And then I wrote...

... that fellow Navy officer and golfing partner, Wayne, from Texas, used to give me a bad time when he tried to teach me the game in California. He was on his college team, so was a scratch golfer. The thing which upset him most was my inability to consistently hit the driver off the tee. That’s the one shot you are completely in control of, he used to note. A fairway lie might be poor, and putting success can depend in part on the condition of the green. But on the tee, you are in total control. The ball can be set at a certain height on a tee. Your feet are always on the same plane since tee areas are never sidehills. The club you choose should leave no doubt and the swing should be the same.

And while I agreed with all that he said, I continued to hit bad tee shots all too often. Lack of muscle memory, he would chide.

I also knew a basketball coach who was driven crazy by missed free throws. He, like Wayne and golf, noted that it was the one shot in basketball over which the player has complete control. He (or she) can place the feet at the same place; can hold the ball the same way, and does not have to worry about anyone guarding the shot. To instill muscle memory, he had had his charges shoot lots of free throws at the end of each practice session.

And still they often missed.

All of which is preliminary to the idea that two missed free throws, by a Michigan State player who led the league in free throw accuracy, probably saved Iowa Coach Steve Alford his coaching job for at least another year.

Come to think of it, Waukon’s girls can probably cite missed free throws with playing a big part in their state tournament defeat.

But back to Alford.

A couple people who know that I have followed Iowa basketball since the days of Maury Wier back in the late 1940s asked me a couple weeks back if I thought Alford would be back next year. Iowa’s record was something like 16-10 at the time, and maybe 4-9 in the conference. I said I thought he was done unless his team made the NCAA field, and that that seemed unlikely since the only way they could do that was to win the conference tournament.

Well, they did not win the conference tournament, but thanks to those two missed free throws, made the final four, and then were selected for the NCAA field.

So, regardless of whether they win or lose that first round game (you folks will know by now; I don’t at this point) I figure Alford will be back, and ought to be allowed to come back.

I say that because I think he deserves a chance to have a “team” for an entire season for a change, without losing anyone to courts, grades or defections. With the exception of one senior reserve, everybody should be back, including all starters, Brunner and what the major media are referring to as his 4-H club, Horner, Haluska, Hansen, and Henderson. Also a couple reserves who saw considerable playing time.

All three of Iowa’s teams, Iowa, Iowa State and UNI, made the 64-team field. None of Indiana’s did ... not Indiana, Notre Dame or Purdue. Which state is the hotbed of basketball?

Iowa State’s women also made the NCAA field. Iowa, despite 20 wins, did not.

Speaking of that, I keep hearing that Waukon’s twice all-state and McDonald’s All American selection, Sam Reiser, has not drawn the attention of the state’s major universities. I hope that is not true. If Iowa teams let potential players like her go, perhaps to another state, then maybe their recruiting efforts should be questioned.