JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

THE BASELINE The Maryland Belles

BACKBOARD A Word from the MD Belles President, Talen Watson

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Belles Basketball NY Resolutions, Page 2

Meet the MD Belles Treasurer, Page 3

The Importance of Offensive/Defensive Skills Page 4

Belles Give Back, Community Service Projects, Page 5

Monthly Coach’s Tip, Page 6

Recruiting Tips, Page 7

Administrative Items, Page 8

Happy New Year Belles:

I hope this year is filled with many blessings and opportunities. Thank you so much for your hard

work and commitment in the year 2020. With so many unforeseen circumstances, your dedication

and support was very much appreciated.

It’s no secret that the Maryland Belles have emerged as one of the top AAU programs in the

region. We want to continue to enhance our program.

3 Keys to Victory

1. Practice is essential. A weekly routine of practices and workouts needs to be established (as

allowed, understanding that COVID has affected this). There is NO benefit to having games

without practicing, if the goal is to improve.

At our grassroots level, we want to make sure we are preparing the girls for high school.

WCAC, IAAM, etc. all run plays. Time is critical for development and basketball IQ

enhancement.

2. Shot selection is vital. We have to eliminate over dribbling and the one on one forced

attempts. “5 for the best 1” which means, 5 girls on the floor working to get the 1 best shot.

Reversing the ball quickly and taking the best shot needs to be emphasized. Scoring the most

points doesn’t mean you had the best game. Scoring points is not the only way you can have

a good game. Rebounds, assists, steals, blocks are also positive ways to impact the game. On

the other hand, turnovers and fouls are negative ways that impact the game.

3. Personal Training sessions are critical. Each player should have an individual weekly training

routine.

“If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk,

then crawl. But, whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.”

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

Belles New Year’s Resolutions

To rise up

Rhlyn Rouse, Belles 2022

To work out more and to be

committed to what I do every

day

Kyleigh Monk, Belles 2022

To continue my self-care

regimen, and to be kind

to myself

Kelly Goad, Belles Event

Coordinator

To better align

my actions with

my priorities

Coach Shawn,

Belles 2024

To be more appreciative of my

family & the people in my life,

and to make a better effort to

talk to & catch up with those

people

Jason Smith, Belles Treasurer

To be the best person,

athlete, and coach that I

can be and to do my best

to forget the rest

Coach C, Belles 2024

To start each day in prayer. I

found that being grateful for all

blessings small and large is

important. Some people were

not fortunate to see this new

year, so being here to see it is a

huge blessing to be thankful for

in itself.

Coach Damon, Belles 2025

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

Meet Maryland Belles Treasurer,

Jason Smith

Personal

Jason hails from Rosedale, MD where he

graduated from Overlea High School.

Jason then matriculated at Loyola

University of Baltimore and graduated from

the University of Phoenix.

He enjoys running and watching his fav

team, the Baltimore Ravens (due to Covid

more Ravens and less running).

In his spare time, he loves to play golf

(although he didn’t get to play much this

year)

Words to live by: Enjoy each and every

day, and the people in your life every day.

Fun Fact: Jason and his family ran into

Queen Latifah at a restaurant in

Joppatowne

Family

Jason is an only child who has one

daughter (Ashlee)

and a granddaughter

(Macee)

His parents are James and Debbie Smith

Fun Fact: Both of Jason’s parents are

TWINS!

Work

Jason is a Financial Manager at The Johns

Hopkins University Bloomberg School of

Public Health. His team processes and

manages/monitors the grants and

contracts the school receives.

Fun Fact: In high school Jason MC’d a sports

banquet for Baltimore County for 1K people!

Belles Support

Jason works with Coach Tangi, and

learned a lot about the org does for its

players and wanted to support. He is

responsible for paying the Belles bills,

managing funds and ensuring accurate

tax records. He also supports our Ravens

fundraiser.

Jason and Coach Talen at Belles

Day 2020

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

The Two Primary Categories of Basketball Skills: (as reported by Hoop Addicts https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-are-the-5-basic-skills-of-basketball/)

Offensive Skills The offense is the sexy part of basketball and where pros earn their paycheck. Of the figurative boxes in the basketball skills list, you should check most, if not all, when it comes to offense.

Shooting. Shooting can be defined as putting the ball in the basket to score points. In this loose definition, layups, dunks, mid-range jump shots, three-pointers, and free throws are all part of shooting.

Passing. Passing is when a player throws the ball to another player on his team. If that pass directly led to a basket, it is called an assist. Passes are also classified as a bounce pass, overhead pass, drop pass, baseball pass, and more.

Dribbling. Dribbling, or ball handling, is the method of bouncing the ball up and down the floor with one hand to advance it. Dribbling with both hands more than once is a violation (called a double dribble or dribbling violation). When dribbling, it is vital to protect the ball from the opponent, whether by using your body or your free arm as a shield. You may check our detailed guide here on basketball dribbling.

Offensive rebounding. Offensive rebounds are rebounds that you collect from the misses of your own team. Generally speaking, it’s tougher to get an offensive than a defensive rebound because offensive players are often positioned away from the rim.

Defensive Skills There are many skills involved in defense, but the three below are the most common and most basic.

Stealing. Stealing is taking the ball away from an offensive player. If the offensive player is dribbling the ball and you tap it free, whether to yourself or a teammate, that can be considered a steal. Additionally, steal is credited to a defensive player who anticipated a pass and then recovered the ball for himself or to someone from his team.

Blocking. One of the rarest stats of them all. It happens when a defensive player swats a shooting attempt from an offensive player, preventing the ball’s trajectory to the basket.

Defensive rebounding. Defensive rebounding is collecting and securing a missed shot from an opponent.

As mentioned, defense is not just limited to stealing, blocking, and defensive rebounding. Some more complex skills are involved, such as effective close-outs, pass denials, weak side help, post defense, and more. However, for now, let’s limit our explanations to the basics.

https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-are-the-5-basic-skills-of-basketball/https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-are-the-5-basic-skills-of-basketball/https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-is-an-assist-in-basketball/https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-is-dribbling-in-basketball/https://www.hoopsaddict.com/what-is-a-steal-in-basketball/

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

Belles Give Back Each year the Belles participate in

several community service

projects. From supporting the Pack-

a-Purse drive, where we pack

purses filled with toiletries and other

personal items for young ladies in

foster care (in 2019 we donated

200+ purses), donating books to

local public school libraries (we

donated 600+ books to a local

school), and our annual

shoe/athletic wear dive.

The McDonogh School Head

Coach, Brad Rees, volunteers his

time by hosting a basketball camp

for local children in the Dominican

Republic. The Belles org collects

shoes/athletic wear to provide to

the children who may not have

these resources. In 2020, we

donated 200+ pairs of shoes, and

although the basketball camp was

canceled due to Covid in 2020, the

shoes were still delivered and

provided to community members

(see photos).

We have collected shoes again,

and are preparing them for

delivery. Your donations are

appreciated.

THANK YOU for your support as

always!!!

Dominican Republic

Citizen receives shoes via

the MD Belles donation

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

MONTHLY TIP FROM MD BELLES COACH DJ

“Everybody wants to be good, but nobody works hard. ”No matter

what you want to do in life it just takes hard work and discipline.

Every day you are looking to advance in life. Attack whatever you

want and go get it. You see how great Lebron James, Kevin Durant,

and all the other greats play. But it’s the things you don’t see is

what makes them great. Working on their game daily to make

them great players. It’s the little things that add up. 15 mins of

focus dribbling a day times 7 days a week (both hands) 100 push-

ups a day (spend them out throughout the day).There’s never a

reason you can’t get better if you want it. Last thing WATCH

BASKETBALL understand what’s going on and ask questions. Let

go time ladies let get better and work hard. Belles on 3 Family on 6

1.2.3 BELLES 4.5.6 FAMILY

JANUARY 15, 2021 VOL. 4 ISSUE 1

Research.

Learn.

Work.

MONTHLY

RECRUITING TIPS

Have you ever thought about

what your dream schools are?

Make a list!

Here are a few Tips:

1. Make sure you think about life

after basketball, i.e. YOUR

COLLEGE DEGREE!!!

2. Watch the schools that you are

interested in play via television

or live streaming.

a. Watch the coaching

style

b. Watch the style of play

3. Take an unofficial visit to view

the campus.

4. Attend one of their basketball

summer camps.

5. Email the coach and ask if you

can come attend an open

practice session.

There is no right or wrong

school…just make sure it is the

RIGHT school for YOU!!!

Did you know?

The NCAA has extended D1

in-person recruiting through

April 15th.

The NCAA’s suspension of all

in-person recruiting for D1

sports has been extended

through April 15th. Recruiting

has not stopped completely;

coaches and recruits can still

communicate and coaches

can extend offers to student-

athletes.

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