Battling Through the End of the Season

In high school, basketball season is by far the longest, lasting from November to mid-March, a total of almost five months. As a result, it can often become difficult for players to stay physically and mentally engaged for the entirety of the season, specifically in the month of March.

The routine of practicing and playing five to six times a week grows repetitive, and it becomes more and more challenging to remain motivated for each one of these events. However, after playing high school basketball for three years now, I have found some simple ways to help cope with this exhaustion and push through until the finish line.

First, it is important to keep your personal and your team’s goals in the front of your mind. One of my team’s goals is to make it to the state championship game, so throughout the post-season games where the winner advances and the loser’s season ends, we all keep that goal in mind because to us, it is worth the week or two more of practices and games.

Secondly, drawing near to your teammates is an easy way to stay engaged and restore excitement into practices. No one is alone in this feeling of near-burnout; there most likely are people on your team who feel the same way and can encourage and motivate you to keep your goals in mind and finish off the season strong.

Third, think of the seniors on your team who might be playing their last game of their lives at any minute. At least for me, this plays a huge part of why I push myself to keep chasing success. Even though I am still a junior and will have another season next year as well as a club season this summer, I have to keep in mind that Marty, the only senior on my team, will not have these opportunities, and despite dedicating a huge part of her life to basketball, she might not ever pick up a basketball again after this season is over. If the two above reasons aren’t enough for you, play for the “Martys” on your team, and win for the sake of them receiving the most memorable last season of their high school careers as possible.