The secret to survival is how a team handles success and failure

Came across two good quotes in a story yesterday in the South Bend paper: One from Michigan coach John Beilein; one from Michigan State coach Tom Izzo (pictured here).

Coach Beilein, whose team lost to the Spartans last night to fall to 15-10 on the season, on the role confidence plays in preparing younger players to play:

"Part of getting these guys ready is getting the swagger back. You've gotta try and guess from what experience tells you; what you see with their body language."

From MSU coach Tom Izzo, whose team is 20-4 on the season, comes this quote:

"The secret to survival is how a team handles success and failure. It's about leadership and maturity."

Learning how to play at big moments

Interesting article here about preparing young players to "perform on a big stage."

Pierre McGuire (pictured here), a longtime hockey analyst for TSN and NBC, believes events like hockey's World Junior Championship teach players "how to play at big moments."

According to McGuire, events like the WJC are "about emotion, having enough emotion to win, but also controlling your emotion so it doesn't become a detriment to your ability to win."

Tournaments and high-profile games serve as "an amazing preparatory tool for players in terms of learning how to become better and learning how to play at big moments. Very few players have the opportunity to be cultivated in an environment like that."

"The pros get it. The more big moments you play, the more leadership you have the more mature you become, and the better you can handle the big theater."

According to the article: "There’s nothing revelatory about this. Every successful young athlete in every sport learns about composure and gains maturity somewhere along the line."

Channeling competiveness in a postive way

Almost one year ago, the Tampa Bay Rays made a trade that included Matt Garza, a pitcher who "was 8-13 over parts of two seasons with Minnesota and was known for having a temper that could be as explosive as his fastball."

After an incident in June when Garza and a teammate "scuffled" in the dugout during a game against Texas, Garza went to Rays manager Joe Maddon and said, "I need help controlling my emotions." Coach Maddon contends "it was a huge turning point for him."

With the help of a sports psychologist:

"Garza learned to channel his competitiveness in more positive ways. For instance, when he needs to make an important pitch, Garza is apt to walk off the mound, remove his cap and read inspirational writings scrawled inside it."

The results were immediate and clearly contributed to the 24-year-old Garza earning ALCS MVP honors, the youngest pitcher ever to win the award.

Said one of Garza's teammates: "I've never seen a guy mature emotionally and professionally over the course of one season like this guy has done."

Broadening a player's perspective

Sounds like a combination of playing on the U.S. Olympic team and maturity have helped change Chris Bosh for the better.

According to TOR coach Sam Mitchell:

"His practices are unbelievable, unbelievable. In the past, Chris would just come in ... not go through the motions but just do enough. Now, everything, every possession, every play is 100 percent all out.

I used to tell him all the time, the difference between Kevin Garnett and 95, 98 percent of the league is Kevin played like he practiced. And Chris is getting it, I think the light came on. I can't remember one play that he's taken off in the pre-season, not one. Not one time when he was supposed to run and get to a spot has he not done it.

Chris has got the talent to drag us along. I think he's realizing just how good he really is and how much better he can become."

Says Bosh:

"I've grown mentally as a player over this past summer and everything. Just being in that environment broadened my perspective a little bit, and I just started thinking more. That's what we've been talking about a lot in the past, he (Mitchell) is always telling me how I need to be a better practice player, make sure I push the guys and push myself to get better in practice. I really took that to heart and I'm really taking advantage of being healthy right now."