Strength of Schedule: A Major Factor in Competitive Growth
Darnell Givens
March 9, 2009
I could use a number of basketball games to illustrate why the Strength of Schedule factor is so important when determining which team will probably be more competitive or dominant over the other. In this case, I’ll use the 2009 CIF Division VA championship game played by the Windward Wildcats against the La Verne Lutheran Trojans.
Both teams entered the contest with identical records of 26 wins and 5 losses. Just on the face of having the same record, one would probably have thought this game would be a hotly contested match up. At the least, a toss up, which could go either way. It turned out to be neither.
But in order to predict which team should have been the more dominant one, you would have had to dig and take a closer examination of each teams’ season schedule. By taking a much closer look, you would discover that even though both teams were in the same division finals together, Windward’s Strength of Schedule was superior to that of La Verne Lutheran’s.
How did this happen? I offer an explanation. It’s has something to do with the phrase; “If you want to be the best, you’ve got to compete against the best.” Even if you don’t prevail, you can at least learn something from the experience and build on it. Windward proved very successful this season with this approach.
Windward had an overall record of (26-5). Let’s look first at the opponents they played and lost to.
We’ll start with a tournament loss to the Westchester Comets: this year’s powerhouse City Section Champions and ranked the number two high school team in the state by some.
A (59-48) competitive tournament loss to Luzinger (Hawthorne), the 2009 CIF Division IIAA championship runner-ups.
A (62-61) heart-breaking buzzard beater tournament loss against Bishop Montgomery. Another highly seeded team who made it to the CIF division IVAA semi-finals.
Lastly, close tournament losses to Bellevue (WA), and Rocklin both teams considered highly regarded. Their only other loss was a League game to Campbell Hall, a team they later beat in a second match up. Campbell Hall by the way is a program that won CIF State championships in 2007 and 2008.
You might have noticed while reading the last several paragraphs that I’ve used the word tournament frequently. It’s definitely an underlying factor.
Tournament play as well as exhibition games are a key element and platform designed to enrich and encourage higher levels of competition. While some programs take a lackadaisical approach to them, other programs genuinely thrive on them. Some schools have weak league schedules that really don’t provide incentives to work harder and get to the next level. Rigorous tournament play with an emphasis on playing superior opponents has proven to be a great tool to refine and better assess a team’s overall competitive skill level.
Amongst the many tournaments and invitational games played around Southern California, Windward participated in the Max Preps Holiday Classic@ Torrey Pines and the Westchester High Tip-Off Classic. Both of which are considered two of the majors as far as competition goes.
Many teams are invited to participate in these major tournaments because they have big name players who are highly sought after and recruited by Division One College Basketball programs. A showcase of young talent prep basketball followers travel for miles to watch compete against each other.
It certainly helps that Windward has two of those players in UCLA bound Anthony Stover and Darius Morris who’s heading to Michigan University. In addition to them, you have Malcolm Washington going to the University of Penn, as well as Wesley Saunders who’s developing into a top Division One prospect.
I must stress the fact that although they did not win any of these tournaments, the exposure ultimately provided a vehicle for a valuable experience conducive for learning and growth.
The irony here being, you win even though you lose.
When we mention teams Windward did win against this season they include Price (2009 Div. IVA CIF champions), Pacific Hills (2009 Div. VAA CIF champions), and Morningside (2009 CIF Div. VAA championship runner-ups). They were also victorious against a talented Hoover (San Diego) squad.
Much credit should go to Athletic Director Steve Smith and Head Coach Miguel Villegas, because all and all Windward played arguably one of the toughest schedules of any team in the CIF Southern section this year.
As far as La Verne Lutheran is concerned, I have few if any comparisons with regards to schedule other than the Max Prep Holiday Classic Tournament game where they were blown-out by Pacific Hills. As I mentioned earlier, Windward beat Pacific Hills handily. Even though La Verne Lutheran only lost to Windward by a 10-point margin (72-62), in the end there was never a question in my mind that the dominant team was Windward.
Certainly no damper or discredit to the Trojans. Congratulations to them for having a fine winning season. But in the finals they were just out-classed by the better team and it showed from start to finish.
Simply put, each team’s Strength of Schedule was worlds apart.
If you really want to know how good you are or want to be, look for the biggest and best competition you can find and go for it. Even if you lose the battle, you can still gain valuable experience from it.
It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Windward went forward and won their first CIF State Championship this year.