The Law of Momentum: Make the Next Play

Whenever I am coaching against a really good shooter, my biggest goal is to make their first 2-3 shots tough, contested misses.

This sets a tone for my team and can affect the shooter mentally.

Striking first like this can be applied to any sport:

Rushing a QB into making an errant first pass.
Force a drop by the Wide Receiver on his first target.
Score a quick goal or stop a goal early.
Get a lead-off hit or homerun.

Sports are just as much mental as they are physical.  So many games are won mentally during the first few possessions.  This is why having a sense of urgency and being ready to play are so important.

The Law of Momentum is real.

When you are on the negative end of this, and you miss your first few shots or get lose the ball early or make any kind of early mistakes have a Next Play Mentality.

Just focus on making the next play a positive one.  Any one play can change the momentum for your team.  Just make the next play.  Then make the next one.  Then, the next one.

Contest one shot and rebound.  Contest the next shot and rebound.  Then do it again.  That is how games are won, and practice is for working on those skills needed to make those plays consistently so that it translates into the game.