COURT SESSION: SEMO HOOP SQUAD STARTS OFF YEAR 2-0

I'm happy that our basketball team is 2-0. Friday night, I thought our team played very well for this time of the year. Monday night was another story. We definitely won ugly against Rockhurst.

In the Western Carolina game, I thought our effort was very good and our execution was good considering it is so early in the season.

I was very disappointed in our play in the Rockhurst game. I take a lot of the blame for not doing enough to prepare our team to play a Division II team.

Once the game started we didn't get the leadership we need to get out of our older players. You have to have leadership from within. In fact, I had a meeting with our three seniors immediately following the game.

In the meeting, I stressed what is involved in leadership. We need to have leadership by example, not just verbally. We need our older players to encourage the younger players so they can get better and make our basketball team better. We never want to be finger-pointers. I stressed that we all needed to look first at ourselves.

I think the fact that we played poorly but still won will be a positive and not a negative. I think our team will react positively and work hard to get better before Saturday night's game with Montana. I'll be surprised if we don't play well Saturday night.

After two games, it is pleasing that we have six players averaging in double figures. We have shown an ability to spread the scoring load with different players stepping forward at different times. We really don't know who our go-to guys are yet. That will develop as the season continues.

We're headed into the Thanksgiving holiday and that can be tough for college athletes. The campus will be shut down and the other students will be at home or away from campus enjoying the holiday. Our team will be alone in the dorms and involved in practices daily.

During this period we try to have at least one team activity each day to break the monotony. On Thanksgiving day, we will practice in the morning and the players from this area will go home for the remainder of the day.

Those players who stay here will join other students from Southeast that are in town for a Thanksgiving dinner at the Faith Evangelical Free Church. The dinner is for all Southeast students not able to be home for the holiday and will include both the men's and women's basketball teams.

Pastor Fred Burgard and his wife, Sharon, who is the athletic department academic counselor, have organized the meal and we really appreciate it.

Fred Burgard is our team pastor this year. He offers a prayer in the locker room before and after each game and is available to our players if they need to visit with him on personal matters. I appreciate his willingness to be a part of our team.

Sharon Burgard does a great job with all the athletes at Southeast. She is very concerned about the academic progress of our players. Sharon truly cares about each of the individual athletes.

I hope you all enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday and I hope to see you at the Show Me Center Saturday night when we host a good Montana team.

Gary Gary is the head men's basketball coach at Southeast Missouri State University