Last week, I coached my old school’s fifth and sixth grade basketball team in the Metro Championship. We got the lucky draw of playing the first day. Somehow the host got a bye. But we’ll ignore that for now.

I coach the team with my friend Mike who graduated from Holy Cross School with me in 2004. During the course of the season, Mike would control things on the floor and I would handle the bench … and Mike.

You see, Mike’s got a temper .

On the first day of the tournament we played St. Martin’s Episcopal, a team we soundly defeated 38-11 just a few weeks before.

However, our team decides this game’s a walk-through as well When you enter a game like that, you’re not gonna be happy with the results.

At halftime, we were leading 13-11. Mike and I don’t yell at our kids. We just express disappointment – like when I told them, “That was the worst half of basketball we’ve played all year. If we don’t shape up, we’re not playing tomorrow.”

That’s all. Mike handled the semantics and put in a press since I had to work the scorer’s table. If we lost, we went home.

We didn’t, outscoring the team 23-4 in the second half and won 36-15. Up next: Christian Brothers School.

Here are the differences between CBS and HC: CBS has a gym to practice in and the team probably practices five times a week. HC has no gym (thanks, Katrina) and practices on an outdoor court that may only be 30 feet long – and we’re happy if we practice twice a week.

But coming into the game, we felt we could win. We knew we could. Our kids knew we could. So after a triple-overtime game postponed our match-up for 40 minutes, it was on. And then things unraveled.

On the first play of the game, our starting point guard sustained an elbow injury. The kid couldn’t bend his elbow the rest of the game, so he was out. And, somehow in the first quarter, we commit eight fouls while the other team only commits one, despite our post players leaving the game with scratch marks.

At the end of the first, we were down by six, and two starters had two fouls. Things weren’t looking good.

Needless to say, we weren’t playing at full strength, and it ultimately cost us the game. We lost by 10 and the final foul count was 19 for us, four for them. I’m not bitter, just saying.

It was a valuable experience for Mike and me. We learned there is no foul if your guy jumps for the ball and the other team’s biggest player leaps into him in mid-air, crashing him out of bounds and hurting his ankle and knee. Or, if you want to take a charge, start falling before the other team gets in the lane, then trip that player and get the call. Like I said, I’m not bitter, just saying.

But we enjoyed it. Next year, we’re winning it all.