This series of blogs, “A Season in the Middle,” are written by former Varsity Head Coach and current Middle School Coach, Ben Murphy. He is going to share intimate details of his experiences as a middle school coach, including games-based practice plans, with the hope that everyone can learn with him in the process.

-Coach DeMarco

#GetBetterEveryDay

Did We Get Any Better?

Written by: Ben Murphy, Twitter.com/@benjaminmurph55

Introduction

My only goal for the season was for players to individually get better, and for us as a team to work together better by the end of the year than at the beginning. Hopefully, along the way they would learn to love the game. At the end of the year, I can’t honestly say if any of those things happened. In this blog I’ll share with you my experience at our last game and practice, including the following:

4-out pass and cut
Improved shooting
Challenges on the bench
Not the ending we wanted, but did we learn anything?
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

4-out pass and cut

In our second to last game we ran a four out, pass and cut offense and we put our post player in the high post looking to back screen any cutters, slashing down the middle of the key. It worked repeatedly. To the point an official pointed out that it was “a pretty little play”. I am not sure we could have executed that play in the beginning of the year. The problem was, we continued to try and throw to the cutter even after the defense wised up and clogged the lane. Furthermore, the next day in practice when we were reviewing why it worked, I asked what we could do if the back cut wasn’t available. The first answer: “Pass to Carter (high post) and cut off him.” Bingo! We have a winner! My work is done here! (Not really, there’s still plenty to work on.)

See attached pic of diagram.

4-out

Improved shooting

My resolve to shoot for at least 20 minutes out of our (70 minute) practices paid off. There were marked improvements in form and quite simply confidence to take shots. Sometimes there was a bit of overconfidence. But from where we started to where we ended, we were a small percentage better than we were in November.

Challenges on the bench

But as with anything related to middle school, boys and athletics, it’s never simple and it’s never easy. Our last 7th grade game left a sour taste in my mouth and it had nothing to do with how we played (not well). In rotating groups of five in and out of the game, I could hear some grumblings behind me. It wasn’t the usual chatter about the other team or the refs. They were mad at each other for god knows what. It was to the point I had to ask them to separate themselves on the bench and the only noise I wanted to hear was cheering for their teammates. They were so consumed in whatever petty slight had come their way, they didn’t see that their teammates’ defense was markedly improved from half to half and their offensive spacing and movement was much better too. It was disappointing beyond basketball, and it’s not like we don’t stress being a good teammate. It baffled me as to why it happened. It’s going to bother me until next year when I coach them again as 8th graders.

Not the ending we wanted, but did we learn anything?

The final nail in the coffin of the season came the next day where we ended the year by handing out certificates and scrimmaging. I was blowing the whistle by myself. About five minutes in, I had to remind them that this was supposed to be fun. A few minutes after that, I had to remind them that refs miss calls like players miss shots. A few minutes after that, I had a player sit down and refuse to play because, “this is not fun anymore.” The final play came when I blew two consecutive whistles for a foul on a kid playing defense by basically leaning on the ball handler. He complained. I stated quite clearly that we would be ending early if it continued. I blew the whistle. He complained again. Bye-bye everyone. Have a nice off-season. Go home.

I’d love to tell you that there was a lesson learned here, but I fear there wasn’t. What was supposed to be fun was anything but. You couldn’t end a season worse than that. Did we learn anything? Anything that really matters? I don’t know.

In Case You Missed It!

Below is a link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, and Part V, Part VI, Part VII, and Part VIII of this multi-week blog series with this blog being Part VI. Click the blue link on any part to view the blog:

A Season in the Middle (Part I): Building a Foundation in Basketball from the Ground Up

Transition to Middle School Basketball
Philosophy of Cutting Players
Hands-off Mentality
A Games-Based Approach
Instilling an Attacking Mentality in Players
Practice Plans for Tryouts

A Season in the Middle (Part II): It’s Not All Sunshine and Roses

Transitioning from tryouts to practice (Week 2 Practice Plans)
It’s game time: Let’s keep it simple (Week 3)
The opposition
Using a 5-out offense and encouraging player movement
The learning process and what we did well
Self-Reflection: Looking ahead to game 2

Also included:

What’s Next? Stay tuned!
In case you missed it: Overview of Part I of “A Season in the Middle” (Hyperlink)
About Coach Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part III): Game 2, What’s the Difference?

Identifying weaknesses and practicing after a loss: Week 3 Practice Plans
The difference between game 1 and 2
Don’t assume anything, teach everything
Getting to know your players strengths (Don’t assume)
Overcoming challenges
Developing skills for all players
Self-reflection is important
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part IV): The game is the best teacher

Week 5 practice plans
The basketball court is our classroom
Coaching for mastery?
Less is more at the middle school level
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part V): Knowing the No’s, Goals, and Gratitude

Victory at last
“Knowing the No’s”
Our MUSTS on offense
Biggest improvements
A smile is worth a thousand words
Finishing
Be grateful
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part VI): If you had to choose one drill….

Week 7 practice plans
One Drill
3 vs. 3 “Swing” (with diagram)
Advancing 3 vs. 3 “Swing”
Benefits of playing 3 vs. 3 “Swing”
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part VII): If you had to choose one drill….

Back to the basics
What do we need to do in every practice?
Small-sided games
Army SSG
Elbow SSG
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

A Season in the Middle (Part VIII): Let em’ Play

The “Mamba” on player development
A no “win” situation
“Bulls in the Ring” SSG
Other suggestions when playing “Bulls in the Ring”
In case you missed it!
About Ben Murphy

About Ben Murphy

Ben Murphy is a former Varsity Basketball Head Coach who currently coaches Middle School basketball and High School Track and Field in the Sacopee Valley (SV) School District. Previously, he coached basketball at the Varsity, Junior Varsity, and Middle School level with over 15 years of experience. He has coached girls basketball (JV, Revere) and boys basketball (Varsity/Middle, SVHS) in addition to being a Head Varsity Track and Field Coach at Sacopee Valley High School (SVHS) in Maine where he won a State Championship in 2019! Ben is an educator, coach, and life long learner with a wealth of knowledge when it comes to coaching and teaching the next generation of student-athletes.

Ben grew up in a small town near a university where there was always a high level of basketball being played and always a knowledgeable coach to fill the spots that were needed to teach the game to youngsters. His Dad was a coach for many years and he has learned from some of the best over the years. Ben is actively involved on social media, and Twitter in particular, with coaches from all over the country. He often shares practice plans and other information with the coaching community. He also actively requests feedback to continue his growth as a coach. The insight he shares in each blog comes from his own experiences, but also information he has compiled from the best coaches around. Follow Ben at twitter.com/@benjaminmurph55 for additional information and updates on his season!

A Season in the Middle IX: Did we get any better?