Basketball: Let's get physical

Finesse has gone the way of the peach basket in college basketball.

Once considered a non-contact sport, basketball has developed a harder edge that requires the participants to be bigger and stronger than ever. This year's NCAA tournament provided ample proof that the game is approaching a point where one needs to be strong to survive.

"Watching this year's tournament, I thought they should change the name from the NCAA to the NSGA" Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna said. "No skinny guys allowed."

"The only skinny guys I saw were 7 feet tall with a 7-foot wingspan. Everyone else was big and strong. You still have to have skill and talent to play this game but if you're not strong, you're going to get pushed around."

Creighton coach Dana Altman drew the same conclusion after spending time at last month's Final Four. He returned to Omaha and told his players that getting stronger had to be an offseason priority.

Four days a week for the past five weeks, Creighton players have endured grueling workouts overseen by a former member of Nebraska's football training staff. The players have lifted and jumped and sweated. Several players have left lunch in the weight room's garbage can.

Five weeks might not be enough to turn the Bluejays into behemoths, but it has left them with a positive feeling about their direction.

"We're making progress," forward Justin Carter said. "I think guys are feeling good about themselves and believing in what Zach is having us do. Guys are buying into the program."

Zach Duval is Creighton's new strength and conditioning coach. He learned his craft while working for Boyd Epley at Nebraska, where the athletic program has long been on the cutting edge in strength and conditioning.

Several players say what Duval is selling is not a radical departure from what they've experienced. But his delivery comes with an intensity that provides inspiration.

"I really like the guy" forward Chad Millard said. "He is super intense, and he demands a lot out of you. If you're doing something right, he'll let you know it.

"If you're not, he'll let you know it, too, but he's not just going to scream at you. He's doing everything he can to make sure we get the most out of the time we spend with him."

There were times not that long ago that a weight room might be the last place you'd find a basketball player. McKenna recalls that when he played for the Bluejays in the late 1970s and early 1980s that no one lifted.

"Free weights were really not a big thing back then," McKenna said. ";We did have this thing called the Leaper. It was a machine with these two hydraulic arms that you'd squat beneath, then jump. It was designed to try to help you improve your jumping ability.

"I never really lifted until I got into pro ball. I had to in order to try to keep up with the athleticism that I had to deal with at that level. But even then, what we were doing was nothing like what we ask kids to do now."

McKenna also is demanding that his players lift four times a week during the offseason and twice a week during the season to maintain strength. Like players in many programs, the Sycamores will spend much of the summer on campus.

"We can't monitor them as closely during the summer, and that's where you need guys to take some ownership in order to continue the development," McKenna said. "We've already hammered it into the guys that things are going to be more competitive next season in terms of playing time.

"If they don't keep up with the program, they're going to be left behind. And the bottom line is guys have to want to do this for themselves. Their coaches and their parents can want it for them, but if they're not willing to put the time in for themselves, they're not going to see the full benefits of the program."

That's a point that has been stressed repeatedly in the Creighton camp. With school ending last week, many of the players have headed home for a short break before returning in June to start a summer conditioning program.

While gone, there will be no peer pressure to assure that the players are following through on the program. That won't be a problem, center Kenny Lawson said.

"There is a lot of motivation to keep guys on the program," he said. "For one thing, no one is going to want to come back in three weeks and be as sore as we were when we first started the program. Guys are going to make sure that doesn't happen."

Muscles alone won't guarantee wins next season. But a couple of extra pounds might prevent a player from getting pushed around on the court. A little more bulk might keep a player from being moved out of position on a rebound. A dash of extra explosiveness could come in handy in getting to the hoop.

"I think we're already seeing results," Lawson said. "We were playing pickup the other day, and one of the redshirts from last year, Matt Dorwart, came flying in, caught a rebound and dunked with two hands. We never saw anything like that before.

"This is definitely going to help us become a better team. The thing is, everyone is holding everyone else accountable. We want to do this so that we can be a better team next year."

Millard said the weight program could provide some extra benefits.

"When guys are working this hard together, I think it builds a bond between us," he said. "I'm already sensing that this is bringing us closer as a team."

• Contact the writer: 679-2298, steve.pivovar@owh.com

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