No time for complacency, says coach Reece

Yee Chun Leong

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

Thursday, July 29, 2010

The wait may finally be over for the national basketball team but Kevin Reece, the national basketball coach, feels that there is never a time to feel complacent.

Playing under the banner of Soon Lee-Easyway 'A', they struck gold for the first time under the American, who has taken up the post half a year ago, with a 113-53 thrashing of Hata Rekajaya Sdn Bhd in the final to emerge the champions of the 2010 Goh Hock Kee Cup on Tuesday night at the Brunei Basketball Association court in Batu Bersurat.

"The team have constantly been improving and we have been making adjustments to get the job done. They have persevered and finally they got it done," said Reece, in an interview with The Brunei Times, after the victory.

"We can never be satisfied even after winning. I've been blessed with many wins in my lifetime but you would want to win every time - every game, every tournament, every championship," added the 50-year-old. "It is never enough. Looking at it in a realistic way, I judge by the standards from my background and it doesn't matter on what level as a coach, winning is everything," continued the American. The team will be looking forward to compete in the upcoming Sultan's Cup which starts on Saturday and their aim remains the same.

"The target is always the same and we'll be hoping to pull another streak of good results. We're slowly developing and getting better individually and as a team too," said the Los Angeles native.

With a busy calendar year, the national cagers have competed in a string of tournaments and will also be competing in the 2010 Borneo Cup, which the Sultanate is hosting, from August 13-15.

"It would have been good if all these tournaments would have been spaced out throughout the calendar year. I think we're at a disadvantage because of the fasting month (Ramadan) at that time and also with Hari Raya fast approaching," said the LA Lakers fan.

Nonetheless, the American feels that they are ready for the challenges ahead.

"We've been practising a lot to get ourselves prepared for situations where we have to play back-to-back games," said Reece

"But it's all good that we get to play many games. This will only help build on our mental toughness and we can prepare for future tournaments," he concluded.

Source: The Brunei Times