Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - On the heels of the most successful season for the Indiana State basketball program since 2001, Sycamore head coach Kevin McKenna recently worked for the second consecutive year with the Christian athletics outreach organization Athletes in Action by moderating a clinic from April 29 - May 2 in Berlin, Germany.
In May of 2009, McKenna coached a five-game summer tour of Poland and Germany with a group of Division I basketball players, including current Sycamores Dwayne Lathan and Koang Doluony, that represented Athletes In Action. The AIA team led by McKenna took on the Polish and German U20 national teams. McKenna also conducted national coaching clinics in Poland and Germany during the national tour.
"I've had a strong relationship with Athletes in Action for several years, and this was my second trip oversees working with the organization," McKenna commented. "AIA is a great group to be involved with. Their mission is spreading faith through sports and they do that through basketball. Mike Sigfrids, who runs the AIA summer tour and clinic programs, is a good friend. I'm a big believer in what they do during their clinics and I really enjoy working with the organization and teaching the game of basketball overseas."
McKenna was scheduled to make the trip alongside former Creighton head coach Dana Altman, who changed plans after taking the head coaching position at Oregon just days before the scheduled departure date. Sigfrids, organizer of the Coaches' Clinic in Berlin, called upon Mercer head coach Bob Hoffman, just two days before leaving, to accompany coach McKenna on the trip.
"Coach Altman was originally scheduled to attend this clinic but obviously his schedule changed just days before the trip," McKenna said. "Bob Hoffman from Mercer also has known Mike Sigfrids a long time and was able to arrange his schedule in order to travel. I really enjoyed working the clinics with him and am glad that he was able to travel with us."
The duo ran the first AIA-sponsored clinic held in Germany. Coach McKenna indicated that the he instructed a group of women's basketball players on the first day of the clinic, who have recently graduated from college. Included in that group was a recent graduate of Hastings College, who has just concluded her career playing basketball for the NAIA school located in Nebraska, a state where McKenna spent several seasons as an assistant coach at Creighton and the head coach of Nebraska-Omaha. On the clinic's second day, the coaches ran a clinic for professional, club and youth league coaches and players.
The participants of the clinics were instructed in basketball philosophy and techniques by McKenna and Hoffman, and also heard about faith and how it relates to basketball. After the final clinic session, the entire group and coaches joined AIA's Director in Berlin, Kevin Wood, for a luncheon.
"The overseas trips have become really rewarding," McKenna commented. "This is a great way to promote our program internationally and is an opportunity to network with club and professional coaches in Germany."
McKenna and Hoffman were able to take in some of Berlin's historic sites, including the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie and the Brandenburg Gate.
McKenna, who was accompanied by his wife Nancy on the trip, rounded out their European stay with a vacation in Paris after the conclusion of the clinic.
"I really enjoy the culture that you get to experience when traveling overseas," McKenna commented. "Being in a town such as Berlin that is rich in history is very interesting to me. My wife and I were able to turn the trip into a vacation after the clinic by staying in Paris for a few days as well."
