Coach: For high school hoops fans, this is the best time of year

For the true fan of high school basketball, this time of year might be the most fun.

The January and early February grind is something to really savor and appreciate. Think fine wine, or the best bite of your favorite cream pie, or even that oh-so soothing hot shower on a cold winter morning.

It may not be the main course of the season (we'll get to that later), but it might be the best part.

Breaking the five-monthlong season into segments makes it clearer. The start is always exciting as you get a fresh look at all the new players and faces, especially during the season opening Thanksgiving tournaments. Excitement is in the air as new stars emerge and all teams have an air of anticipation for what is to come.

Then there is December, where teams play some new opponents as well as early conference games, and slowly start to develop their identity. Fun to watch for the keen observer.

Things really heat up in late December, as the holiday tournaments provide one of the clear highlights of the season. Sometimes playing as many as four games in four days, these tourneys, while exhausting, often provide interesting matchups, thrilling game finishes, and real breakthrough developments for each squad. (Think teenagers suddenly turning into young men or women.)

Of course, the highlight of the season is the March Madness state tournament (make it February for the girls). This is when tension and enthusiasm reach fever pitch with big crowds and pressure-packed games as teams attempt to advance in the one-and-done tournament.

All of those are great. But for the true fan, I will argue there is something special about this time of year. The right now. The "meat and potatoes" part of the basketball season. The time that separates the pretenders from the contenders. The games are intense, conference rivalries are in full swing and each squad is now becoming a totality of what started as an athletic embryo just three months ago.

Less important, but not to be forgotten, these January and early February games can provide a welcome respite to those cold, dark, sometimes depressing days of winter in Chicago. The gym becomes a revival of sorts for the spirits of the sports-deprived fans among us.

To the point at hand, I asked some our local coaches what they like best about this part of the high school basketball season.

Some responses:

• Tom Livitano, Loyola Academy boys head coach: "The high school basketball season is a journey and a grind. Our ability to go out of town to Florida has proven to be a key factor for January/February success during the heart of the Catholic League Conference schedule. Teams that can fail forward become really good, and early season setbacks create opportunities to grow. Hopefully, our team this year can use those experiences to springboard forward."

• Steve Weissenstein, Glenbrook North assistant girls basketball coach: "The thing I like the most about January is all of the 'shootouts' that occur. You have the opportunity to see some of the best teams in the area play each other. One of my favorite memories at GBS was the City-Suburban shootout that they held each year. New Trier, Evanston, and GBS would play Marshall, Whitney Young, and Simeon in college gyms. It only lasted a couple of years, but I will always remember playing Marshall at the University of Chicago in front of a huge crowd in 2004."

• Scott Nemecek, Glenbrook South head girls basketball coach: "At this point in the season, you are balancing many demands. One - where do you fit in the conference race? Two - where do you see your team in terms of sectional seeding? Three - what is the state of the team's health, mentally and physically? Four - How is each individual player doing in terms of their own development and contribution to the team?

"It's amazing to me all the time, effort, and energy going into each day; and while the days are long, the weeks go by too fast. It's so much fun, but it's an investment that players and coaches must give as much of their all as possible, or someone else will take the things you are striving for. You can't back off."

• Jon Wolfe, Loyola Academy girls basketball assistant coach: "January games and the competitive shootouts we are in is a true test of where we are as a team before we enter tournament time in February. We focus not on wins and losses, but learning and getting better. We would much rather find out who we are now in the face of adversity, and have a chance to improve upon that now rather than find out and not have that chance."

Just a few thoughts from those living the dream.

So, yes, big state tournament games loom on the horizon. We all look forward to that. But get into the gyms now. Enjoy the atmosphere of hotly contested conference games with big crowds, pep bands and competing players who have known each other for years. Soak up and revel in the sounds, smells, and feel of high school basketball at its best.

Remember, sometimes the appetizers are better than the main course.

• Jon Cohn of Glenview is a coach, retired PE teacher, sports official and prep sports fan. To contact him with comments or story ideas, email jcsportsandtees@aol.com.