“The Windup:” Week 12 Interview Questions for Mississinewa Varsity Basketball Head Coach Mark McFarland
I. High School Offseason
a. We haven’t talked to you since way back in the middle of January about the Mississinewa Indians basketball team. With that said, describe the final two months of the season for your team and what kind of momentum the team has going into the offseason.
b. We hear all the time about college offseason or professional offseason but we hardly hear about high school sports and the offseason. What’s it like for a high school varsity basketball coach in the offseason, what do you do, what are you telling players, and other activities between March and November.
II. The NCAA Tournament and the Final Four
a. As a high school basketball coach, what’s it like to participate in March Madness as a fan – are you hollering at a team for making a simple mistake or just enjoying watching the games?
b. Now, I have to ask this question – did you make a bracket? And if so, how’s it holding up this year?
c. We did get three local teams from the state of Indiana in Notre Dame, Indiana, and Purdue. Indiana made it the farthest to the Sweet 16. Purdue lost to Kansas in the 3rd round to final four team Kansas. And the Irish lost to Xavier in the 2nd round of the tournament. How would you describe the performance of the 3 teams and how well they represented the state of Indiana this year?
d. One of the big early stories of the tournament was the 15 vs. 2 matchup. Lehigh and Norfolk State upset Duke and Missouri respectively in 2nd round action. A 15 had only beaten a 2 four times until it happened twice this year…on the same day. As a coach, what does it take for a 15 to beat a 2? How in the world did Duke and Missouri lose those games? Is maybe overconfidence a factor?
e. There really wasn’t one team that we could declare as a “Cinderella” this year even though we had 3 double digit seeds reach the sweet 16 in Ohio, NC State, and Xavier. Which of those teams surprised you the most in reaching the sweet 16?
f. Let’s get to the final four…we start with the Ohio State Buckeyes vs. the Kansas Jayhawks. Thad Matta vs. Bill Self. Jared Sullinger vs. Thomas Robinson. Without telling us who you think will win, which team has the advantage and why?
g. On the other side of the bracket we have an intra-state matchup. I heard yesterday that some media people in the state of Kentucky are calling this the biggest game in the state’s basketball history. Louisville vs. Kentucky. Rick Pitino vs. John Calipari. Anthony Davis vs. Chane Behanan. Once again, without telling us your winner, who do you think has the advantage and why?
h. We have four teams from four different conferences. Conference realignment has been a big priority over the fall and winter seasons for college sports. What does have four team from four different conferences say about the parity in the NCAA?
i. We have Louisville/Kentucky…we have Ohio State/Kansas – without giving us your national champion, which two teams will be advancing from Saturday’s semifinals into the national championship game?
j. By the end of this Monday night, April 2nd – we will have a national champion in college basketball – who do you think will be cutting down the nets and why?
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