EOG: When to Extend a Game

The first topic I'd like to discuss concerning EOG situations is when to begin the process of extending a game.  A coach will want to extend a game when they are trailing in hopes of buying time in an effort to get back into the game. 

There are 2 questions that need to be answered:
  1. At what point in the game do you start the process?
  2. At what point do you not bother with extending the game?
The answer to the first question  depends on the age group you are coaching and the kids abilities.  If your team contains a bunch of grinders and its tough for them to score you may want to start the process earlier.  If your team is a good scoring team then you may start a bit later.  In general I like to use a 3 point per minute +1 minute rule.  How this works is that if you are down 3 points you can wait for the last 2 minutes of the game to extend (1 for the 3 point deficit +1 more minute).  If you are down 8 points you start extending the game at the 4 minute mark (3 minutes for the 8 pt deficit +1 more minute).

To answer the second question is a bit more tricky.  If you think that your team is equally matched but just playing poorly you can extend the game in the third quarter (or early in second half).  If you coach long enough there will be games where the opposition is just better than you.  In those games you keep encouraging your players but if the game is out of hand you just let the time of the game run out as quickly as possible.  You want to be careful that you never give the vibe of quitting to your team.  Even if you have conceded a game you need to keep fighting for them by coaching to the end.

In our next post we will discuss how to extend a game.

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