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Tips on Covering High School Basketball

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Carvelli3, Dec 29, 2009.

  1. crimsonace

    crimsonace Well-Known Member

    Here's a simple stat sheet that can help. I usually kept both this and a running score/play-by-play on a separate sheet of paper that noted the score, scorer and time of each basket. One thing that helped was I would mutter to myself what happened on each possession and write it down as the teams went down the floor (shot 40, rebound 10).

    http://www.indianassa.org/files/BBstats.pdf

    Have a system for tracking shots. Mine has always been "2" and "3" for made FG, X and L for missed FG (L being a missed 3 -- "miss long"), darkened circle for made FT, open circle for missed FT. My color guy just uses the numbers 1, 2 and 3 and puts a slash through the misses. Whatever you do, make sure it's consistent and easy to tally after a game.

    Every missed shot has to have a rebound ... if it goes OB, it's a team rebound. If it's a jump ball, the person whose team gets the arrow gets the rebound.

    Everyone else is right ... ALWAYS check the book before the game for names and after the game for scoring. I've noticed errors of mine -- and errors of the scorekeeper -- after the game.
     
  2. RickStain

    RickStain Well-Known Member

    Go up to both coaches before the game and introduce yourself. Ask them when and where they'd like to meet you after the game.
     
  3. Piotr Rasputin

    Piotr Rasputin New Member

    Drinks lots of caffeine before the game.

    These things are a lot more monotonous than you may expect.
     
  4. buckweaver

    buckweaver Active Member

    Good stuff, guys. All of it.

    I'll re-emphasize Cousin Oliver's point: For god's sake, make sure to write down the final score and circle it, Bert. The obvious things are the easiest to forget, when you're thinking about 1 million other things (which you will).

    Good luck.
     
  5. Appgrad05

    Appgrad05 Active Member

    That's policy at my shop. It's high school basketball in Indiana, after all.
     
  6. Hank_Scorpio

    Hank_Scorpio Active Member

    Basketball is definitely one of those that you can feel overwhelmed very quickly if you take on too much, too soon.

    Everyone has their own system that works for them. Start with the basics (points, team shooting, fouls, maybe rebounds) and then add some other stuff as you feel comfortable (assists, steals, individual shooting).



    I usually use two legal pads (one has a scoresheet, similar to the one crimsonace posted). The other is used for play by play.

    Visiting team on the left, time in the middle, home team on right. Then I track the action, starting with the jump ball.
    Made field goal gets a player number and time, along with an abbreviation (dunk, sj=short jumper, 3=three, wj=wing jumper, lu=layup, pb=putback)


    If a team misses a shot, I mark an X, multiple misses=more x's. If they don't get a shot on one trip, I draw a line.

    At the end of the game, you can quickly go back and check for any long scoring droughts, also seeing what they shot during that time and how many turnovers or no shots they had).
     
  7. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member


    The thing with basketball is that you can take on more as you feel comfortable as Hank says.

    And even if you spill your Diet Dr Pepper on your scorebook and destroy your play-by-play, you can at least get the accurate scoring from the official book, get some quotes and cobble something decent together.

    In football, if you lose your way and are on deadline, you are toast.
     
  8. budcrew08

    budcrew08 Active Member

    Don't scare the kid right off! ::)
     
  9. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    I have felt that if you sit high in the stands by yourself it is easier than knocking elbows to be as close to the floor as possible.
     
  10. BillyT

    BillyT Active Member

    Obvious it may be, but I do it every time.
     
  11. zagoshe

    zagoshe Well-Known Member

    If a player misses a key shot, makes a key turnover, fouls at a critical moment or makes any other mistake which is crucial to the outcome of the game, make sure you don't mention it and certainly don't name the player or even which team he played on because that way you won't piss off his parents and they won't call your boss.....[/RickStain]
     
  12. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    Agreed. If you can't find a seat at the scorer's table, the next best place is the top row on the visitor's side.
     
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