Murray State University Athletics
Racer Basketball: 'Catch Us If You Can'
10/23/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
As Mick Cronin's first team prepares for the season, that slogan trumpets the return of the Running Racers to the Murray State campus. And while opposing teams may struggle to catch the Racers, fans will want to catch them every chance they get.
"We're going to play up-tempo basketball, which seems to be the style of play people prefer around here," Cronin said. "We want to score 50 percent of our points on the fast break because you shoot a much higher percentage that way. If we can do that we'll be in the NCAA tournament."
Of course, most coaches say they want to run. But saying it and doing it are two different things. Cronin seems committed to doing it and having coached under Rick Pitino at Louisville he knows that commitment will pay off.
"We prefer not to attack your set defense," he said. "That way we don't have to attack your scouting report and game plan. That's something I learned from coach Pitino. With scouting and the physical play we have today it's become extra hard to score in half-court situations."
So you can expect the Racers to run at every opportunity. And while some coaches preach the importance of running the offense over and over to get the best shot possible, don't expect that from Cronin.
"We're looking to take the first good shot we can get," he declared. "We expect to average 75 shots a game."
That's 15 more shots per game than Murray State averaged last year. And while that style is popular with fans it may be even more popular with players.
An increased emphasis on 3-point shots is also an integral part of Cronin's philosophy.
"Obviously we're going to shoot the three," he said. "Just look at coach Pitino's teams. And most of our players will shoot it not just a few. That will open up the court and make it easier to score inside."
They love playing fast-paced basketball because that means they score more points and get more rebounds. It also means more people get to play meaningful minutes.
"You have to play your bench," Cronin said. "You have to play at least nine guys and you have to play them in the first half. You can't put someone out there for the first time in the second half and expect them to get the job done."
One has to expect that most teams won't want to run with the Racers so in order to get the tempo Cronin wants his team will employ a withering full court press.
"We'll dictate the tempo with our defense," he said. "We want to get the ball back by deflecting it, stealing it or forcing you to shoot outside the rhythm of your offense."
And Cronin expects Racer fans to help in putting pressure on the opposition.
"We want to do anything we can to rattle our opponent," he said. "If our fans can join us in pressuring our opponents it'll be a great advantage. And we'll excite our fans with our all-out aggressive style."
As the season approaches, you can get your "Catch us if you can" Season tickets by calling the MSU ticket office at 270-762-4895.
