NetNews

A St. Lawrence graduate and college basketball coach has written a guide to coaching that Syracuse University Head Basketball Coach Jim Boeheim describes as a "benefit to coaches both young and old."

Jack Alofs '58 is the author of Jack Plus 5, called "enlightening and interesting to all basketball coaches at any level" by its publishers. Alofs coached at Herkimer County Community College (HCCC), achieving a 20-year record of 391-155 (72 percent winning percentage).

Alofs recently told his hometown newspaper, The Evening Times in Little Falls, New York, "When I first started coaching high school basketball, there was a lot of trial and error involved. Very few resources were available to coaches to get information on the various offenses and defenses and how to run them successfully. I remember wishing for a book that I could pick up and read about various strategies and when and how to implement them. It probably could have saved me some losses."

Jack Plus 5 is not simply a manual. It includes anecdotes from Alofs' 32-year career, stories about players and recollections of how Alofs led teams to national competitions.

A native of Gloversville, New York, Alofs also holds a master's degree in education from St. Lawrence. After coaching high school basketball at St. Johnsville and Spencerport, New York, he moved on to coaching at HCCC. He coached his team to a 4th-place finish in the NJC Division I Basketball Tournament and later, led his team to a Division III Junior College National Basketball Championship. Alofs was twice chosen New York State Junior College Coach of the Year and after retiring, he was inducted into the Greater Utica (NY) Sports Hall of Fame. He has lectured on basketball and his unique 1-3-1 Trap Zone at basketball clinics and camps and has authored numerous articles on coaching.

Posted: March 4, 2005