Lucas Gebhart
Staff Writer
Both the Idaho State men’s and women’s basketball teams were on the road over the Thanksgiving holidays.
The men visited Washington State, Denver and Utah, while the women faced Northwestern, Michigan State and Texas Tech.
“In college basketball, you don’t get Thanksgiving off. Nobody in the country gets that,” said Bill Evans, head coach for the men’s team.
“It’s a blessing because a lot of kids don’t have the opportunity to play at this level,” said Ethan Telfair, a junior guard from Coney Island, New York. “When we are playing on Thanksgiving or Christmas, we are grateful and happy to be here, so we just make the most of it.”
Being on the road not only means being away from home, it also means being away from school.
“It’s nice that the trip was during Thanksgiving break because we won’t have as many assignments,” said Lindsay Brown, a redshirt sophomore for the ISU women.
It is common for ISU athletes to have multiple games throughout the season at times which cause them to miss class.
“We have to communicate with our professors, but they are really helpful,” added redshirt junior Freya Newton of the women’s basketball team.
Professors work with the student athletes during the season so they will not fall behind in their classes. The players can turn assignments in online and take tests at alternate times if it conflicts with a road trip.
While the road might make things more hectic from a student perspective, for the coaches the road increases the availability to the players.
“We finally have them 24/7. The players are at our disposal. If we want to do a film session spur of the moment, we can do that. If we want to talk basketball or do a walk-through, we don’t have to worry about class conflicts,” said Seton Sobolewski, head coach for the ISU women’s basketball team.
For the men’s team, the road trip to Washington State was a nine-hour bus ride that was split up over two days. The team drove to Boise on Wednesday afternoon, where they spent the night, and traveled the rest of the way Thursday morning for a Friday night tilt with the Cougars.
“When you consider driving three hours to an airport, getting to the airport and waiting another two hours before finally getting on a plane, then flying an hour to an hour and a half and finally driving to the destination, I’d prefer to drive,” Coach Evans said. “We are on a budget, so we try to utilize our money the best we can, but we are not going to sacrifice our play because we are too tired or the drive was too long. Those are excuses, but they can also be realistic.”
It is up to Coach Evans whether the team drives or flies to get to their destination. He consults Assistant Coach Tim Walsh on the weather and the amount of hours that will be traveled.
Coach Sobolewski has a similar but slightly different take on how his team gets to their road games. If the destination can be reached in five hours, Sobolewski elects to drive, if it is over that time limit, the team will usually fly. His logistics are handled by Assistant Coach Andrea Videbeck and Graduate Assistant Jason Alvine.
“If we can afford it we’ll stay somewhere nicer. If our budget is smaller, then we won’t have as nice of accommodations,” Sobolewski said.
With the logistics out of the way, the players can focus on the game. They do not have to worry about things like food.
“They feed us very well,” Brown said. “They give us meals from restaurants and provide snacks.”
Olive Garden is a popular choice for the women’s team.
The night before a game, Brown will load up on carbs. The day of she has a soup or salad.
“They need the carbs,” Sobolewski said. “We give them a couple guidelines, like staying away from greasy foods that are hard for you to digest, but a lot of it is them being responsible for themselves in knowing what they need in order to perform their best.”
The players seem to catch on pretty well.
“All of us have a fair idea of what not to eat,” added Newton.
It is not just the food that the players enjoy, it is also the company of their teammates.
“The most enjoyable part is hanging out with the girls,” Newton said. “All of us get along really well.”
When the teams are not in constant preparation mode for the upcoming games, they get to explore whatever city they have found themselves in.
“Coach lets us go shopping every once in a while when we have time,” Brown said.
During last year’s tournament to San Juan in Puerto Rico, the women’s team got to explore the shops in downtown San Juan, as well as spend some time on the beach.
“Some of the best memories I have are from the road trips,” said redshirt sophomore Justin Smith. “It’s is a great time building relationships with the guys on the bus, on the plane and in the hotel.”
In 2013, the ISU men’s team played University of San Francisco where they not only won the game 93-90, but also explored the city.
The team saw everything from the Golden Gate Bridge to Lombard Street before a game against Cal State Bakersfield five days later.
Breakdowns and weather delays are also factors and a part of traveling on the road.
The women’s team was driving back from a scrimmage against UNLV when the bus broke down in McCammon, about 20 minutes away from Pocatello.
“The eight years I’ve been here, we’ve been pretty lucky,” Sobolewski said. “Only once did we really get held up in Minneapolis where only half of our team was able to make it home.”
The rest of the team had to catch a flight the next day.
Smith recalls driving through a snowstorm his freshman year on the way to a game against Montana.
“The weather is out of your control. Whatever happens happens, so we just get through it and be ready to play,” Smith said.
There is a lot of adversity the Bengals have to face when traveling on the road. From missing classes, to the rowdy student sections they face and even weather delays and breakdowns, but there is much more to playing on the road, as it also brings the team together and builds the chemistry that is needed both on and off the court.
