Hamilton, ON- When the game was finished, you could tell Theresa Burns’ disappointment. The long-time McMaster Marauders women’s basketball head coach understands how important attention to details – and executing those – are in games. 

She’s coached OUA and national championship teams who have gotten those details down pat. Those gold-medal details. Burns tells this year’s players how important those details are. It’s been a theme of theirs throughout the season. 

There are moments of growth. Moments of learning, executing and winning. Then there are moments like Wednesday evening against the Guelph Gryphons at the Burridge Gym…

The Marauders jumped out to a 19-13 lead after 10 minutes with their lead getting up as much as 14 points in the second quarter. “A really good start,” wing Emily Frankovic called it. “We came out fighting. We came out rebounding.” 

Then Guelph made their run late in the second quarter and throughout the third quarter. The Gryphons chipped away at the McMaster lead until it was the visitors who held the 14-point advantage of their own. McMaster couldn’t score for a while in that stretch. 

Frankovic and her teammates kept repeating: We need to get the next one. Stop and score. Stop and score. Yet it was the Gryphons who kept getting the stops and scoring. The Marauders kept trying to find momentum to turn it around. “I don’t think we got out of our rut fast enough,” Frankovic noted. 

Soon enough, Guelph came away with a 65-54 victory on Jan. 17, leaving McMaster afterwards to ponder what had just happened. 

When the Marauders met up for their usual post-game talk, three things came to mind: Rebounding, physicality – and the lack of attention to details with that. 

“Disappointing,” Burns called it. “Refusal to learn and see what it’s front of us and make adjustments and refusal to take care of details.”  

Even when they built that early lead, the head coach saw how their attention to detail wasn’t were in needed to be. 

The home team was out-rebounded by the Gryphons 53-40. Guelph snatched 20 offensive rebounds – part of why they had 83 field goal attempts compared to McMaster’s 61. 

Burns saw their lack of pushback on the defensive boards. “It’s becoming a tragedy for this team this year,” she said. “It’s a giant stat.” 

For her, it comes down to hard work and focus. For guard Sophia Urosevic, it comes down to taking care of their check and pushing it back in practice. That’s where those details come in. 

Urosevic knows they have to find their man and box out. Once they do so, they have to go after those rebounds – not just waiting for it. Ursoevic also knows they need to communicate better and be physical throughout the whole game. It’s something she’s working on. 

Yes, it can be easy to credit rebounding to sheer physicality – just going to hit someone – Frankovic pointed out. However, effort also plays a huge role.

“You have to want to go get the ball and want to go to do it,” she noted. “I think if we five people out there as a collective all the time, 24/7, had that mindset, we’ll be more successful on the boards.” 

Urosevic and Frankovic are both going through their first university basketball seasons. They’re part of a young team with seven first-year players. A young team still going through their growing pains. 

Urosevic found the university game super different than high school. The pace was so much faster. 

There are so many details and things to remember from practice to take in games. She finds herself still adjusting to it all. She knows she needs to keep working on what she needs to do. 

Frankovic knows the need to be more physical…but also how much of a struggle it can be. Fatigue and frustration creep in sometimes. She knows she must be mentally strong. A strength built up through practising over and over again.

She knows she must be conscious of that every single possession. She finds herself feeding off the energy of others. From third-year forward Jordan Denkers for instance. 

Frankovic can’t help but notice how Denkers is always playing physical, hitting as hard as she can – in practice and games. “She definitely brings that edge that we’re all trying to follow these days,” she said.

She can feel that momentum shift when Denkers goes all out and sacrifices her body. It rubs off on her personal effort – and the team as well. They can feel the adrenaline and momentum from Denkers’ play. 

That mental push is something Burns has talked to them about. At the core, it’s about getting outside their comfort zone to adapt to the physicality, details and mental toughness university basketball requires. 

Burns can see the challenges along the way. The team will take one step forward and then two steps back. There’s a constant reiteration on rebounding and details – even at this point in the season. 

Burns knows how hard it is for players to go outside their comfort zone – it’s called a comfort zone for a reason. Yes, it can be more mentally and physically demanding and tiring than the high school or club level, according to Burns. Yes, there’s a physical and mental price to be paid. 

“But you have to do it,” she said. “It’s the only way to get better.” 

That means individual accountability. Each player taking care of their own details, according to Burns. Each player pulling their own weight. Think of it like a chain – each player doing their part in keeping the chain together. 

“We need individuals to not pass the buck and look at yourself and go, ‘what can I do better to help this team’,” Burns said. 

Perhaps the Guelph game will serve as an inflection point for the season. The Marauders are 7-7 with eight regular season games remaining. With many practices remaining as well. 

Burns know things can turn around in the snap of finger. She also knows what must take place for that to happen. 

Urosevic expects the practices to be detail-orientated and a lot more physical. “We’re really going to have to focus in on being physical and rebounding so that we’re ready for the games to come,” she said. 

Perhaps the Marauders can rally off those victories – starting with a road contest against the York Lions on Jan. 20.

Perhaps, more importantly, the Marauders will be dialed in and better in the areas that matter. The areas they’ve talked about – before, during and after the Guelph game. 

Perhaps they will figure it out. After all, they know what they have to do. Now, it’s just a matter of doing so.

Featured Image: Kevin Lassel/McMaster Athletics