**SETXsports Girls Basketball Rankings (week of Dec. 9th)**

[Cat22]

1. Hardin-Jefferson

2. Central

3. Memorial

4. Barbers Hill

5. Orangefield

6. Woodville

7. Silsbee

8. Nederland

9. Hamshire-Fannett

10. Dayton

11. Lumberton

12. Kountze

13. Newton

14. West Brook

15. Kelly

[Bobcat1]

Who is Memorial beating to keep them up there?  I don't have a clue I haven't heard about them this year.  They might be deserving I just don't know what they are doing this year. 

[LUFAN]

Nederland was held scoreless against HJ for a full quarter and lost every game in the YMBL tournement How are they still ranked in the top 10.

[Bulldog10]

because they beat some good teams along the way....... they are struggling right now they have some injury and lost some to grade but they will be back you can count on it.  The Nederland team you saw was not the team that everybody else has played

[CoachKfan]

Nederland has had some bad luck.  They probably shouldn't be ranked in the top ten right now but that is not to say they won't be when they get their kids back.  They ran into an HJ team that was playing very well this past weekend.  Their kids never quit.  Coach Smith does an excellent job.  He's first class!

[LUFAN]

Coach Smith may be a nice person, but his coaching skills lack. The Nederland varsity team is the most unfundamentally sound team I have ever seen. If he is first class he would have taught the girls the proper way to shoot and also to look at the hips when playing defense. They are getting beat because they just don't have it.

[Bulldog10]

:

[LUFAN]

Eyes roll, Come on, what do you know about basketball? He tells his team to push the ball when they don't have numbers and they get out rebounded and teams get easy baskets because they can never set up. How many fast break baskets have the opposition scored in the past 5 games. I would say about 75. In the last 5 games how many teams have we out rebounded? None, because the team never sets up and gets in a position to be able to get rebounds. The team itself is not that bad, but he could do things to give them better chances to win games. Oh and his press break is horrible. If you know what I mean. 

[Guest bleed orange]

Fundamentals should be taught at a young age. When they get into High school it is hard to change bad habbits. You should not blame the coach for that. He can only do so much with the talent he has. If you want to point the blame at somebody you should be looking somewhere else.

[LUFAN]

I agree with that, but he can still work with them and build basic fundamentals. I would pound it into them. You have to lay the base before trying to run the offense types that he is trying to run. He needs to dumb it down to improve their chances. They take 15 3 pointers a game, they need to worry about making high percentage shots. It is not all on him, but a lot of it is. They may shoot 15 to 20% from 3 land. Come on now, he has to have some control over what they do. If not he is not a good leader and should not be a coach.

[bvbt4]

I think Coach Smith is doing a great job. Too much pressure is put on him. People need to realize that everything isn't the coaches fault. The players have to pull through and do their part too. Until the players learn to put aside their differences and work together as a team they will struggle. The Nederland team has a losing mindset because of previous years. They are expected to fail just like the team last year and years prior.  Coach Smith is doing all he can to boost their confidence, but something like that is very hard to change, especially for teenage girls. Nederland wasn't really struggling until they lost two of their better players for grades and another great player for an injury. This isn't the only reason Nederland is having trouble. Three players don't make a team, but the rest of the girls need to have it in their heads that winning is still possible without those three players. I think Nederland will have better luck this Friday against PNG, their rival.

[LUFAN]

I will not use any names. I do know that it is not all on the coach, but it just seems to me that playing the way they are playing and how much they are losing, don't you think that some of this falls on the coach. Like I said I am not putting it all on the coach, but what he is doing is not working, so try something different. I watched the JV girls and some of them are better than the varsity team. If he is such a good coach, now would be the perfect time to get the underclassmen some varsity level experience, or put some of the girls that he only plays for 3 minutes a game down on JV and get them some in game experience and not waste them sitting on the bench. Come on now, I am no idiot.

[Guest KirbyKat]

There is no question that Coach Smith has and will continue to build a successful girls program at Nederland. This is the same program that has had 5 head coaches in 10 years. Coach Smith has taken a program that no one cared about and in a very short time has it contending for a playoff position. As far as the comment about the lack of fundamentals, you obvisiously have no backgrund in the game Yes, his team takes alot of 3's, yes his team pushes and attacks on every possession. The Lady Bulldogs are also one of the smallest teams in the area, so it just makes sense that they get out and run the floor. It also makes sense that they press and speed up the game, too keep their lack of size from being a bigger hurdle in the half court. For someone who is quick to point out where you think the coach has made mistakes you really don't understand the game. The Lady Dogs play hard every night out, they are fun to watch and most importantly taken a program that was an afterthought and made believers out of a great group of young ladies.

[bvbt4]

Who are you to say those players aren't great? Why do you think you get to talk bad about their players and coach? They put their uniforms on one leg at a time just like every other team. They have their high points and with that comes the low ones. The mistakes made right now will eventually make them stronger. That time will come when Nederland's players, parents, and fans give Coach Smith total authority over his own team. Too many people think they could do a better job. Coach Smith gets paid to coach so he needs to be able to do his job without people hassling him over every mistake he makes. He is human just like everyone else.

[LUFAN]

You are right, but they need to be in positions to make those plays. Yes with there size they should push the ball, but not 1v3 or 1v4 situations. That causes players to be out of position and opens up the other teams fast break. You should not shoot 15 to 20 3's when you shoot maybe a 20% from 3 land. If you are small you should set up your offense and drive to the hoop hard and pick up the fouls to neutralize the other teams size. You should press, but you need to make sure that you are not getting burned on every play. A half court trap would have the similar effect of the press and keep the other teams fast breaks to a minimum.  For someone who thinks they know basketball, you sure do not seem to. You want to talk basketball. I know more than you think you know.

[LUFAN]

Players do not need to be great to win. I am not saying that any of these players don't bust their butts on the floor every game but I highly doubt any of them will be playing college ball. I only question the coach as he does not utilize them properly. I have not questioned the players abilities, just the coaches ability to prepare them to be competitive in the district. You are all reading what I say. When did i say that it was the players fault, when did I question their heart. I have not. Maybe you should read before you speak.

[Bobcat1]

I will say when I saw the JV play they had 2 players who I thought could easily be on their varsity, and he carries a lot of girls on his varsity team.  Maybe some should be on JV, not playing doesn't  do much for their confidence.

[bvbt4]

Those three players are not that great. I will not use any names. I do know that it is not all on the coach, but it just seems to me that playing the way they are playing and how much they are losing, don't you think that some of this falls on the coach. Like I said I am not putting it all on the coach, but what he is doing is not working, so try something different. I watched the JV girls and some of them are better than the varsity team. If he is such a good coach, now would be the perfect time to get the underclassmen some varsity level experience, or put some of the girls that he only plays for 3 minutes a game down on JV and get them some in game experience and not waste them sitting on the bench. Come on now, I am no idiot.

You put "Those three players are not that great." in the very first line of your reply.  How do you expect that to be interpreted?  You are talking about young girls that wear their hearts on their sleeves and are emotionally affected by every little bit of criticsm they get. You are getting pretty personal.    Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion, no matter how different they are, but when you bring down somebody's self-esteem your opinion should be kept to yourself.  Every parent thinks their child is a "little princess/superstar".  Everyone should leave any kind of coaching to the coach.  I know he makes mistakes, but I support him and he needs more people to stand by him.

[LUFAN]

When I think of great players, I think of players with the ability to play at the next level, or the ability to carry the game on their shoulders. I do not think any of the three that are not playing are those type of players. That is my opinion. Now with my criticism of the coach, he is an adult and can handle it (I hope). But a good coach makes a game plan around his talent, not make his talent work around his game plan.As I have said I have said nothing negative about these girls except that they are not great. Sorry if that offended anyone.

[bvbt4]

who then do you think could handle the weight of the game on their shoulders on that team?

[LUFAN]

I think Carlson is doing a good job. Sometimes she takes to much on her shoulders, but I think she is the most like a leader on the team.

[bvbt4]

she is doing a good job, but she needs her teamates to help a little more.  she can't do it all by herself. she needs to get it through to her team that they are just as good with or without those three players. they helped a lot, but with them gone she needs other people to step up and take positive roles on the team. they are being given an oppurtunitty to show what they have. they should sieze that oppurtunity and let it take them to greater things.

[Guest bleed orange]

The problem is the parents. Let the kids control their own destiny. We get so wrap up In thinking our kid is the best. You know if a kid has that ability to go to the next level. Not many do. I feel sorry for the kids now days. Parents put way to much pressure on them. Thats what is wrong with the Little league program. Coaches push their own kid instead of pushing every kid. I have seen it time amd time again. Not every kid is an athlete but league play should be about developing kids period! I coached Little Dribbler for 10 years and I took my best player and made the players around her better. Sure I like to win like every body else but I got more satisfaction from that kid who had no ability, score. The look on their face was priceless. Don't get me wrong when it came to crunch time my best player had the ball in her hands. Because these kids want to win. But I did not put my kid above the team. I was harder on my kid than I was the other kids. All-stars is about winning but the league should be about every single kid!

[LUFAN]

I agree I actually saw parents come over and talk to the assistant coaches during half time of the games in the YMBL.

[KFDM COOP]