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Tuesday, 8 May, 2007 12:26 PM
Profile: WSU Basketball Coach
E.J. Haralson
A Wayne State University
men’s basketball coach speaks out on the team’s strengths
and weaknesses while also recalling his own experiences as a star
point guard for Detroit’s most successful basketball squads.
As a graduate of Finney
High School and the starting point guard at the University of Detroit
Mercy for two years, Assistant Coach E.J. Haralson knows all about
the physical and mental struggles that a young man faces while playing
basketball at the high school and collegiate levels. He attributes
his incentives for becoming a coach to these experiences.
“I became
a coach because I still loved the sport,” said Haralson.
“I also remember being young and looking up to my
coaches as role models. I wanted to have that same relationship
with my players.”
The Warriors completed
last season with a 15-14 record, making it all the way to the GLIAC
Quarterfinals before losing to Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Concluding his fourth season with the team, Haralson admits that
he definitely expected more and describes the team’s overall
effort last season as a “C+.”
“This season
was definitely a learning experience for the team,”
he commented. “The boys definitely work hard and play
hard, but they could have cooperated better together as a team.
We were at a disadvantage because the team was undersized and were
unable to play big defense because of it. If we were playing a squad
with big guys, we just tried to step it up. The biggest highlight
of the season was that we were able to play some of our freshmen.”
Haralson also describes
last season as a huge growing experience for himself saying that
although he isn’t going to change any of his coaching techniques
next season, he hopes to be more thorough in what he is trying to
teach the team. He hopes that next season’s players will be
more mature and also be able to better understand defensive techniques.
Ultimately, he thinks that the team will work more as a unit.
When asked if the team
was searching for new talent, Haralson enthusiastically replied
in the affirmative. “We’re always looking for
new guys on this level especially ones with some height and ball-handling
abilities. Come try out!”
Haralson has received
the Detroit Public School Coach of the Year Award and also the FHS
Outstanding Achievement Award in 2002. He has also taught in the
Detroit Public School system. Haralson is married to Tonya Smoot,
a former basketball player at Miami University and has an eight-year-old
son, E.J. Lejuan.
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