First game with new team!

Tonight was my debut with Anwil Wloclawek of Poland. It was a very important game for us because we are in 2nd place in the league and the team we played tonight, Polpharma, is in 3rd place. Going into tonight's match up we had a record of 16-3 while Polpharma was 14-5. So as you can see it was very important to get the win to seperate ourselves from them in the standings.

Going into the game I wasn't sure how much playing time I would get because it is a new situation and I just arrived earlier in the week. I just stayed ready if coach called on me and cheered my team on from the bench. We got off to a good start as we raced out to an early 8 point lead, but that lead diminished as we closed out the first quarter up by only 2. The second quarter stayed close as well as we went into halftime up by 5 points. I didn't play at all in the first half, but it was a good chance to get a feel for the game and the atmosphere. The Anwil fans were great. They filled up the seats and were loud.

As the 3rd quarter progressed it became a back and forth battle. We just couldn't pull away. I think we were down by 1 when coach looked to me to enter the game for the first time. I went in with 3 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter. Right away I got a quick garbage basket from a loose ball put back, and then I hit a 3 pointer on a pick and pop a little bit later. I then got a pass from our center and put in a short jumper as we jumped ahead by 7 points at the end of the quarter. Coach played me the rest of the game as we eventually won by 17 points. It was a great team win.

I knew my playing time would be limited so I just wanted to play as hard as I could and give 110% effort. The first few buckets I got were a nice little added bonus with the win, but I did miss a few more shots than I wanted to in the 4th. :) But that is what I like so much about this team. It is very well balanced. There isn't just one or two guys they look to. It is a very well-balanced attack on offense. And this style has obviously brought a lot of success to the team so far.

So now our record is 17-3 and we stand alone in 2nd place in the league. Our next game is Wednesday. This game is for the Polish Cup. The Polish cup is a season-long tournament that is played throughout the year. We are in the final four right now, so if we win on Wednesday on the road then we will be in the championship game for the Polish Cup title.