Riley coaches all-star team to late win
By JJ Ossola
IV Leader Sports editor, May 3, 2007
The National Junior College Athletics Association’s
best men’s basketball players faced off against the best players from Georgia,
in Atlanta on April 1 under Illinois Valley Community College coaches Mike Riley
and Steve Crick in an exhibition match.
The game, which is held annually in the city where the
National College Athletics Associations men’s basketball Final Four is held, is
between the state’s best junior college basketball players and the rest of the
nation’s.
Riley said, “It was quite an honor to be selected to coach
the national team. It was a great experience.” The Georgia All-stars were
defeated 116-177 by the Team USA crew that Riley said, “had come together on the
fly.” “Two of the players showed up minutes before the game and I had met a few
of the guys at the hotel, which made things interesting. We had very little time
to get our act together and the Georgia team had been practicing together for a
few days. We didn’t know what to expect.”
Riley and Crick made quick evaluations of the players, chose
a starting line-up, and game plan during the warm-ups. Riley said, “This event
draws coaches from all over. There were about 150 coaches and scouting staffs
from Division I and II NCAA schools. We wanted all the guys to be able to
showcase their abilities, so we rotated them all through in five or six minute
increments.”
The game was also made eight minutes longer, 24 minute halves
instead of 20, for this reason. Riley said, “It made for a very exciting game.
There were a few thousand people in the stands too. The team was so talented and
smart that they could run any play we threw at them.”
The roster, with an average a height of 6-5, presented Riley
with many new opportunities in game planning. “It turns out that I’m a heck of a
interior post coach when I have more than one guy 6-9. But one of the best
players on the court was the smallest guy on our team at 5-11.” Riley went on to
say, “The guys all played selfless, team basketball and I think that was one of
the greatest surprises for us. They were very coachable and wanted to win. They
weren’t so concerned with stats or showboating.”