03-20-2006, 09:02 AM
For Practice Only - Women's teams hone their skills against players who must sit out the games -- because they're men
By AMY MERRICK, March 13, 2006, Wall Street Journal Online Edition
CHICAGO -- On a recent Thursday evening, the DePaul University women's basketball team was practicing a rebound drill, preparing for one of the biggest games of its season, a home contest against the University of Connecticut.
"When he jumps and you jump, he gets the ball," shouted Doug Bruno, the longtime coach of the Blue Demons. "The only way you can play at this level is to keep him from jumping."
Many college women's basketball teams, including highly ranked programs such as DePaul's, recruit men to help with their practices. The male practice players usually serve as a scout team, learning opponents' plays for coming games. In scrimmages, each one may be assigned to mimic the strengths of a certain adversary, such as a knack for three-point shots or a penchant for scoring off a rebound. The men's advantages in height, speed and strength give the women an extra challenge, which coaches say helps them prepare for games in general but especially for contests against unusually tall competitors or very physical teams.
Raising Their Game
The men who practice against women's basketball teams labor in obscurity. They receive no scholarships. They don't sit on the bench during games or travel with the team. Some get a practice jersey, or free T-shirts and shoes, but they are largely uncompensated volunteers.
What they do get is practice time in the main gym against highly skilled competition -- they're no longer scrounging for pickup games in the student rec center -- and a chance to work with high-caliber coaches to improve their skills and their understanding of the game. Most of the men played high-school basketball and want to stay in shape. Some hope their dedication will get them noticed by coaches for the men's team. And in the end, the impact they have on the women's play can be rewarding.
"It's a good feeling when we see them winning," says David Harrison, a 22-year-old senior who is one of five men on DePaul's practice team. "You actually feel a part of it." Mr. Harrison says he attends many women's games, partly to find out how well he emulated the opposing team's plays during practice.
Not everyone thinks everyone wins when women's teams scrimmage against men. Some students and administrators are concerned that female athletes, particularly nonstarters, are losing practice opportunities. And the practice recently has drawn scrutiny from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, through its Committee on Women's Athletics.
After examining the issue for about a year, the committee decided in January that the use of male practice players "violates the spirit" of gender equity and of Title IX, the federal law designed in part to give women equal opportunity in collegiate sports. The panel is concerned that some women are losing opportunities to develop their skills.
Seeking the 'Right Way'
While the committee said it recognized the importance of allowing schools and coaches to make their own choices, it recommended that the management councils for NCAA divisions I, II and III -- the three tiers of intercollegiate competition -- consider writing new rules to restrict or possibly even eliminate the use of male practice players. In the meantime, it also recommended that schools and coaches' organizations talk about the "right way" to use male practice players without depriving women athletes, says the panel's chairwoman, Darlene Bailey, the associate director of athletics at Missouri State University.
Mr. Bruno, president of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association, says a recent survey found 85% of coaches support the use of male players on practice teams.
"You find players that are more talented or more athletic to help the team get better," he says. "In men's collegiate basketball, if they could play with NBA players, they would." Scrimmaging against men helps simulate what it's like to play against top teams like Duke, Tennessee, North Carolina and Connecticut, says Mr. Bruno, who has been using male practice players since the late 1970s.
While he says it's good for the NCAA to be having a discussion about the practice players, he hopes they won't be banned. At the same time, he says coaches are responsible for making sure women don't miss out on practice time. At DePaul, when the men are present, Mr. Bruno holds longer practices -- three hours on a recent night, instead of the usual two -- or has a second group of women practice at the same time with another coach.
Mr. Bruno says women's coaches also are careful in the choices they make when they scout pickup games on campus in search of male practice players. They're obviously searching for skilled players, but they're also looking for something more intangible: temperament. Because the practices are solely for the benefit of the women, the coaches don't want men who will be too aggressive -- that type can cause injuries or bruise the confidence of the women they play against. The coaches also don't want men who are constantly trying to dunk the ball, a tactic rarely seen in the women's game and therefore of little value in the women's practices. The men also have to meet NCAA standards for academic eligibility, such as being enrolled in at least 12 credit hours.
While family members of the practice players tend to be supportive, friends don't always understand how competitive the practices are, the male players say. Many get a mixed reaction when they explain that they're playing against women several nights a week.
Ross Shahandeh, a practice player at the University of Cincinnati, says that when he told his friends about practicing with the women's team, "they were like, 'You can't handle the guys?' Whenever someone tells me that, I just look at them and smile, because they don't know the half of it. The girls -- they're just as quick, they make the same good decisions, they move the ball around, they protect the ball just as good as any guys could." Mr. Shahandeh, a 22-year-old senior, says playing with the women has kept him in shape and lent credibility to his side business of giving private basketball lessons.
"My parents think it's the greatest thing," says Adam Eastman, a 19-year-old DePaul sophomore and practice player, who has a habit of giving a player a quick, reassuring pat on the elbow after she's been reprimanded for a mistake. "My friends say I'm doing it for the girls." He actually does it, he says, because he played basketball in high school and wants to keep up his skills and stay in shape.
--Ms. Merrick is a staff reporter in The Wall Street Journal's Chicago bureau.
I didn't know some women's teams were doing this...maybe the Lady Tigers ought to give this a try.
By AMY MERRICK, March 13, 2006, Wall Street Journal Online Edition
CHICAGO -- On a recent Thursday evening, the DePaul University women's basketball team was practicing a rebound drill, preparing for one of the biggest games of its season, a home contest against the University of Connecticut.
"When he jumps and you jump, he gets the ball," shouted Doug Bruno, the longtime coach of the Blue Demons. "The only way you can play at this level is to keep him from jumping."
Many college women's basketball teams, including highly ranked programs such as DePaul's, recruit men to help with their practices. The male practice players usually serve as a scout team, learning opponents' plays for coming games. In scrimmages, each one may be assigned to mimic the strengths of a certain adversary, such as a knack for three-point shots or a penchant for scoring off a rebound. The men's advantages in height, speed and strength give the women an extra challenge, which coaches say helps them prepare for games in general but especially for contests against unusually tall competitors or very physical teams.
Raising Their Game
The men who practice against women's basketball teams labor in obscurity. They receive no scholarships. They don't sit on the bench during games or travel with the team. Some get a practice jersey, or free T-shirts and shoes, but they are largely uncompensated volunteers.
What they do get is practice time in the main gym against highly skilled competition -- they're no longer scrounging for pickup games in the student rec center -- and a chance to work with high-caliber coaches to improve their skills and their understanding of the game. Most of the men played high-school basketball and want to stay in shape. Some hope their dedication will get them noticed by coaches for the men's team. And in the end, the impact they have on the women's play can be rewarding.
"It's a good feeling when we see them winning," says David Harrison, a 22-year-old senior who is one of five men on DePaul's practice team. "You actually feel a part of it." Mr. Harrison says he attends many women's games, partly to find out how well he emulated the opposing team's plays during practice.
Not everyone thinks everyone wins when women's teams scrimmage against men. Some students and administrators are concerned that female athletes, particularly nonstarters, are losing practice opportunities. And the practice recently has drawn scrutiny from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, through its Committee on Women's Athletics.
After examining the issue for about a year, the committee decided in January that the use of male practice players "violates the spirit" of gender equity and of Title IX, the federal law designed in part to give women equal opportunity in collegiate sports. The panel is concerned that some women are losing opportunities to develop their skills.
Seeking the 'Right Way'
While the committee said it recognized the importance of allowing schools and coaches to make their own choices, it recommended that the management councils for NCAA divisions I, II and III -- the three tiers of intercollegiate competition -- consider writing new rules to restrict or possibly even eliminate the use of male practice players. In the meantime, it also recommended that schools and coaches' organizations talk about the "right way" to use male practice players without depriving women athletes, says the panel's chairwoman, Darlene Bailey, the associate director of athletics at Missouri State University.
Mr. Bruno, president of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association, says a recent survey found 85% of coaches support the use of male players on practice teams.
"You find players that are more talented or more athletic to help the team get better," he says. "In men's collegiate basketball, if they could play with NBA players, they would." Scrimmaging against men helps simulate what it's like to play against top teams like Duke, Tennessee, North Carolina and Connecticut, says Mr. Bruno, who has been using male practice players since the late 1970s.
While he says it's good for the NCAA to be having a discussion about the practice players, he hopes they won't be banned. At the same time, he says coaches are responsible for making sure women don't miss out on practice time. At DePaul, when the men are present, Mr. Bruno holds longer practices -- three hours on a recent night, instead of the usual two -- or has a second group of women practice at the same time with another coach.
Mr. Bruno says women's coaches also are careful in the choices they make when they scout pickup games on campus in search of male practice players. They're obviously searching for skilled players, but they're also looking for something more intangible: temperament. Because the practices are solely for the benefit of the women, the coaches don't want men who will be too aggressive -- that type can cause injuries or bruise the confidence of the women they play against. The coaches also don't want men who are constantly trying to dunk the ball, a tactic rarely seen in the women's game and therefore of little value in the women's practices. The men also have to meet NCAA standards for academic eligibility, such as being enrolled in at least 12 credit hours.
While family members of the practice players tend to be supportive, friends don't always understand how competitive the practices are, the male players say. Many get a mixed reaction when they explain that they're playing against women several nights a week.
Ross Shahandeh, a practice player at the University of Cincinnati, says that when he told his friends about practicing with the women's team, "they were like, 'You can't handle the guys?' Whenever someone tells me that, I just look at them and smile, because they don't know the half of it. The girls -- they're just as quick, they make the same good decisions, they move the ball around, they protect the ball just as good as any guys could." Mr. Shahandeh, a 22-year-old senior, says playing with the women has kept him in shape and lent credibility to his side business of giving private basketball lessons.
"My parents think it's the greatest thing," says Adam Eastman, a 19-year-old DePaul sophomore and practice player, who has a habit of giving a player a quick, reassuring pat on the elbow after she's been reprimanded for a mistake. "My friends say I'm doing it for the girls." He actually does it, he says, because he played basketball in high school and wants to keep up his skills and stay in shape.
--Ms. Merrick is a staff reporter in The Wall Street Journal's Chicago bureau.
I didn't know some women's teams were doing this...maybe the Lady Tigers ought to give this a try.