Bendigo Spirit coach Simon Pritchard has changed his coaching style in the wake of Kelsey Griffin’s season-ending injury.
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A berth in the Women’s National Basketball League play-offs is out of the question with the Spirit (2-7) second-last on the ladder and Griffin out of action.
Pritchard admitted he couldn’t focus solely on wins and losses for the remainder of the season.
“I have to be demanding and authoritative, but I need to keep it fun,’’ Pritchard said ahead of Friday night’s home game against Perth.
“I can’t overreach in my expectations and create a negative environment.
“I need to be careful in the way I approach the girls because they need to be in an environment of growth and learning as opposed to performance.
“It’s about making sure they’re motivated to come back and play next season.”
The Spirit were blown by a combined total of 65 points in their two matches last weekend.
Pritchard said the players were still adjusting to life without Griffin, particularly at the offensive end of the court.
“The adjustment for the players now is to get used to being guarded one-on-one,’’ Pritchard said.
“When Kelsey was playing she’d get double-teamed which would open up space and time for everyone else.
“With Kelsey not there, opposition teams are not doubling any of our players, so all the girls have to make that adjustment because there’s not as much time and space to make decisions.
“We need to make improvements on our decision making under pressure.”
On Friday night the Spirit face Perth (4-4) for the third time this season. They split their opening two matches.
“We are really focusing on Perth’s three-point shooting power,’’ Pritchard said.
“We need to make sure we’re picking up their three-point shooters before they reach the three-point line. We can’t let them shoot uncontested three-pointers in transition. We need to make sure we get a hand up and make it as difficult as we can.
“If they make contested three-pointers then so be it.”
The Spirit back-up on Sunday in Melbourne against the Dandenong Rangers.
“We go after Perth first and worry about Dandenong after that,’’ Pritchard said.
“We played really well against Perth last time they were in Bendigo and now we need to see if we can get some improvement out of the girls who played at weekend.”
Friday night’s game starts at 7pm. The club is promoting the game as Gold Rush Round. Children can attend the game for a gold coin donation and the Bendigo Chinese Association Lion Dancing Team will perform.
