When Mike Decker and his wife, Amber, welcomed their daughter, Avery, into their family last winter, they decided it was time to make a move from the Pittsburgh area. The Deckers found Perry and it turned out to be a good match.
“My wife is from Northeast Ohio,” Decker, 30, said. “She’s from the Kent-Ravenna area. When we had our first child in January, we were looking to get closer to our family. We were looking to move to a community we raise our kids.
“We liked where we were at in Pittsburgh, but we didn’t feel it was good to raise a family there. We found Perry and it met our needs. I’m excited to be coaching and teaching at Perry.”
Decker will be teaching a number of business classes and coaching girls basketball for the Pirates. He was previously the boys coach at Woodland Hills.
“I’m a very competitive person, whether be it be boys (basketball), girls (basketball), video games, horseshoes or cornhole,” Decker said. “I don’t care, if it’s a competition, I’m in. I jumped in. People have asked if I’ll treat it differently, but I’m not going to. It’s 2012. They’re female athletes and if they want the respect they deserve, I have to treat them the same (as I would the boys).”
There are differences from being a boys basketball coach at Woodland Hills to being a girls coach at Perry.
“I am coming from more of an inner-city school,” Decker said. “Woodland Wills is a football power. On my team, I had a kid who played in the Big 33 game, I had four kids go on and play football in college and one play basketball. The adjustment is to a more rural setting versus an urban one.”
The Pirates have impressed Decker as he is introducing himself and his system to them.
“What excites me is their commitment level so far,” he said. “When I was named coach, I jumped in feet first. I’m installing the way I want them to play and it’s different from what they’ve done in the past. They’re just eating it up. Their commitment and dedication levels are the same as the boys I coached, if not higher.
“That’s a big-time compliment. The fact they are showing a higher level already has impressed me.”
Decker may like what he sees, but it also isn’t a surprise.
“That’s one of the things that attracted me to Perry,” he said. “I was doing research and I talked with (athletic director) T.J. Rockwell. The way he described Perry’s commitment to excellence in the classroom and on the fields and courts attracted me.
“I can say I’m surprised by what I’ve seen, but not shocked. I knew I was coming to a place that valued excellence in both the classroom and athletics.”
The Pirates under Decker will ratchet up their level of aggression.
“It will be a very, very aggressive mentality, both offensively and defensively,” he said. “That’s been the biggest challenge. There are hurdles with that. It’s a mentality. When we first met, I told the girls there would be a change in mentality. They looked at me and were excited.
“When we first started playing, they saw the aggression and how fast we played and were a bit shocked at first. They fought through it and are starting to grasp what I am teaching them.”
The style Decker and the Pirates will be using is similar to what John Calipari uses as the coach at the University of Kentucky.
“It’s very similar to the offense Calipari runs at Kentucky with the dribble drive,” Decker said. “The guy I played for, his father coached Calipari. It’s not exact, but it’s a variation.”
The Pirates have been learning quickly.
“They’ve picked it up,” he said. “There are two things they have, commitment and effort, but also intelligence. The girls have been very impressive. In installing the offense, the guys weren’t at where the Perry girls are. The girls are much further ahead much earlier.”
Defensively, the Pirates’ style will reflect a bit of what Nolan Richardson did in his days at Arkansas.
“We’ll be pressing,” Decker said. “We want to make other people uncomfortable. We want to dictate the tempo. One of goals is to take 67 shots per game. That’s a lot, but if we dictate the tempo, it’s possible.”
Decker’s new charges ask a lot of questions, but that’s something he has come to like.
“I want them to be bough in,” he said. “When they understand why we do things, they are totally bought in. Not only do I want them to know what they need to do, but why they need to do it. I enjoy (them asking the questions).
“They ask a lot of questions, but they’re good questions. The guys just did things because I told them to. The girls understand why they’re supposed to do them and that’s probably why they’re so much further ahead.”
Perry has been a good fit for the Deckers, too.
“From a people standpoint, my family and I couldn’t be happier,” he said. “I just moved up here (on Saturday) and one of my assistants helped me move in. I liked Pittsburgh, too. The people there are extremely down to earth. I find that same quality in the people of Perry.
“In Pittsburgh, the people pride themselves on being blue-collar, hard-working and getting-their-elbows dirty, grind-it-out people. I see those same qualities in the girls (at Perry).”
Ettinger is a freelance writer from Ashtabula.
Click here to subscribe to The Star Beacon print edition.
Click here to subscribe to The Star Beacon replica edition.
