9 and 15. We will really miss Root and Ned but no surprise that they’re going. April 4: Awards: Eddy Root was Final Four MOP, Defensive POY, and 1st team all American. Del Ned was 2nd team. I was national Coach of the year. In conf., Eddy was POY, Freshman POY, Def. POY, 1st team along with Ned, Flyn, Kann. Witt was 2nd team, and I was Coach of the year. No interest in job offers, no vacancies for assistant coaches. April 23: I ask for a facilities upgrade. No, but we’re still at A. My numbers after 9 years: 278-52, .842, 5 national championships. Off.- 59, Def.- 82, Recruit- 95, Scout- 90, Player Dev.- 73, Reputation- 95. Team Prestige is 100, Conf. Prestige is 80, Budget- $474.075 Ready for another great season, #10.

19-15 Richmond in the round of 64. March 16: 72-45. 26, 6, 6 for Ned, 16, 6, 4 for Kann, 6, 17 for Root, 8, 11 for Flyn. 13, 44. 21-10, 9-7 Alabama in the round of 32. Probably stronger inside than out. March 18: 71-54. It was never close. 24, 8 for Root, 14, 7, 9 for Ned. 11, 38. #14, 22-8, 11-5 Utah in the Sweet Sixteen. This is a good team but I don’t think they can match our talent level. We’re 35-0. March 23: 82-48. 26, 8 for Root, 14, 7, 4 for Ned, 12, 6, 8 for Witt. 8, 42. We’re just so in control, really at the top of our game. Del Ned stretched a calf muscle. He’ll play in our next but not at 100%. #5 ranked, # 2 seed, 27-6, 12-4 Arizona in the round of 8. Their SG, who plays a lotta PG, averages 36.6, so the question is do we try to contain him, or let him go and stop everyone else. We’re figgerin’ it out. We should dominate at every other spot. This could be the toughest opponent left. All the other #1 seeds are gone except North Carolina in the West. March 25: 79-63. We let the SG get 30 and stopped everybody else. 17, 15 for Root, 21, 6, 4 for Kann, 14, 3, 5 for Witt, who’s playing his best ball of the season, 9, 6, 5 for Ned. 10, 53. And we’re in the Final Four. We’ll play #11 ranked, #4 seed CT, and on the other side it’s #6 ranked, #2 seed Georgetown, vs. unranked, #6 seed LSU.

March 5: Eddy Root, Del Ned, and Dave Ank are all turning pro. No huge surprise and I thought more might go. Eddy Root is still #2 on the Norton List, and Del Ned is #10. 13-15, 8-8, Iowa in the round of 8. We won by 19, 40. March 10: 68-47. 18, 10 for Root, Ned had 12, 6, 4, 14, 9 for Flyn. 10, 38. 16-12, 10-6 Evanstown is in. We beat them by 34. March 11: 92-64. 23, 12 for Root, all the other starters had 13 or 14. 8, 11, 3 for Ward. 6 TOs, 52 RBs. Sixth place Michigan, 18-12, 8-8 for the title. We won by 28 and 17. March 12: 88-49. 27, 13 for Root, 14, 5, 6, 8, 8 Kann, 9, 5 for Ward. 10, 46. We should be #1 overall. March 12: Here we go. #1 in the East.

At 16-9, 3-9 Minnesota. They played a soft pre-conf. sched., haven’t been competitive in conf. Feb.11: 63-58. Same pattern as most games lately. We took a comfortable early lead. Tonight they got a little close but only a three at the buzzer made the final as close as it was. 17, 11 for Root, 17 for Ned. 8, 32. Root still #2 on Norton, Ned #10, Kann #15, Flyn #17. 11-13, 7-6 Iowa is here. Beat ‘em by 19 at their place. Feb. 15: 89-49. Never a game. 8, 41. 4-21, 1-13 Nebraska is here. We won by 29 there. Feb. 18: 75-46. Another solid team effort in a blow out. 10, 37. We close out the regular season at #4 ranked, 21-5, 11-4 Indiana, 4 back, tied for 2nd with Ohio State. We won by 17 at home. They have balance. They’ve lost one starter to injury and one to grades which has hurt their depth, but they can play. Feb. 22: 78-58. 21, 8 for Root, solid games for the rest. 11, 34. We’re going into the post-season strong. 4 up on Ohio State, who wound up alone in 2nd place.

7-12, 0-8 Penn ST. is here. We’ve been selling out every game, which is no surprise, but it’s great to have the support. Jan. 28: 66-44. 28, 15 for Root. 10, 44. As expected that recruit did not hit our score. Exploring options but if we were going to fill this one we’d want a guard and there really aren’t any we want. We have no Juniors so we’ll save the scholarship for next year. Eddy Root is #2 on the Norton List, PG Del Ned #8, SF Cam Flyn #15, SG Duke Kann #18. Challenge next. At #8, 16-5, 7-3 Ohio State. They have a terrific C so that should be a battle, and their guards aren’t bad. Starting SF is out with a broken foot. We feel we have more talent but it’s a road game and they are very good at home. They take care of the ball. Their C is a glass eater but he doesn’t get much help. Feb. 1: 73-63. We exploded out of the gate. The final margin was as close as it got after the first few minutes. 20, 3, 4 for Kann, 12, 10 for Root despite 4 fouls and only 23 min., 10, 8, 3 for Witt. 12, 36. Evanstown lost so 2 up on them, 3 on Ohio ST and IN, 5 or more on the rest. 6 to play. 13-8, 8-2 Evanstown is in. They have balance and depth. No real stand out player. Feb. 4: 80-46. 34, 14, 4 for Root, 15, 6, 5 for Ned. 8, 50(!) 3 game lead with 5 to play. 13-9, 6-5 Michigan is here. We won by 28 there. Feb. 8: 79-62. Again, the final was as close as it got. 27, 12, 2 for Root, and the other 4 starters were all in doubles. 3 TOs, 46 RBs. We look really good right now. The Indiana game, there, last game of the season, looks like the only remaining regular season challenge. 26-0, #1, RPI #1.

#3 Indiana is in. 1-1 vs. ranked teams. Lost starting SG to grades. Not that strong inside. Jan. 14: 75-58. Solid effort by 7 guys. Early lead and never challenged. 13 TOs, 40 RBs. At 9-7, 2-3 Illinois. We should dominate inside. Jan. 18: 75-57. 16, 15, 3 for Root, 18, 7, 5 for Ned. 14, 37. Evanstown tied with us for 1st, Ohio State and Indiana 1 back. At 10-7, 3-3 Wisconsin. Their starting PF will be limited, if he plays at all, ankle sprain. Jan. 21: 84-64. 30, 18, 4 for Eddy Root, whew! 6 guys had really good games. 6, 42. Evanstown and Indiana both lost. We’re averaging 10.3 TOs and 41.6 RBs. 10-8, 3-4 West Lafayette is in. This looks like a mismatch. Jan. 25: 73-37. Never a game. They doubled up on Root so everyone else scored. 9, 40. Only Evanstown still 1 back, only Ohio State still 2 back, only Indiana still 3 back. “Someplace Special” continues to get rave reviews, locally, statewide and nationally. Lucy still says she works about 25 hours a week. Strangely enough I’d estimate she spends at least 50 in the store most weeks. But she’s happy as can be, and it’s all working. The health insurance and profit sharing have been great and progressive companies from all over the country have asked about how it’s done. The good ones are doing modified versions. Less progressive companies find all kinds of reasons why they can’s, which surprises no one. I do realize that lots of mom and pop and local businesses truly cannot do what Lucy does, that’s a different story. But lots of businesses are prevented from doing at least some of it by exactly one thing- greed. Kids continue to do well. Mandy has been "teaching me" geometry lately. She has a pretty sophisticated understanding of the basics given that she's 4 years, 8 months. But that's Montessori. Love the place, kids can go as far and as fast as they wish, always with just enough help but finding their own direction. For the very first time Ray seems to be branching out slightly. The school has him looking at diagrams, blue prints, things like that, and he's trying to build the things he's seeing.

At 7-4 Michigan to start conf. play. They are strong inside. Dec. 31: 83-55. J. D. Ward had 25 from the bench. All 5 starters put up numbers. 10, 37. Happy 1983! #10 Minnesota, 14-0, is in. They’re the only other Div. I undefeated team. Very good at PG, C and on the bench. Jan. 4: 77-37. 16, 8 for Root, 18, 4 for Witt, 10, 7, 5 for Ned. 10, 49. 4 of the next 5 on the road including two 5 day road trips. Not looking forward to that much time away from family. At 5-8 Iowa. Jan. 7: 89-70. 26, 4, 3 for Kann, 20, 17 for Root. 11, 42. Profit sharing for 1982 was really, really good for employees. The amount varied based upon lots of factors but it was significant in all cases. And Lucy still took home well into six figures. It would have been well over a million if she’d been selfish. But doing it this way she has dedicated, committed workers who are enthusiastic about their work and about showing Someplace Special in the best possible light. At 3-11, 0-3 Nebraska. Not a good team. Jan. 11: 79-50. 24, 4, 3 for Ned, 22, 9, 2 for Root. +10, +4.

#2 Duke, 12-1 is here. Really good team, esp. at SG an’ SF. Only played 2 ranked teams though. We think we can control the inside. Dec. 21: 74-55. An’ we do! 24, 12 for Root, 11, 9 for Flyn, 12, 4, 2 for Witt, 5, 6 for Ward. 6 TOs (+9), 43 RBs (+16). #5 Georgetown, 11-2, is in to end the pre-conf. season. Good inside game, but can they match ours? Dec. 24: 86-43. Whew! 25, 17 for Root, 16, 7, 8 for Ned, 15, 5 for Flyn, 12, 4, 2 for Ward. 15, 46. We have dominated some excellent teams. 14-8, with 8 ranked opponents, most of them top 10. Minnesota, Indiana and Ohio State seem to be the toughest in conf. opponents. Everyone on the team made 3.1 or better GPA for the first semester. Another quiet holiday at home. We all enjoyed the day. I’ll be away for new year’s eve. We play that night.

Another five days away from home. At 0-5 Temple. Not much scares me more than being at a good program that hasn’t won a game yet. They have an All American at SF but not much else. Dec. 7: 81-50. Nothing to fear, as it turned out. 30, 4, 4 for Ned, 19, 9 for Root. 14, 33. At #15 Arkansas, 5-2. Flyn is back. Dec. 10: 67-56. 20, 12 for Root. The other 4 all had big games. 11, 52. +22.4 points, +13.6 RB, +6.4 assists, +3.7 TOs. Home again, thankfully. #12 UConn, 6-2 is here. Good starting lineup. Dec. 14: 64-41. 16, 12 for Root, 17, 5, 3 for Kann. 11, 37. At 4-4 Louisville. They’re having a tough season. Dec. 17: 79-61. 18, 17 for Root, 19, 4 for Kann, 13, 5, 5 for Ned, 10, 6 for Flyn, 10, 4 for Ward. 11, 38. 12-0, all double digit wins. #1, RPI #1.