Hoppy Easter, Frahm's in Town, and 1-1 Week - Blog #25 (Apr. 14 - 20)

Basketball Update:

Welcome to the Quarter Quell blog. Thanks to all those who enjoy reading every week. I am still enjoying writing! Two game week again this week with games on Friday and Sunday. We went on the road to play at Rotterdam. We started the game on fire and jumped out to a twenty-point lead in the first quarter. We held steady in the second quarter and finished the half still up twenty points. They made a solid run In the third quarter to cut the lead to nine. We ended up pulling away again in the fourth quarter to win the game, 74-94. It was one of my best games of the season offensively. I had a career high six threes which was a ton of fun. I even had my first dunk of the season if you can believe it. Highlights below.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2JtFo5XgNZI?feature=share

However, we had a quick turnaround for our much anticipated rematch with Groningen on Sunday coming roughly six weeks after our semifinal cup loss to them. We had a good start to the game, and personally, I was playing fairly well. If you have been following my basketball career over the last several years, you know I have had some issues with my back. Those issues returned at the beginning of the second quarter and my back really started hurting, and it was tough for me to bend forward even in the slightest. I was in a lot of pain and tried to give it a go after halftime, and it flared up again even worse. Very frustrating, but I do not think this instance is too serious. We will see.

Leadership Lesson:

Asking good questions is not just an important leadership skill, but it is an important life skill. As I have gotten older, I feel like I have gotten more self-aware. This has helped me because people are more likely to be engaged in a conversation if they are talking about themselves. This is something I learned from a former boss of mine, Mike Schmidt. He is a recruiter and would always tell me that people love to talk about themselves. If you want to get someone to like you, ask them questions about their life and listen well. It is easy to talk about yourself, but it is much more fun to ask people questions. You learn more and also build a stronger relationship. You will be a much more enjoyable person to be around as well. It is important to be liked to a certain degree as a leader, so your followers will be inspired to work hard and perform for you. Getting to know the people around you helps with this, and being a question asker makes you a much more interesting person.

Top 5 of the Week:

Craziest Road Environments I Have Played In:

1. Colorado - When we played at CU in 2022, it was the first CU sporting event post Deion Sanders' head coach announcement. The crowd was crazy, we were down roughly 10 points, then, Deion walked in. They showed him on the jumbotron, and at that moment was the loudest sound I have ever heard. Deafening screams for him. They proceeded to expand their lead in the next several minutes. Tough loss and crazy crowd.

2. Utah State - I only played here once, but they were crazy fans. Mormons do not drink, so they were straight sober and nuts. I fouled out of this game, and they did the "right, left, right, left" chant as I walked to the bench. Very weird feeling.

3. New Mexico - Because New Mexico does not have a pro team, they treat the university as their main attraction. The fans there are great and the Pit is an amazing place to play, just ask Jimmy V.

4. Wyoming - They are on this list because they were our rivals. Their fans didn't show up for any other games besides ours, but they still had a good crowd. To make matters worse, they have the highest elevation court in the US. 7220 feet in the air makes it a tough place to play.

5. Findlay - Had to shout out maybe the best atmosphere in the GMAC at rival, Findlay. We had some great showdowns there, and they have a small gym but always packed it out. You do not get many great atmospheres at the DII level, but Findlay was one of them.

What Else Did I Do This Week?

Nikki's cousins, Becca and Christian, got here on Saturday. They went to Amsterdam while I had practice, and I met up with them for dinner. We walked around a bit by the Rijksmuseum, and Nikki booked an amazing reservation at Pizzeria Dope. It was authentic Italian pizza, and it was some of the best I have ever had. Afterwards, we went to a sports bar to watch the Bucks game. We had to do a bit of sweet-talking because it is prime soccer season right now, but they eventually put the game on. Sheesh. That was a rough one. We dropped them off at their hotel and went home for the night.

Happy Easter! I spent most of the day doing basketball activities. Nikki and co. went to the tulip fields in the morning while I was at walkthrough. Even though I had issues with my back, I was still able to go out to dinner and spend time with some visitors. Jacob was in town for work and was able to come to his third or fourth game this season. 2nd only to Nikki. Pete came to town because he had an off day. It was great to see him too. Jacob went back to Amsterdam postgame, and the rest of us did a quick walk around Leiden. Then, we had our Easter dinner back at Rembrandt Roast for some ribs. They really might be the best ribs I have ever had, and my company agreed. It was a fun hang. Pete headed back to Deutschland, and we grabbed a bit of ice cream for a nice dessert. Despite the loss, it was a very nice Easter.

Top Meal of the Week:

The ribs were amazing, but because I just had them a couple of weeks ago, I would have to say that the pizza we had Saturday was my favorite meal this week. I forgot to take pictures, but they were classic Italian, Neapolitan-style pizzas. The bread was so fluffy and good. The sauce-to-cheese ratio was perfect. It also tasted relatively healthy for pizza. The bottoms of a couple of the pies were a little soggy, but that did not ruin them in the slightest.

One Thing I Miss About the States:

I miss the Bucks. It has been a rough start to the playoffs. It stinks that my season runs longer than the NBA season. Most of their games are at night back home, so while I am sleeping here. I am grateful of the time in my life in which the Bucks won the title. I was home that summer, and it was a blast being part of that run as a fan. I miss being able to watch full games and not just the highlights. You have to lose two games to win in 6, so I hope they turn it around. #BucksIn6