Here is one thing you can do for your game and your body that doesn't cost a thing and can save your life in the long run:

 

Some Proof it works:

 

Excerpted from SportsMedicine:

http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/anatomyandphysiology/a/Athletes-Sleep.htm

 

      One study published by Mah in 2009, followed the Stanford University women's tennis team for five weeks as they attempted to get 10 hours of sleep each night. Those who increased their sleep time ran faster sprints and hit more accurate tennis shots than while getting their usual amount of sleep.

       In earlier studies, Mah found that getting extra sleep over several weeks improved performance, mood and alertness for athletes on the Stanford men's and women's swim teams and men's basketball team.  

 

The Science Behind it:

Excerpted from Live Science November 17, 2010

 

      Your internal biological clock is what tells you when it’s time to wake up or go to sleep, but this inner timekeeper is actually controlled by light and dark.

Inside your hypothalamus is a group of cells called the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN), which controls your biological clock by responding to light. Light reaches your SCN via your eye’s optic nerve, where it tells your biological clock it’s time to wake up. Light also causes your SCN to initiate other processes associated with being awake, such as raising your body temperature and producing hormones, like cortisol. 

      On the flip side, the lack of light reaching your SCN triggers melatonin production, which helps you sleep -- and this is why sleeping in total darkness is so important. 

      Having a light on at night squelches the production of melatonin, which is thought to be the reason for the hypothalamic changes discovered in the Ohio State study above. In addition to dampening your mood, a confused body clock can result in increased appetite and unwanted weight gain.

Excerpted from:  

http://athletic-therapy.com/tag/athletes-and-sleep/

 

      Eve Van Cauter, Ph.D., from the University of Chicago Medical School, studied the effects of three different durations of sleep in eleven men aged 18 to 27. For the first three nights of the study, the men slept eight hours per night; for the next six nights, they slept four hours per night; for the last seven nights, they slept 12 hours per night. 

      Results showed that after four hours of sleep per night (the sleep deprivation period), they metabolized glucose least efficiently. Levels of cortisol (a stress hormone) were also higher during sleep deprivation periods, which has been linked to memory impairment, age-related insulin resistance, and impaired recovery in athletes.

What you Need to do:

 

      Sleeping in a pitch-black bedroom is an important and relatively easy lifestyle choice to make for your health. Even the dim glow from your clock radio could be interfering with your ability to sleep -- and more importantly, your long term health and risk of developing cancer or major depression.

 

Some more tips for getting more sleep: http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleep_tips.htm