“Tough Love†sparks Titans’ comeback
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and coaches must sometimes change more than simple ‘Xs’ and ‘O’s’ to light a fire under their team.
Pioneer‘s Joey Mata was faced with that situation during halftime on Saturday night in the third-place game of the St. Anthony tournament. Known for ‘keeping his cool’ at all times, Mata got so upset that he walked out on his players -- something he’d never done before in his seven years as Titans’ coach.
‘I screamed and yelled for a minute and told them they had to start playing like champions,’ Mata said after a lackluster 16 minutes in which his team was outscored, 41-25. ‘Then I just left the locker room. Normally, I’m calm and my assistant [Ron Saldana] is the one to use tough love but this time it was me.’
Mata’s players seemed to get the message -- especially junior Michael Crosby, who finished with a career-high 46 points, 29 rebounds and five steals as Pioneer rallied from a 21-point deficit early in the third quarter to outlast Anaheim, 99-88, in double overtime.
Crosby, a 6’ 3’, 230-pound forward who also plays tight end and defensive line on the Titans’ football team, scored 11 points in overtime, including a three-point play at the end of the first extra period. Crosby tipped in a rebound, was fouled, and made the ensuing free throw to tie the score with no time on the clock. Pioneer (5-9) took control from there, outscoring the Colonists, 15-4, in the second overtime.
-- Steve Galluzzo, guest blogger