Something feels different these days for LSUS men’s basketball coach Kyle Blankenship.
It’s not that his Pilots are in the NAIA post-season tournament. That happens every year. Twenty-two in a row, to be exact.
It’s not that they won another conference tournament. That’s another non-shocker.
Perhaps it’s because instead of driving 128 miles to Alexandria or 638 miles to Salina, Kans. or 788 miles to Georgetown, Ky., Blankenship is taking a different route as he leads his team into tonight’s opening round.
He will have to go all of five miles. That’s how far it is from his house to the LSUS gym.
For the first time, Blankenship could literally walk to the arena to coach his team as it begins play in the NAIA national tournament.
Kinda nice, huh?
“I just think it’s pretty special,” Blankenship says.
As Jerry Reed once sang, there’s a long way to go and a short time to get there as the Pilots start their quest to be cutting down the nets on March 24 in Kansas City as NAIA champions.
Step One comes tonight at 7’clock against one of the great school names of all time – Tougaloo.
As you might expect, the school isn’t treating this like just another game. Mainly because it isn’t.
“We sense the anticipation within the Shreveport-Bossier community, not just at our school, to be greater than anything we’ve had for a regular season game,” Blankenship says. “We generally draw very well and have great crowds, but I think this has caught the attention of basketball fans in general in this area that may have never come out before.”
Blankenship says he doesn’t know what the capacity is at The Dock. “I don’t know what the Fire Marshal has us listed as (for capacity),” he says. “We are hoping we find out. That would be a fun problem to have.”
There will be plenty of things to catch anyone’s attention, such as a tailgate in the parking lot and other pre-game festivities with vendors and signage all sorts of things that don’t involve beating a 1-3-1 zone trap.
“I’ve had to make some phone calls to try to help out with that,” he says.
Yes, Blankenship is excited to be hosting this event instead of checking out the school’s gas credit card, but being at home also comes with its own set of “problems.” OK, maybe not problems in the truest sense of the word, but certainly things the 14-year coach must be mindful of.
“The biggest challenge will be to get our guys to understand this is different,” Blankenship says. “We don’t have them in a hotel with a set schedule like we typically would on the road. We will try to keep the same routine of when we shoot around and eat and all of that. But the time period between those; how long do we want them sitting in the gym or laying down in their apartments? When you are on the road, it can be a little bit of an advantage because they’ve got nowhere else to go. There can be a lot of distractions at home.”
But when 7 ‘clock comes around, it will all be about 40 minutes of basketball. And no matter where it’s being played, Blankenship wants his team to understand the bottom line.
“It’s win or go home,” he says. “The anticipation and excitement are at a higher level than it typically would be. They take pride in that it’s the first time in history for us to host. They’re excited to put on a show for our fans.”
Plus, in talking to Blankenship, you get the sense that this means a little bit more to the veteran coach as well. The excitement dial has definitely been turned up.
“It’s being at home, it’s the post-season, it’s one and done, it’s all of that stuff,” Blankenship says. “It’s just the pride I have for LSUS and having friends and family here. It’s pretty special.”
Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com