Key Takeaways
- Basketball cheerleading is typically crowd-leading-focused. On the sidelines, you may need to lead the crowd in chants, songs, or a simple dance.
- If you’re trying out as a basketball cheerleader, you should also be able to memorize all the chants and slogans that you’ll be shouting during games.
- Show that you can keep your energy up on the sidelines all game long by practicing your posture and standing for hours without flagging.
- Prep for basketball cheerleading tryouts by practicing dances, spiriting, chants, tumbling passes, and stunts.
Cheer Tryout Prep
Basketball cheer tryouts are a bit different than what you can expect from a school dance team or competition squad. When you’re cheering for basketball, you’ll focus on amping up the crowd and showing team pride.
So, how to prep for cheer tryouts for basketball? Check out this guide from the experts at Omni Cheer to learn more about what you should expect.
Basketball Cheer vs. Competition Cheer
Basketball cheerleading is a form of sideline cheerleading (like football cheerleading). These types of cheerleaders are on the side of the court facing the game, but also face the crowd for cheers, chants, and routines. They sometimes perform cheerleading routines during halftime.
On the other hand, competition cheering is about prepping for a specific judged event. You’ll be performing complex choreography and stunts while judges compare your skill, execution, and spirit to the performances of other teams.
What Is Sideline Cheerleading?
Sideline cheerleading allows cheerleaders to shine at sporting events, including basketball and football games. The cheerleaders are essential to keeping the crowd’s energy up and supporting the team on the field with their cheers and chants.
As a sideline cheerleader, you’ll have gear specific to your needs, including:
Many schools provide the uniform, pom poms, and megaphones, and the cheerleader is responsible for paying for the body basics and shoes. However, it’s important to check with your coach to see who is responsible for paying for various cheerleading essentials.
Now that you understand a little bit about how sideline cheering is different from other types of cheerleading, you can learn how to prep for basketball cheer tryouts!
What Should You Prep For?
So, what do you need to try out for the cheerleading team for basketball? Check out our tips below!
1. Facials
We’re not talking about skincare! “Cheerleading facials” are facial expressions that cheerleaders make during a game or performances to convey energy and personality. These typically include smiles and fun, exaggerated expressions to keep the morale high for the crowd and the team playing. Before basketball cheer tryouts, you should practice your facials in the mirror during cheers, chants, and routines to ensure you always look alert, excited, and energized.
2. Cheers & Chants
Another essential for cheer tryout prep is practicing cheers and chants. While shouting “Go Team!” is a tried and true spirit call, it’s important to be familiar with common cheers and chants for the specific sport you’ll be cheering for. Look up popular cheers and chants for basketball online and practice them. It’s also a good idea to check in with your friends to see if they know anyone who was on the squad in previous years. If you have a connection, they may be able to teach you a few school-specific cheers and chants to help prepare you for tryouts.
3. Spiriting
During basketball cheer tryouts, you may be asked to cheer for an imaginary team so that judges can see how you will individually add to the squad’s energy and spirit. Spiriting is typically not a choreographed routine, but organic chants that cheerleaders can call out after a cheer or routine. Some examples are “Go Knights (insert your team name),” “Let’s Go, Number 40! (insert player number),” or “We’re Number One!”. This is a part of tryouts where you can add a lot of personality! Add movements, shake your pom poms, and make it your own! It’s a good idea to perfect a few different organic chants during cheer tryout prep so you’re comfortable recreating a few on the spot.
4. Jumps & Tumbling
Next up on the list of essential basketball cheer tryout skills are jumps and tumbling. During tryouts, it’s common to be asked to do a few different jumps. Common jumps consist of a toe touch, a side hurdler, and a front hurdler. Practice your jump prep, the jump itself, and your landing to ensure that your jumps are on form and clean before tryout day.
Judges may also ask you if you have any tumbling skills that you’d like to share. This can be a cartwheel, roundoff, a back handspring, or other tumbling move. It’s important not to feel pressured to do a tumbling move that you’re not comfortable with or safe to execute. If you only know how to do a cartwheel (and can do it well), then it’s best to just share that skill with the judges. However, if you do have tumbling experience, this is your chance to shine and show the judges what you’ve got!
5. Dance Routines
Sometimes, during pre-game or halftime, cheerleaders are expected to entertain the crowd with a choreographed routine. You may be asked to learn a short routine during basketball cheer tryouts to show that you can learn quickly and perform well under pressure. To prep for tryouts, look up a few different cheer routines online and practice them. This will help you get familiar with various dance moves, learning a routine, and performing it with confidence.
Omni Cheer Is By Your Side
Cheer tryout prep isn’t all about what you can do; it’s also about ensuring you have the right gear to support your performance. Whether your shoes don’t fit just right or you don’t have any warmups that allow you to show off your technique, Omni Cheer is here to help. In our store, you’ll find everything you need as a cheerleader, parent, or coach to ensure any cheerleader is appropriately outfitted.
Shop uniforms, hair accessories, duffel bags, and so much more! We’re here for all things cheer, so you can do all your shopping in one place. Trust in the selection at Omni Cheer to discover top brand names, including GK Cheer, ION, and Chasse, at affordable prices.
