How Your Team Handles This One Bracket-Busting Thing Determines Success Or Heartbreak
If you were to sift through the NCAA Tournament rubble of busted brackets and nail-biting victories, you would soon uncover, as I did, one truly unique leadership lesson–the ability to manage adversity. At first glance, you may mistakenly assume the adversity I’m discussing is that underdog story of a team facing impossible odds, using those narratives as ammunition to topple a heavily favored opponent. But the beauty of watching this year’s basketball tournament is that we not only get to see how players and teams respond to the adversity of being down, but we also shine the national spotlight on how they handle the adversity of…being in the lead.
During the opening weekend of games, I watched Colgate University score 16 of the first 18 total points in their matchup against the highly-touted Arkansas Razorbacks only to see that 14-point advantage turn into a three-point deficit by halftime. The next day, I saw Eastern Washington University lead the powerhouse Kansas Jayhawks by eight points at halftime, only to be outscored 55-38 in the second half and lose the game by nine points.
Team after team started their respective matchups on-fire and executed well enough to build a lead, only to see that fire doused by their inability to handle the unfamiliar territory. During the first two rounds of the tournament, nine different teams led at halftime and then lost the game.
Longtime ESPN analyst and former Oklahoma State University guard Doug Gottlieb took to the airwaves and commented on how frequently he saw teams squander winning opportunities. His comments were so clutch that I reached out to Doug for a deeper dive on why believes teams have such a difficult time maintaining a lead.
“You have this false sense of security when you have, you know, a 10 or 12 point lead, and that sucker can evaporate quickly,” Gottlieb said during our phone call between broadcasts. “Momentum, confidence—all that stuff kind of goes together… I do think there’s adversity when you have the lead, especially early in the game. Sometimes you think it has been too easy and you take your foot off the gas.”
How often do you see that in business? You crush your first and second-quarter goals only to be haunted by a rough third quarter. Then imagine how desperate the decisions are in the fourth quarter after you’ve squandered those early gains with such a lackluster performance.
And being the favored team isn’t a guarantee in this adversity phenomenon. Texas and Florida were the higher-seeded teams, yet both squandered 5-point halftime leads in respective losses to 13-seed Abilene-Christian University and 15-seed Oral Roberts University.
The key here is to acknowledge the scoreboard rather than admire it. The great ones are acutely aware of their performance without basking in the early success or standing around waiting for praise. Some teams gained the early lead, then second-guessed themselves as if things were too good to be true. Others executed well enough to be in front and then switched their whole game plan in a bizarre attempt to preserve the lead. Then some teams took their foot off the gas pedal and were more careless with shot selection and decision-making. The latter brought out the biggest gripe in my quick call with Gottlieb.
“You can’t let anybody get away with a little thing like a letdown on defense or a bad shot… You just can’t!” Gottlieb said when referring to how some leaders grow more lenient as the lead increases. “Attention to detail has to be as great or greater when you’re winning as it is when you’re losing.”
Simply put, a bad pass made with a 16-point lead should be addressed and corrected the same way it would in a tie game. Human nature entices you to ease up, enjoy the lead, pose for the cameras, and showcase the newest variety of handshakes, high fives, and celebrations. We all want our Usain Bolt moment where we grin and look back at our hopeless competitors as we cross the finish line with ease. But far too often, when that happens, the opponent gets to test its resilience and create an unforgettable comeback story.
To avoid the letdown is to defy human nature. The great ones approach each possession as if the score were still 0-0. They value each opportunity as the most important one. Each sales call or client interaction should require the same focus and determination that initially put you in position for that opportunity.
The Great leaders hold the team accountable for each play—knowing that each possession stands on its own. Once you believe that you should be no less precise when you’re ahead of your goals than when you’re trying to catch up, you begin to manage adversity uncommonly well.
As we approach this weekend’s Sweet 16 slate of games, here’s to hoping your favorite team takes the lead, defies human nature, and keeps their March Madness dribble alive.