A Few Games Before the Holiday(s) Break

To start with, Lexi's season FINALLY got underway. It seems like she's been going to practices and workouts for forever, but her team had a game and a game-like scrimmage this week. First, Lexi will be playing with the 8th grade team and the 7th grade team (they only have 4 girls, so several 8th graders will be doing this). Lexi played a bit in the first 7th grade game, then got to start in the 8th grade game. This was pretty cool, and I attribute it to all the voluntary workouts she attended, along with the early season practices. However, she was nervous and looked a little uneasy on the court. For the scrimmage, she started the 7th grade game and came off the bench in the 8th grade game. While she was nervous to start again, after being subbed out, she calmed down. When she was reinserted into the game, she looked like a different player. She was more aggressive, more confident with the ball, and had more court awareness. She was in position to get a backside rebound and put it right back up, getting fouled in the process. She made one of the free throws. However, it was in the 8th grade game that she excelled. Coming off the bench gave Lexi a chance to see how things were going, and when she came in, she picked right up with how aggressive she had been playing in the 7th grade game. In the 3rd quarter, she hit a jump shot from about 8 feet away, then got a rebound (but missed her layup). My favorite play was when she harassed a girl on the press, stole the ball, and took it to the hoop for a textbook layup. It may be the best pure basketball play she has ever made. She also had a chance to hit a layup right at the end game buzzer, but was fouled shooting (the ref didn't call it because Lexi's team was up by 20 or so). I was super impressed with how she grew just during these two scrimmages.

Griffin's team won their first game in the school league, and they won by a bunch. Griffin did a nice job on both ends of the court. He hustled as usual on defense, causing some havoc. He got a few rebounds and forced some jump balls. He also got off a couple of shots, but neither fell for him. He is now off for a couple of weeks for the holidays.

Cami had her first practices for the school league. She is finding this a little more competitive and demanding than she is used to, but is having fun. She has her first games after Christmas break.