| In a small midwestern town, the local high school | | | | girls varsity basketball team. |
| of 878 students recently produced its first state | | | | Everyone in town, with the exception of the |
| championship basketball team in over 90 years. | | | | school's administration, can see that the failure of |
| The community has had an organized city | | | | the boy's varsity basketball program lies with the |
| basketball league for its younger boys for many | | | | head coach. The girl's coach is a woman who is |
| years. But, this league, designed to spot talent | | | | tough but fair, a coach who works hard to build |
| early and then feed the high school basketball | | | | self-esteem and confidence in each member of |
| program, did nothing to produce the state title. | | | | her squad. She teaches the fundamentals, drills |
| There is also an open gym at the high school | | | | her team for skill and then empowers her players |
| every Tuesday and Thursday night to encourage | | | | to make decisions on the court that will get the |
| the young men in the community to play | | | | job done. The confidence she has developed in |
| basketball. But like the city league, this open gym | | | | each member of the team gave the girl's team |
| contributed nothing to the team in its | | | | the ability, under extreme pressure, to put up the |
| championship bid. | | | | winning shot at the final buzzer, to take the state |
| A local banker, a former college all-star, has | | | | championship. |
| volunteered his services for one dollar a year to | | | | On the other hand, the boy's varsity head coach |
| assist the high school's coaching staff. The boy's | | | | is a tyrant who literally destroys his players by |
| varsity basketball program also has an able | | | | trying to mold them into an antiquated system |
| assistant coach. But these two accomplished | | | | that fails to capitalize on each boy's strengths. He |
| assistant coaches, like the city league and the | | | | makes all the decisions and directs the team from |
| open gym, were of no value in helping the boy's | | | | the sidelines. As a result, the boy's team rarely |
| varsity team win the state title. The reason these | | | | lives up to its potential or the investment in time, |
| community programs and an extra coach had little | | | | talent, and money the community has made in |
| effect in producing the state title, was that the | | | | the boy's basketball program. |
| state championship was won by the high school's | | | | |