Coaches want to teach more than just game
A youth basketball team is looking to make a splash on and off the court this year.
Winning games is important to the Starkville-based Mississippi Splash, but molding the players into respectable young men is also very important to coaches Demario Cistrunk, Tony Petty and Kenny Cheeks..
It’s Cistrunk’s hope to expose the players to things that’s going to mold and shape their character in a positive way and not make it all about basketball. One of those things is scheduling a
Day with a Cop through officer Quentin Saulsberry, a former Mississippi State football player.
“They are older now and peer-pressure is always there, so we are focusing off the court now and humanitarian efforts as far as keeping their grades up and getting involved in the community,” Cistrunk said. “Our goal is to impact their lives off the court. We’ve had a lot of off-the-court success, but one of the main areas we are focusing on is off the court.
“Less than one percent of people are going to make it in professional basketball. What we are trying to build with our program is we are trying to make them constructive citizens and better to succeed at life.”
It is the support of sponsors that allow the Mississippi Splash to travel to tournaments and experience situations that will benefit what the coaches try to teach.
Michael Haddix, another former MSU football player and retired National Football League player, owns his own local business, and is one of the major sponsors for Mississippi Splash.
The Mississippi Splash are a 12-under team that previously played under the name Starkville Future.
Coach Kenny Cheeks is grateful for the opportunity Starkville Future provided, but said a new chapter has begun for the squad.
“A lot of people that see Mississippi Splash might not recognize that it’s the same team,” Cheeks said. “It’s the same team and we are based here in Starkville.
“We’re looking to pick up where we left off. Even though we have a new name, we have the same core. We’re looking to duplicate what we’ve been doing and add to it.”
As the Starkville Future, the team experienced tournaments on a national level.
It is the hope of the coaches that they can expand into other areas in the next couple of years and add teams so more can benefit from what Mississippi Splash can provide.
“We want to work with other coaches, other people and other communities because we’ve seen the impact that it has made,” Cistrunk said.
Cheeks said the Mississippi Splash right now is mainly “a guard-heavy team” with not much height compared to other teams. He does like the athleticism of the players.
There will be tryouts on January 27-28 to add players where the needs are.
“I want to capitalize on our advantages and cover up our disadvantages,” Cistrunk said. “We strategize around who we play. With that being said, we don’t want to get out of the element of what we do. With any sport, it’s about consistency and about balance. We want to be more balanced on the court.
“We want to look at them and see how they’ve developed since September. We watch film and record all of our games. When we are looking for guys to add, we can get a more direct hit of what we need. Once we get a good look at what we’ve got, we’ll probably have another tryout date. We are basically wanting to add some big bodies. Now it’s going to be more role players.”
Cheeks is pleased with the progress of the Mississippi Splash and where everything stands.
“For the most part, everything has been positive,” Cheeks said. “We haven’t had any setbacks. When we first started, we knew it was going to be a challenge, but it’s been smoother than we anticipated.”