Stop thinking about winning.
That is the first piece of advice sports psychologist Ken Hodge would offer the Otago Nuggets if they came knocking at his door looking for some tips to help break their lengthy losing streak.
That initial gem might not go over so well, though. The Nuggets have slumped to 17 consecutive losses in their comeback season and extended their National Basketball League losing streak to 26 games.
The franchise is desperate to break the drought and avoid a winless season in its final game against the Hawkes Bay Hawks at the Edgar Centre tonight.
Hodge, associate professor of sport and exercise psychology at the school of physical education at the University of Otago, believes the team should stop thinking about winning and, instead, focus on how it can win.
"It is not so much that losing becomes a habit," he said. "It's not knowing how to win. They're not the same beasts."
"People who lose consistently, and lose badly, usually don't put in the effort and therefore don't perform well," he said, adding the Nuggets were not in that camp.
"It is not easy, but what we try and do is get players to focus on the things they can control."
"The main focus is trying to shift the mental focus away from winning to how to win. If you focus on winning and you're not winning you start thinking about all the things you can't control.
"You can't control how good your opponents are, you can't control injuries, you can't control illness, you can't control refereeing decisions. There is a lot of stuff you can control which gets in the way of winning.
"If you focus on things you can't control then, for most folks, it becomes a source of stress and worry. You get distracted by that, overemphasise it, blow it out of proportion and make it a bigger deal than what it is."
The best way forward was to set individual and team goals and work towards achieving them.
"Win, lose or draw, you'll have a source of satisfaction if you've achieved those goals. And, if all your team-mates achieve their goals, you're going to play pretty well. It does not guarantee winning because of that small thing called an opponent. But you certainly give yourself a better chance of winning because you're not so hamstrung by the thought of winning."
Sounds like great advice but it might have come too late. The last time the Nuggets played the Hawks they suffered a crushing 102-67 defeat, and the team has conceded an average of 102.2 points while scoring an average of 80 points during its last five games.
The Hawks have not lost to the Nuggets since 2003 and since 1995 lead the head-to-head 21-8.
Classy American import Josh Pace is a potent threat as is under-rated outside shooter David Langrell.
American forward Jon Rogers dominated the inside exchanges when the teams last met, scoring a game-high 26 points. The Hawks have great depth on the bench with former Tall Black Paul Henare and former Nuggets Nat Connell and Miles Pearce.
The Nuggets will look to American import Tyler Amaya to get the scoreboard moving. He scored 38 points against the Wellington Saints last week and in his last outing scored 27 points and had 10 assists.
Captain Sam To'omata has grown in stature each week and will be looking to cap off a good season with another strong performance.
Point guard James Ross and forward Matt Trueman return after missing the Nuggets' 101-80 loss to the Christchurch Cougars on Thursday because of exams.
NUGGETS v HAWKS
- Edgar Centre, today, 7pm
• Otago Nuggets: John Barber jun, Tyler Amaya, Matt Gillan, Sam To'omata, Tom Rowe, Riki Buckrell, Hayden Miller, Luke Aston, Chris Hepburn, James Ross, Matt Trueman.
• Hawkes Bay Hawks: Jarrod Kenny, Everard Bartlett, Miles Pearce, Josh Pace, Nat Connell, Chris Daniel, Ben Hill, Jon Rogers, Paul Henare, David Langrell.
NZ SPORT - THE BIGGEST LOSERS
In Basketball -
• Otago Nuggets: 26 consecutive NBL losses from April 2008 to June 2010. Nine wins from their last 89 games.
• Northland Suns: 20 consecutive NBL losses in 1998.
• Taranaki Mountain Airs: 18 consecutive NBL losses from March 2009 to March 2010.
Other Sports -
• Rugby: Northland lost 30 consecutive NPC games from August 2003 to August 2006.
• Netball: Central Pulse had 14 consecutive losses in the ANZ Championship from June 2008 to June 2009.
