A break in the hoops schedule

March 25, 2005

JEREMIAH BARTZ/Frontiersman Sports Editor

With a full slate of conference basketball championships last weekend, normal circumstances would put teams on the court of the Sullivan Arena for the state championships this weekend.

But this year, there is a little break.

Teams who qualified for the ASAA 3A and 4A state tournaments have the weekend off, something unheard of in the past, but a trend the Alaska School Activities Association will adapt for the future.

Although the Easter holiday prompted ASAA officials to schedule a week off between the conference championships and the state event, ASAA Director of Special Events John Andrews said the dead week will be incorporated in the high school basketball schedule in the future.

"We had a break this year because Easter weekend happened to fall (this weekend)," Andrews said. "It is our standard policy not to interfere with a major holiday. We couldn't host state this week, so that meant we bump it back."

The 3A and 4A ASAA State Basketball Championships start Thursday, March 31 at 8 a.m. and run through the 4A boys' state championship game at 9:15 on Saturday, April 2.

In the future ASAA will combine all of its state basketball championships into one week - sort of March Madness, Alaska style. The 1A and 2A hoopsters will start play early in the week, while the 3A and 4A players will compete later in the week. With the expanded tournament schedule, ASAA will also publish an expanded tournament yearbook that will feature information about each team from each of the four girls' and boys' classes. Andrews said ASAA will schedule a dead week between the conference and state tournaments if nothing else to give the association time to gather all of the information on the 64 participating teams and publish the yearbook.

"The main reason for us is to get all of the information," Andrews said as he was typing in season results of teams in the 2005 tournament for the 2005 publication.

Andrews said there has been mixed opinions, but there are many positives that can come from the change.

Andrews said the additional week will give families, especially from the rural communities, time to coordinate travel plans and coaches will be able to scout opponents and better prepare their players.

Jeannie Hebert-Truax, head coach of the Wasilla girls' program, said she gave her players a day off and shortened the length of practice during the dead week. She has also organized scrimmages to keep her team sharp during the time off. Andrews said several of the teams in the 2005 field have scheduled unofficial scrimmages during the break.

From the student-athlete's standpoint, the break has allowed time to catch up on school work.

"It's different," Wasilla senior Megan Stearman said. "After a whole weekend of basketball it gives us a little bit of a break to recuperate and think about what we have to do to step up for state."