Happy Anniversary ...

... to young David Arsenault! (I sound as if I should be on "PTI," don't I?)

On this date two years ago, the son of Coach A set an all-division NCAA record with 34 assists in a single game. Yep, you read that correctly, 34 assists in one game. An amazing performance, yet those aren't the only numbers from his stat line that night that jump out at you.

He played 38 minutes, which is about double what a point guard normally sees in "The System." He also had only two turnovers, which gave him an amazing 17-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio for that game. Pretty sweet.

The Pioneers went on to beat North Central University 151-112 that night, with John Grotberg leading the way with 49 points. Talk about numbers: Grotberg finished 14-of-38 on 3-pointers in that one, and as a team, Grinnell was 23-for-86 from beyond the arc. Overall, the Pioneers put up 129 shots.

When I was in Grinnell over the weekend, I had a chance to talk to Dave and Coach A about that performance, and the help he got from his teammates to make it happen. Here's some snippets of that conversation:

Dave Arsenault: "I can tell you, I didn't do anything defensively. I was by far the worst defensive player in that game that we've ever had. It was fun, and it was interesting. All the guys were supportive of the idea, because going into the game, we had the idea that I would play up front on the press, and John also was going to play up front on the press. So that meant we were going to have big nights.

"The other guys bought into it, worked hard during the game, and made sure that everything we were doing was revolving around that game plan. Which was great, to have everyone be supportive of that, instead of thinking, 'Gosh, I wish that could be me up there,' they were buying into what we were doing as a team."

Coach A: "He took some heat on that, from some people. What those people fail to understand is that it set David off on a stretch of play where he played better than he can for about 10 straight games. People don't understand that, statistically, if you can get people to reach for the stars, and then achieve it, they can start being better than they are.

"Our level of play gets better when our best players are statistically significant. You can't explain that to people. Even though it was somewhat manufactured, the reality is that every time we've done that for somebody, it's been a long-term positive for the group."

Grinnell did the same for Jeff Clement back in 1998, when he scored a Division III record 77 points against Illinois College. On that night, Clement didn't cross halfcourt on defense and played all 40 minutes, finishing 19-for-52 on 3s.

So congratulations again, Dave. You earned it.

Oh, and FYI, the Pioneers' trip to Knox College on Wednesday night has been postponed due to some inclement weather in that region. Apparently, Tim and I got out of town just in time. They hope to play that game Thursday, when Grinnell (1-6, 0-2 Midwest Conference) will be trying to snap a six-game losing streak. Good luck, fellas.

Back home again ...

... in North Carolina (imagine Jim Nabors singing that, to the tune of "Back Home Again in Indiana").

We have returned from the trip to the promised land of "The System," Grinnell, Iowa. What a great time. It's almost secondary that my Pioneers lost both games, including 105-84 on Saturday night to the Ripon Red Hawks.

Coach Arsenault and his son, Davey, couldn't have been nicer, and the same goes for Sports Information Director Ted Schultz and everyone else on campus. Tim and I met a student during our visit Friday to the bookstore, and ran across her multiple times during the visit. Each time, she asked if we were having fun and enjoying the games and generally just made us feel welcome.

The same goes for everyone else in town. Except for the weather (why's it gotta be so cold?!?!?), Grinnell is such a wonderful town. The downtown area is vibrant and full of local businesses, including a neat-looking old-time theatre complete with a traditional marquee. Movies showing this weekend included "2012" and "The Blind Side."

On Saturday, we grabbed lunch at Lonnski's Pub and Deli, conveniently located at 922 1/2 Main Street. It's a good thing we got there when we did; after Sunday, they were moving because of the "unsafe" conditions of the floor in their upstairs space. Not that I noticed.

Alicia, who helped us while were there, was great, and even helped Tim pick out his roast beef sandwich. That's harder than you would think, since she's a vegetarian (she also is a fan of "The System"). We opened with some queso and chips, which were right on time, before moving to the main course. My club sandwich was absolutely perfect.

We also got the chance to watch most of the North Carolina-Kentucky hoops game, thanks to a couple who rolled in around halftime to request one of the TVs be changed to it. Imagine that, traveling all the way to Iowa to sit beside Tar Heel fans. Ultimately, Kentucky proved to be too much, but it still was a great game.

Then it was on to the women's contest at Darby Gym, with the men to follow. It was a sweep by Ripon, and here are some highlights of the men's game:

• The Pioneers finally gave up a 3-pointer! Aris Wurtz, the leading scorer for the Red Hawks, calmly pulled up for an uncontested jumper late in the first half that found nothing but net, ending Grinnell's six-game streak without allowing a trey. Wurtz, who came in as Ripon's leading scorer at about 19 points a game, finished with 29 on 13 of 19 shooting, falling short of my prediction of 35. I saw he played forward and likely would be in finishing position against the press, so went with that high guess. I'll discuss later why he didn't make it.
• Ripon shot 64 percent for the game, including nearly 66 percent in the second half. An assist-to-turnover ratio of 27-to-19 likely helped those numbers.
• Grinnell took only 71 shots, well short of "The System" goal of 94, and 49 were 3s. The Pioneers hit 16 from beyond the arc, including 5-of-7 from Griffin Lentsch and 4-of-5 from Ross Preston. Xander Strek, John Bruns and Dylan Seelman each added two.
• Despite forcing 19 turnovers, Grinnell finished with only four steals, which points to the difficulty it had controlling tempo and getting easy baskets.
• Sadly, it appears point guard Scott Kaitz broke his hand late in the first half and will miss some games. A junior from Plymouth, Minn., Scott was very accommodating during our interview Friday, and even asked if we were staying around for the whole weekend. His parents were in town for Saturday's game and were planning to travel with him to the hospital for X-rays when Tim and I left.
• When the Ripon lead ballooned to 94-64 midway through the second half, Coach A called off the press during a long session with the fellas on the sideline. He requested back-to-back full time-outs to discuss strategy for the rest of the game, which included a 2-3 zone. The Red Hawks played a 1-3-1 when they got a comfortable lead.
• Ripon point guard Scott Gillespie, the son of the head coach, played wonderfully against the pressure. He scored 14 points in a game-high 34 minutes with five assists against only three turnovers and added four steals. A free throw early in the first half gave him 1,000 for his career.
• Grinnell's Joe Fouche, pretty low on the playing rotation despite his start Friday night, had a great run in the final 3 minutes of the game. He didn't shoot or add any numbers to his stat line, but he did draw a charge in the final 30 seconds. He had a wonderful attitude during both games and encouraged his teammates throughout; it was great to see him rewarded with a nice moment near the end.

As I said, Coach A was great. I've told others, I was more nervous interviewing him and his son than when I've sat with Coach K at Duke. He was understandably down after Saturday's game, when he walked over to tell Tim and me goodbye, and even talked about scrapping "The System" somewhat with this group. He said he hasn't really gotten what he is accustomed to from his point guards, demanding double-teams or scoring the ball (there's that expression again!) against one-on-one defense. I hope that isn't the case, and not just because I now have a closet full of Grinnell gear. It is an amazing treat to watch, even with the troubles this weekend. You easily can see why it works; in stretches, the Pioneers dominated play, even with less-talented players.

In the second half, with Kaitz out, Coach A experimented with Matt Skelly and Marques Valdez at the point, and both showed some potential. Skelly drove right to the rim a couple times and finished over Gillespie, and Valdez did the same. As I mentioned, Lentsch and Preston found range from deep, so maybe things turned around a bit. We'll find out Wednesday, when the Pioneers travel to Knox College in Galesburg, Ill.

So the trip is over. Tim and I bolted right after Saturday's game -- following a stop at McDonald's for some food, where we ran into the Ripon team bus -- and drove through the night to return home. I took care of the first leg, making it almost all the way into Indiana, and then Tim took us to Gallipolis, Ohio. It was my turn again, and we got to Randleman, N.C., before we needed gas. We got to my house in Rockingham at 11:30 a.m., about 15 1/2 hours after we left.

Thanks again to Tim for going and allowing us to use his ride, and for anyone out there who followed this little adventure via this blog. Also thanks to Colleen for allowing it to happen. I guess next year I ought to fly.

Take care.

Tough night for "The System" ...

... and the Pioneers. The Beloit Buccaneers rally from a second-half deficit, then hold off a late comeback by Grinnell to win 91-90 at Darby Gymnasium on Friday night.

Poor Matt Chalupa missed from in close in the final seconds, a basket that would have given the Pioneers the lead and likely the victory. He rebounded a missed 3-pointer by Matt Skelly and likely was surprised at how open he was. Of course, the clock also was ticking down, so he probably rushed it a little bit.

As coaches and others always say, that last shot didn't lose the game. It was a combination of things, and you always need to give credit to the other team. Beloit shot 70.6 percent from the field (36-of-51 for the game) to overcome 28 turnovers, with Travis Towns scoring 20 of his 32 points in the first half.

Other highlights from the box:

• Grinnell remains very likely the only team in the country, in any college division, not to allow a made 3-pointer all season. Opponents now are 0-for-7 from beyond arc against the Pioneers, with Beloit failing to add even a single attempt.
• Pioneers guard Scott Kaitz, the best option at point guard with the oft-mentioned departure of young David Arsenault, played 26 minutes. For most players, on most teams, that wouldn't be a lot, but it's a yeoman's effort in "The System." Most of the time, 20 minutes is a long night. Kaitz was solid with 10 points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal.
• Grinnell forced 28 turnovers, which included a game-high three steals from Marques Valdez. This was in only 8 minutes of run for the freshman from Phoenix.
• A total of 18 players saw action for the Pioneers, including 14 getting on the floor for at least 7 minutes. The other two seeing the most PT were Skelly and freshman Griffin Lentsch, both with 21 minutes.
• At some point, you've got to figure Grinnell will start dropping some 3s. Each half was pretty brutal: 5-for-25 before the break, 6-for-23 after it. That's a 22.9 percent clip and includes Skelly's 2 of 12 effort.
• Beloit did a great job of making the Pioneers play defense for the entire shot clock on many possessions, when there wasn't a turnover or a layup.
• The outcome might have been different if Grinnell had done a little better than 8-of-16 at the free throw line in the second half. Of course, Beloit wasn't much better, finishing at 59.4 percent for the game.

Other highlights from our visit to campus and to Darby:

• The gym is beautiful, as befitting a structure built only four years ago. It's actually buried into the ground, so when you enter at street level, you actually walk down to the court.
• The campus also is very nice, even if the weather today was less than ideal. The temperature never made it out of the 20s, and snow fell from time to time throughout the day. Even so, several people were out jogging, which I couldn't believe.
• The bookstore is full of sweet gear, and Tim and I made sure we got ours. We wore some of it to the game, too, where we fit in perfectly. And before you spout some doubt about my journalistic integrity, I never claimed to have any on this trip!
• A rowdy section of students kept everyone entertained. At least one security guard was assigned to the group all night, I guess to keep them under control. The funniest comment? The Beloit coach, Brian Vraney, got so upset at a call by one of the officials that he pulled off his tie with a dramatic flourish. As he walked off the court following the game, carrying said tie, somebody said with perfect timing: "Nice tie, Coach."
• I was able to spend a few minutes with Grinnell junior center Kale Knisley earlier in the day, great kid who plans eventually to become an attorney. That made it even worse for me when he got posterized by Beloit's David Bremner on a fast break. Sure, Kale likely got the last laugh, since Bremner correctly was called for a charge as he dunked all over Kale, but it still was something you don't expect to see at a Division III game. The 6-foot-5 Bremner did have a tattoo of some Asian symbols on his right arm, so maybe that helps explain his stupid hops.
• No worries about tickets selling out; they don't have any! Yep, that's right, just come as you are and stroll on in to find a seat.
• You can read about it, hear about it and see it on the Internet, but until you watch it with your own eyes, the substitution pattern is unreal. The first shift ended at 26 seconds, with five new players taking the court, and it hardly slowed down later.

Now for the absolute highlight of the night: Tim and I were invited to join the team in the locker room before the game by Davey Arsenault, the assistant coach. He extended the offer earlier in the day when Tim and I spent about 75 minutes or so in the basketball offices, doing the interviews for a magazine piece I plan on Grinnell.

It was a bit difficult staying out of the way in the locker room, too, with nearly 20 players and three coaches. I won't get into specifics of the knowledge Coach A dropped on the boys since it isn't my place, but suffice to say it was an incredible insight into the program. He did note our appearance: "Oh, the fellas are coming in!" What a thrill.

The loss drops the Pioneers to 1-5 on the season, and 0-1 in the Midwest Conference. They get a chance to end their five-game losing streak on Saturday against Ripon, Game 2 of our trip. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. locally, 5 p.m. EST.

We made it!

It was a bit longer than expected, but Tim and I arrived at our hotel in Grinnell, Iowa, around 9:45 p.m. local time (CST). We left Rockingham, N.C., at a little after 5:30 a.m.. Long, long day. We switched the driving duties by fuel loads, and with Tim's Blazer traveling slightly more than 300 miles per tank, I got two turns at the wheel.

Here are a few highlights:

• I finally got to hear "The Steve Czaban Show" on Fox Sports Radio, XM 142. Over the past year, I certainly had heard a lot about it, and it didn't disappoint. It was on for three hours starting at 6 a.m. and carried us into West Virginia. Very funny show. His take on Tiger Woods was awesome (said Tiger was accustomed to "road strange"), the segment called "This might be a dumb question, but ...." was hilarious and his explanation of the new NFL Network Redzone Channel (he compared it to "freebasing" the NFL) had me laughing out loud. Might be worth adding the best of XM to my Sirius package.
• Unfortunately, we were enjoying the radio so much that a West Virginia trooper pulled us over for slightly exceeding the speed limit. No, we weren't exactly Adrian Peterson, the Minnesota Vikings running back who was given a ticket for 109 in a 55 mph zone, and we got away with a warning. I believe it was 80 in a 70, hardly worth the trouble, right? Thank you for letting us go, Trooper Kennard!
• We had a great lunch at Hooters in Dayton, Ohio. Yeah, I thought the same thing before we pulled in to the restaurant, that the quality of "service" might not be up to par due to the location. My worries were unfounded; the food was excellent (onion rings for an appetizer, buffalo chicken sandwich with curly fries for the meal), and our server, Sarah, couldn't have been nicer. I think Tim had a good time, as well. 8 > )
• When we arrived in Davenport, Iowa, where we planned to gas up for the final time and grab a bite for dinner, we were greeted with some pretty heavy snow. The temperature was around 32 degrees, but fortunately, the roads remained clear. We even found a Hardee's next to a gas station and ducked in for a "Big Hardee" combo. And believe it or not, there was a guy inside wearing a Carolina Panthers jacket! Pretty sweet.
• Finally, we arrived at Grinnell. Although the snow had lightened somewhat, the ground was covered, including the parking lot. It was really a beautiful scene. I almost asked Tim if we could cruise around campus -- it is about 3 miles away -- but we both were ready for a break. Besides, it's doubtful we could have seen anything in the dark.

I have a meeting with Coach A and his son at noon Friday to gather some information for a story I plan to write for Basketball Times magazine. A few of the players are supposed to stop by, as well. It should be interesting.

The trip of a lifetime ...

... or, at least, of 2009.

I'm taking the plunge, everybody. On Thursday, Dec. 3, at 5:30 a.m. (-ish), I will be on the road traveling to the mecca of college basketball. Nope, not Chapel Hill, N.C., or Durham, N.C., or Lexington, Ky., or even Westwood, Calif. Nope, I'm speaking of Grinnell, Iowa, where David Arsenault and the boys open Midwest Conference play this weekend with back-to-back set of games against Beloit and Ripon.

From my location in God's country (Rockingham, N.C.), I figure it's close to a thousand miles one way, give or take a hundred or so, and it should take about 15 hours. I found a person willing to make the ride with me, and he even volunteered to take his ride. How clutch is that? You da man, Tim!

But I digress ....

When I've mentioned to people around town where I'm going, and more importantly, why, I get the same question: Why? Why travel that far to watch a college basketball game, or even two games? Don't you get enough hoops on TV?

I don't know if I can explain my fascination (read: obsession) with Grinnell hoops. Yes, it all stems from how excited I was back in the day to discover Loyola Marymount doing its thing under coach Paul Westhead (did you know he was now coaching the women's team at the University of Oregon?). That was 1989, around this time, and when I think about checking a Grinnell box, or watching one of its games on the Web, I get that same feeling I had 20 years ago. It's almost as if I'm discovering something fun and unique for the very first time. That make sense? I didn't think so. I'll try again.

In most sports, I love offense. I'd rather see Texas Tech put up 70 points than watching Ohio State beat someone with four field goals and a safety. I'd rather watch the Minnesota Twins hit five home runs and total 20 hits than watch a no-hitter. And I'd certainly rather watch the Pioneers roll up huge numbers on both sides of the scoreboard than watch the majority of college basketball teams walk the ball up the court and milk the shot clock.

It's basketball at its purest, getting up and down the floor, scoring points, making it thrilling for the fans and players alike. Sure, it doesn't always lead to victories: Coach A and Grinnell have lost their past four games after a season-opening victory over Waldorf, finding it very difficult to replace John Grotberg, Bobby Long and the maestro, young David Arsenault. Incidentally, the son now is working with his father as an assistant coach, no doubt planning to take over the reigns of the program in a few years.

This still is the best way to play, and I've recently discovered that the Pioneers aren't the only team using "The System." Through a message board on Yahoo! called "Run-and-gun," which I joined, I saw many other coaches have made the switch from a conventional style. This includes high school and middle school, boys and girls. Reading about them and their passion for this brand of basketball has given me renewed fervor for it, as well. Hopefully, this weekend at Grinnell is only the start of my viewing pleasure of the best show around.

I plan to regularly update this blog from the road, so check back soon. It should be a blast.

It's the most ... wonderful time ... of the year ...

... and I ain't talking about Christmas, or Thanksgiving, or any other official holiday, although they all rock. Nope, I'm talking about hoops season, both professional and college, getting underway. The NBA is going on three weeks now, with the really good teams already separating themselves from the pack, and its collegiate brethren get going this week. Most everybody will have played at least their opener by this weekend.

Good times.

Now, any loyal follower of this blog (Hey, Tim!) will recall my fascination with the Grinnell Pioneers and coach David Arsenault. Not so much the school, or the team, or the coach, but the system employed at that Division III school to light up the scoreboard. It's what makes basketball exciting.

There aren't many other teams out there that score points the same way, and that is a shame. Particularly in the NBA, where offensive superstars such as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant would flourish in fast-paced systems. Imagine those three in the open court nearly every trip, using their creative athleticism to score the ball.

FYI, I hate that expression, not sure where it came from, but the first time I hear a hockey player talking about "Scoring the puck," I might throw up. It would be like a NASCAR driver talking about "Racing the car," or something similar. But I digress.

For some reason, and I'm betting it the coaches, the game has slowed down so much over the years. Everyone wants to control each possession, protect the ball, and try not to lose. They run sets, or set plays, or some type of motion offense to try to get the perfect shot every time. Think I'm wrong?

So far during this NBA season, the Phoenix Suns lead the league by averaging 110.9 points, with the Golden State Warriors slightly behind at 110.7. You're thinking not bad, right? You're thinking that sounds like a lot of offense, right? The Suns have reached this total with an average of 81.3 shots a game, mainly because they make 50.2 percent of their shots, a league high. The New York Knicks (coached by former Phoenix leader Mike D'Antoni) take 88.3 shots per contest, tops in the NBA. Again, sounds like a lot, right?

Well, what if I told you that if the Knicks maintain that average, they will take, on average, about 31 shots less than one of the greatest teams in NBA history? Yep, that's right, 31 shots less. I'm talking about the 1959-60 Boston Celtics, who won the championship that year after finishing 59-16 during the regular season. They beat the then-St. Louis Hawks in seven games in the finals to claim their second consecutive title on their way to a run of eight in a row.

That year, the Celtics of Red Auerbach took 119.6 shots each time out, on their way to averaging 124.5 points. You read those numbers correctly, and this was before the 3-point shot came into existence. Boston hardly was alone, however. Each team in the league (only eight strong at that point) took more than 100 shots a game, and all scored at least 107.3 points. Again, this is without the benefit of the 3-pointer.

Pretty amazing, right? And before you start the whining of "No defense," remember this was a team featuring Bill Russell, most often called the greatest defensive player of all-time.

Even more incredible is that the Celtics scored all these points despite making only 42 percent of their shots. The league as a whole made about 41 percent of its shots that year, compared to last season's NBA average of 46 percent.

To put this into perspective, if the Boston team of that year played in the current environment, making the average amount of shots and getting the same 18 percent of its field goals from beyond the 3-point arc (don't worry, I've done the math), it would have averaged slightly more than 144 points a game. Wouldn't that be exciting?

Has it really been that long?

I can't believe I haven't posted anything since January. My gosh, what is wrong with me? Maybe I should have access to the Internet taken away or something as punishment. Don't worry, I'll try to be a bit more consistent going forward.

What's happened since January 26, 2009? Oh, not much. College hoops ended, as did the NFL, NBA and the NHL. NASCAR got cranked up and now is approaching its playoffs (only don't call it that in front of anyone from NASCAR, it's the "Chase to the Sprint Cup"). Golf has gone through three of its four majors, and somebody other than Tiger Woods has won all three. Talk about your upsets. Oh, and Major League Baseball is approaching its trade deadline, only it's not the real deadline, only the non-waiver, special circumstances, I don't understand what it's all about deadline. Will Roy Halladay stay in Toronto? Dozens of Canadians are curious to find out, and the rest can't wait for hockey to get back going. Training camp starts soon, you hosers!

Outside of the sporting world, the big news in my life has been my weight loss. I'm down to a ton! Actually, I've lost about 65-70 pounds following my own version of the Atkins diet, along with regular trips to the gym for some cardio. I'm now jogging an hour two days a week (at a slow speed, so it works out to about 5.5 miles) and doing shorter runs on three more occasions. So far, so good. I'd like to lose about 30 more pounds if I could, but they're not coming off quite was quickly as they were earlier. Maybe by Labor Day I'll have good news to post.

Oh, and I'm also new to Twitter. In case you can't get enough of me here, you can check me out there. It's "kpinthehouse," if you can find me. Apparently, everyone in the world named Keith Parsons has a Twitter account. Good luck finding me, and check back soon, eh!