One year, a basketball team set out on what they thought would be another successful season. They had trained hard during the off-season and were prepared to face whatever came their way. They started the season on a rough note with a mediocre showing at a thanksgiving tournament. Then, one game into the regular season, they were struck with unexpected tragedy. One of their starting five players broke an ankle and lower leg, forcing him to sit on the sidelines the rest of the season. After this loss the team thought the season was a complete loss. Even the coaching staff had a sinking feeling in the pit of their stomachs about the rest of the season. This forced the team to use a member who had not had as much experience as the injured player. The team struggled for a while. They lost to a team that was easily beatable and who they later beat on down the road. Then they lost to another game to a decent team later that same week. The teams' hopes of even an average season were fading fast. Then a huge blow came to the teams' morale. The suffered an embarrassing loss to a team that was beatable. Worst of all it was at home. After this loss the players began to think that their entire season was going downhill fast. The team had begun to bicker and point fingers at one another, and, on top of that they were still feeling sorry for themselves after the loss of their teammate. After that game a few players talked to the members of the team to try and spark them to play better and get focus on what was ahead. As the Christmas season, as the coach called it, came around the team started to show that they could still win and they did. At teams annual holiday tournament they put on an impressive display starting 3-0 in their pool. They ended up taking third in the tournament. The players and the coaches were starting to feel much better about the season. Then they lost another one of their better bench players
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