Women's Hoops Guru

By Jonathan Tannenwald
Philly.com

Hi everyone,

As Mel has alluded to a few times recently, we're moving this blog to a new platform. From now on, you'll find us at http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/womhoops.

There's also a new RSS feed URL that you'll find at the new blog for those of you who read us via Google Reader or other such programs. The short link http://go.philly.com/womhoops still exists, but has been changed to direct you to the new blog.

This version of the blog will stay alive for a little while longer for archival purposes, but there will be no new posts on it.

So come join us at the new site.

(Having discovered the Guru can still post at this site, here is a report of Thursday's actiivites.)

By Mel Greenberg

INDIANAPOLIS -- The first portion of the second annual seminar spread across two days at NCAA headquarters involving the Tournament Committee Mock Bracketing Exercise featured selecting the teams and seeding the first four lines in the draw

Since NCAA.com was doing its own blog, a description of our deliberations can be found over there..

Meanwhile, the Guru would like to note that he arrived at a fabulous new airport in Indy and is writing this using the Hi-Def TV screen in the Marriott hotel room as a monitor.

The dynamic was much different than a year ago involving teams because of the way the season played out.

Although there is a month left before the real selection, the simulation with the available had us preten d it was really mid-March instead of early February.

Thus, Villanova, at 6-2, in the Big East made the field even though the Wildcats have yet to play such conference powers as Connecticut, Louisville, and DePaul.

Temple was left on the table but the Owls control their destiny in the real world and could very well be an at-large team if they rise near the top of the jumbled conference race.

Having current coaches in our group participate this year allowed for good reference point discussions on teams under consideration.

On Friday we will go through the actual bracketing before finishing up around noon.

The NCAA overnight is completing the entire field seed process because we are working in a compressed time frame and not in the four-day format the real committee deliberates.

The Guru will summarize what was done upon his return to Philadelphia after Friday night's desk shift.

-- Mel

(Change of Guru blog venue alert: The platform program housing the blog will be changing as quickly as perhaps Thursday with a new URL etc. Jonathan will post info but the philly.com link will re-route and once this is all figured out you can change your links -- those of you who have them. Until the Guru gets his driving lessons and gains control, the workaround is he will email Jonathan who will post at the new site. Everything to date is archived and the original blog is still operational and can be utilized, if need be, especially by non-Inquirer team members who have been busy at the moment in their current lives. -- Mel)

By Mel Greenberg

Well a year ago your Guru took you through the first NCAA-Mock Bracket exercise for the women's tournament step by step.

Having found the right deal (love those Amex points), the Guru will be heading to Indy in the morning and will be able to stay through the entire process before jetting back to the home office for Friday's desk shift.

This time around, we will play things by ear because of (1) the precede involving a new posting structure, and (2) the NCAA itself will be involved with live-blogging from the room and video.

Also, some of the nuances are different with four current coaches -- Notre Dame's Muffet McGraw, DePaul's Doug Bruno, Texas A&M's Gary Blair, and Oklahoma's Sherri Coale -- involved in the exercise.

Remember this, whatever exists now is supposed to be considered as existing on selection weekend knowing that in reality off the season to date, there will be major changes between now and the end of conference tournaments.

The dynamic is much different than a year ago. Seven teams were solid at the top -- though not necessarily in pecking order -- and remaind so the rest of the way with three other teams fighting for No. 8, the final No. 2 seed, which Texas A&M ultimately won out.

This will be interesting in that this committee is going to be loaded with ESPN types and under-loaded with print types, vanishing breed that we are. Mechelle Voepel had withdrawn, would not comment on whether she is checking the accuracy of Pat Summitt's 999 wins to date, but Charlie Creme will be in the room. So will the real committee to gawk at our deliberations.

Unlike a year ago, many conferences are in flux, but based on what the NCAA gave us as mythical conference champions, the mickeys are off target in terms of disruption.

Last season, we were given Charlotte as a surprise winner in the Atlantic Ten, when either Xavier or George Washington would have been nice. That created the three or four total team argument for Atlantic 10 representation.

So first look at what has been given in simulation as conference tournament champions on our charts. Teams so designated will be considered in the tournament and will not have to be part of our individual 33 at-large or other at-large for discussion columns on our ballots.

Not all conference champions were given and remember this is the Guru's view only the rest of the way in this post..

ACC -- North Carolina -- Fine. One less at-large team to worry about.

Atlantic Sun -- East Tennessee -- One-team conference no matter who wins.

Atlantic Ten -- Xavier -- Eliminates the wrong winner. A year ago, there was a clear top but not now. The Guru thinks a second or third team might be at-large worthy, but will place a bunch of A-10 teams in the others for discussion column in a little bit.

Big Ten -- Ohio State -- The Buckeyes find ways to get out faster then we put them in, but, again, another team not needed to take up space as an at-large vote.

Big East -- Connecticut -- Here's what's amazing from last year. The Huskies could be under-performing and still head for the Trenton regional because nearest geography in principle makes the match a cinch because all other prime contenders for top seeds are located elsewhere in terms of what is a close site for them. The exception, which has been written elsewhere, is California, which cannot play in the Berkeley regional.

C-USA -- SMU. Academic because it might be a one-team deal, here.

Ivy League -- Princeton -- Definitely and appropriately academic for the Ivies. No tournament here, so no wrong winner.

Metro Atlantic -- Marist -- Takes care of business and no worries about needed rescue because of a tournament upset.

Ohio Valley -- Eastern Illinois -- One team deal even though this team was presented holding bid with Murray State named regular season champ.

Patriot -- American. -- Same dynamic as directly above.

SEC -- Tennessee -- Oddly, a wrong winner, but one that would be on an at-large list. Will affect seed discussion, however, for Auburn.

Southern -- Samford -- Wrong winner. Chattanooga will be discussed.

Summit -- Oakland -- Wrong winner and South Dakots State needed a rescue.

Sun Belt -- Middle Tennessee -- Wring winner but actualy best team.

West Coast -- Gonzaga -- Right team won.

Western Athletic -- Nevada winner with Fresno State regular season champ that will land in the NWIT.

So now it's on to the next step. Pick the best 33. Remember what has already been said, so you won't see Xavier, Tennessee, Ohio State, or North Carolina on this list. Also, in reality, some of these would later be deducted if they actually won conference titles.

Going off of Wednsday morning's glance at Colllege RPI.com standings and data, here's the group for at-large. Some conference teams the Guru is temporarily moving over to discussion column to see how they compare because they are closer to borderline/bubble territority.

And a time out to talk about Rutgers because of all the concerns of the fan base.

The Guru will place Rutgers in his 33 not because the Scarlet Knights are hosting and it makes marketing sense. The reason is no matter how far down the line RU is dropped, once the comparisons begin for the last spots a new dynamic begins.

Rutgers compares less favorably to the premium guys, but so what? They are already in the tournament. But in looking at who is left to take, Rutgers off its schedule, etc., compares favorably.
Now if the team were to slide further in reality over the next month, then tough luck. Penn State didn't get a free pass to its arena in 2006.
Integrity of the tournament is still important although if Rutgers makes the field with a low seed and suddenly has its act together, the Scarlet Knights could be the most dangerous low seed in the history of the tournament since Louisiana Tech was a No. 11 when it met Temple in 2005.

The At-Larges

Duke
Florida State
Maryland
Virginia
Georgia Tech
Boston College
Oklahoma
Kansas State
Baylor
Texas A&M
Iowa State
Texas
Oklahoma State
Louisville
Pittsburgh
DePaul
Rutgers
Notre Dame
Indiana
California
Stanford
Arizona State
Auburn
Florida
Vanderbilt
South Dakota State

Total 26 but 2 could be off list as conference champs.

Others for discussion

Charlotte
George Washington
St. Bonaventure
Richmond
Temple
Texas Tech
Marquette
Villanova
Michigan State
Purdue
Minnesota
Iowa
VCU -- could become conference champ
Wis-Green Bay -- coune become conference champ
UCLA
Georgia
LSU

16 and two could become champ

That's It

Talk to you from Indy

-- Mel

By Mel Greenberg

President Obama promised changed when campaigning for office, but he didn't indicate that movement in The Associated Press women's poll would be part of the package.

While Connecticut continues to be fillibuster proof from any challenge to the Huskies' NCAA title agenda, here's an intriguing look at the AP Poll of exactly a year ago compared to where those teams are now.

Obviously, movement like this has to be needed stimulus to draw more interest in the sport.

Here we go with last year's list first.

1. Connecticut -- Still in power at No. 1
2. Tennessee -- Plunged to No. 12 with another dip ahead.
3. North Carolina -- Fell to a tie for No.8
4. Maryland -- Dipped down to No. 13 but had been higher
5. Baylor -- Has been higher but fell to No. 8 with the Tar Heels
6. Stanford -- In same neighborhood at No. 7.
7. Rutgers -- Unranked and likely to stay that way for now.
8. LSU -- Dropped out after preseason poll.
9. Calkifornia -- Shot up to all-time high at No. 3. (But are the Bears a No. 1 seed).
10. Oklahoma -- Rocketed to No. 2 but Sherri Coale's WBCA presidency is not a factor.

Time out sub-total -- Two gone altogether and two more with major dips.

11. Duke -- Currently fourth and made it to third. (Don't ask about the Blue Devils and Coaches Poll).
12. West Virginia -- Unranked
13. Old Dominion -- Unranked and fallen to the pack in the CAA.
14. George Washington -- Where have you gone Joe McKeown. -- He's unranked, too.
15. Pittsburgh -- Now at 21 but could rise again.
16. Notre Dame -- Holding at No. 17
17. Oklahoma State -- Had been ranked but not now
18. Kansas State -- No bailout needed, still at No. 18
19. Ohio State -- Up at No. 15 but those postseason rapids are on the horizon.
20. Utah -- Unranked
21. Texas A&M -- Shot up to No. 10 but had been even higher off of last year's Elite Eight
22. Wyoming -- Unranked
23. Syracuse -- Unranked and tripped up. (A little UConn media humor).
24. Georgia -- Uranked but chance to join the Summitt's spoiler club Thursday night in Knoxville.
25. DePaul -- Still at No. 25 after recent return.

That means nine teams missing overall from comprable poll and two more had major shifts.

Now, here's a look at the replacement club.

Lousville -- Unranked to No. 5. An all-time, though Jeff Walz has been there before as a Maryland assistant.
Auburn -- Unranked to No. 7 with the return of Nell Fortner to coaching success. Had equal high rankings as a player at Texas and equal Q ratings as a studio host at ESPN.
Florida -- Unranked to No. 11. The Butler, er Amanda Butler, is doing it to opponents.
Texas -- Unranked to No. 16 but had been higher.
Virginia -- Unranked to No. 17 but Cavaliers a year ago soon returned to the rankings.
Iowa State -- Unranked to No. 21 as part of the Big 12 fiesta.
Xavier -- Unranked to No. 23 is taking GWU's Atlantic Ten spot.
South Dakota State -- Uranked to No. 24 as Division I rookie program of the year.

And in the spirt of change, did you know that 10 teams in this week's poll had made less than 130 appearances in the 33-year, 169-week history.

Here's the breakdown.

The (successful) amateurs

Florida 126
DePaul 102
Iowa State 98
Texas A&M 79
California 59
Louisville 34
Xavier 23
Pittsburgh 22
Florida State 18
South Dakota State 5

Next Four

Notre Dame 172
Oklahoma 170
Kansas State 152
Baylor 141

More Veteran

Duke 282
Ohio State 228

Gold Standard

Stanford 354
Connecticut 323
Maryland 314
Auburn 313
Virginia 308
Vanderbilt 308
North Carolina 302

Head Of The Class

Tennessee 555
Texas 420

Mock Bracket Alert
Preview Coming Later Wednesday Whether We Punch Plane Ticket or Not.

WNBA: Economic Realities

Although deep into the collegiate scene, the Guru keeps getting asked about the economic health of the WNBA in consideration of the current climate.

Well, on the upside, the new ESPN rights-fee contract kicks in but it is still unclear what teams, individually, are getting out of the deal. The Guru has heard it both ways.

But there have been signs of a pinch.

The fabled Houston Comets went the way of other comets, but may return some day to make Texas a two-team state again instead of San Antonio being Lone Stars.

Then we noticed something missing from this week's announcement of the WNBA draft being held again at NBA Entertainment Headquarters in Seacaucus, N.J.

The last three seasons, the event had been held at the Final Four, but it had to cost a few bucks to sert up shop in a remote location. We're not complaining as long as the WNBA party at the finals is still on. (A friend asked the Guru to say that.)

And there's time to hold it a week later because the season is starting later.

But it is much cheaper with everything in place in Jersey and the 3 p.m. start even allows morning flights for draftees to arrive at nearby Newark thus saving hotel costs.

It will be fine as long as the wind or unexpected cold air could be kept out of the media tent.

Rosters cut from 13 to 11: Well, those two spots were phantom positions at places, anyway.

The All-Star game returns to the Mohegan Sun.

Again, no complaints here. Many thought the event in casinoland was one of the best ever when last held there.

But again, look at the reality not counting the Mohegans' own economic dealings.

When the WNBA decided dead bodies were no longer needed to step over for Connecticut to get a franchise, the Mohegans practically invented stimulus in working with the WNBA folks.

Mucho infrastructure costs for the event will be absorbed.

That said, maybe the Guru can now go home and find a parking place on a street that has a way of looking more like the North Pole than the rest of the neighborhood when a few flakes hit the ground.

The Guru returns with the Mock Bracket preview in a few hours, well, maybe a few hours plus.

-- Mel

(Guru's note: Since Kay Yow's passing, words of eloquence in her memory have been written and spoken with much more to come with the arrival of Pink Zone week in the fight against cancer. Before events of the season accelerate, the Guru thought it be appropriate to at least allow some stories of his relationship with the Hall of Fame North Carolina State coach over the years.)

By Mel Greenberg

When the funeral for North Carolina State Hall of Fame women’s basketball coach Kay Yow was recently held, some might have been surprised when she appeared in a video to say her farewell as part of a ceremony she meticulously planned in advance.

Though I was unable to attend, my reaction in reading the Associated Press account of the services was once again one of how well Yow could harness existing media technology to deliver her message.

Way back in Day One when I was organizing what became the Associated Poll, she was one of my first phone calls in assembling a voting board.

I remember her excitement over what she thought the venture would do for media coverage, thinking way ahead of where I was in the process.

In the won-loss records of positives in life against the negatives, Yow was an unbeaten champion.

And once she quickly got to know someone, they became part of her “family,” be it players, coaches, or even media members.

I remember my first trip to Raleigh back in 1976 when Kay couldn’t wait to introduce me to local sportswriter Mary Garber, a pioneer most definitely in the advancement of female membership in the media.

It’s ironic that Garber passed away a few months before Kay, but I’m sure the two have already had quite the reunion.

In the first season of the poll, North Carolina State hosted Immaculata, still a power at the time, in a game that was played on what became another rare snowy night in the history of the Tar Heel State.

Immaculate won, but Kay was on the phone early the following morning gushing over the hundreds of fans lined up in the foul weather the night before waiting to enter the arena. She was sure the poll had caused the heavy attendance.

I told her that her team had something to do with the crowd, also.

As Title IX helped bring increased support for women’s programs internally on collegiate campuses, Kay’s sports information directors through the years were always top notch.

The first couple of years when wire service coverage was virtually non-existent, the Wolfpack department worked the phones to various sites of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) tournament to get some results and detail and then fed them in my direction to produce roundup stories

Remember this was at a time when computers had yet to become commonplace, and words like fax, telecopier, modem, and internet had yet to enter the daily vocabulary.

Whenever someone phones here with some historical question regarding the rankings in what is now a mega-sized database, I always think of Kay.

Listen, at this point in time someone would have caught up and produced an overall rankings compiliation.

But after Year Five, Kay had her media person call to check on some historical data regarding N.C. State and the rankings. They were stunned to learn I had not kept track – it was enough of an effort just to produce a poll every week and at that time I was tied to several other duties at The Inquirer outside the sports department.

Kay called a while later to give me a soft, but stern, coach-player lecture.

“You’ve got to start keeping a history, Mel, everyone will be counting on your for that,” she said.

“Yes, Coach,” I replied.

She had good reason to care, by the way. Of the teams in the very first women’s poll in November, 1976, Maryland and North Carolina State lasted the longest in terms of consecutive weeks before dropping out at the same time.

“I feel like Kay and I have been together my entire career,” former Maryland coach Chris Weller said to me the day after Kay passed away as I was at the Terrapins-North Carolina game at College Park.

Weller related that she began to get calls from many of her former players after the news of Kay’s passing became public.

To finish the database story, fortunately, between archived copies of the paper and others who were keeping their own records – such as then UCLA assistant Colleen Matsuhara -- along with the fact that the total number of polls in a season were much less than today – I was able to find them all.

A few years later, the cyber-world began to appear and all the info was housed into an early database program. Remarkably, it survived and grew with every software evolvement to now appear in the 1,3000-plus records file in an excel program format.

Furthermore, some Geek friend at the paper was able to create a supplementary program that allows all the special data – Most No. 1s, most top 10s, etc. – that is produced today, but all of it in this particular file is owed to Kay’s lecture.

There were times when Kay thought I might have influence with her athletic department when she wanted to take some particular action and because her superiors and I had come to know each other off my trips to N.C. State games.

I remember one call I had gotten at the time the position Associate Head Coach was non-existent.

Kay wanted to elevate then-assistant Nora Lynn Finch, now the Atlantic Coast Conference head of women’s basketball, to the title Co-Head Coach.

Needless to say, there was resistance to that concept in the home office and Kay thought I might be able to provide some extra support.

“Mel, what is so difficult?” I remember Kay saying to me. “I coach the offense and Nora Lynn coaches the defense. So why can’t we be co-head coaches?”

Eventually, Nora Lynn was elevated as the Wolfpack’s senior women’s administrator and appropriately became the first chair of the NCAA women’s basketball committee in 1982.

In 1991, Kay was president of the WBCA, which was about to present its first media award at the Final Four in New Orleans.

Obviously, I had to be made aware of being the recipient so I would show up at the luncheon considering I was also in town to cover the tournament.

But apparently there was going to be more to the story, and all the while in the holding room, Kay was prancing around with this great little “I’ve got a secret” look that she couldn’t wait to spring on everyone during her presentation.

And so a while later, Kay had me at the podium, went on for a bit, well more than a bit, telling the Immaculata story and a few other things before pausing and then saying, “And we have another surprise.

“Everyone hereafter who wins this award will be receiving the WBCA Mel Greenberg Media Award.”

Needless to say, everything that had been assembled for the acceptance speech, was temporarily knocked from my mind. It still seems like yesterday, though, how overjoyed and excited she was.

I remember being more excited for her happiness then my actually receiving the honor.

Years later she had that same look at a front row seat at the Final Four when she was in on our secret plot to surprise her former player Debbie Antonelli, now an ESPN broadcaster, with the honor.

In 1988, I was sent out to Colorado Springs to collect material for the women’s basketball portion of our Olympic section – Kay was then the coach of the team.

At the end of each practice at the Air Force Academy, the players could be heard yelling “Oreos, Oreos.”

If the session went well, Yow’s players were given Oreo sandwich cookies.

“I don’t remember that exactly, but I do know Kay always had a bunch of goodies to motivate her players,” North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell, then an Olympic assistant, remembered.

When it came to winning the first gold medal without the associated Russian United States boycotts in 1980 and 1984, Kay’s team was a heavy favorite.

To get the job done, she had turned most of the way in Korea to a smaller lineup with recently-graduated Penn State all-American point guard Suzie McConnell-Serio running the offense.

But when the outcome was undecided late in the game, she went to veteran post star Anne Donovan, who had been on the bench, to enter the game and Donovan delivered with as few key rebounds and scores to put the gold safely into American hands.

Again, at the time of her USA involvement, Kay was still thinking about media.

“We have to win this, because people who don’t normally watch women’s basketball will be watching the Olympics,” she said. “If we do well, then perhaps we will begin to see more of our games on television.”

There was one memento she received after the Seoul games that delighted her.

Dick Engberg, who broadcasted the gold medal game, gave Kay a board with all his notes mounted.

She thought that was so special and said it was going to have a special place in her office.

I remember Kay was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and her patience at the morning press availability.

In most years, the media crowd usually flocks around the notable men's inductees.

But in wanting to be fair, they will stop by the table to speak with the women's inductee, but in doing so, some questions are asked that would cause many of the readers of the Guru's blog to, well, roll their eyes, to put it mildly.

The Guru was waiting in line to get some quick quotes of some historical recollections.

However, some of the aforementioned questions were offered from a few in front.

But the Guru remembers Kay answering each one straight up without one glance of negativity and treating each person approaching her as someone special.

A year ago when my mother passed away after a much shorter battle with cancer than Kay’s, one of the first cards we received came from her with a personal and moving note.

Kay did not speak of her own situation, but her words of comfort were remarkable and again another of those ongoing efforts she always made to consider those in constant contact with her as part of her family.

North Carolina State in AP Poll History

Having mentioned the poll database that Kay inspired, her is where she and the Wolfpack stand in Week No. 569.

On the all-time list of appearances by coaches with their teams, Yow is currently seventh at 326, although she will soon be topped by Connecticut’s Geno Auriemma, who is at 323.

Former Louisiana Tech head coach Leon Barmore, now a Baylor assistant, is at 325.

Virginia’s Debbie Ryan (308), and Ohio State’s Jim Foster (307) are next closest.

Former Auburn coach Joe Ciampi (290) is retired and North Carolina’s Sylvia Hatchell is next at 273.

The Wolfpack, who were recently passed by Oklahoma, are 23rd in Top Five appearances with 34, followed by Ohio State (29) and Notre Dame (28) next closest.

In Top 10 appearances, N.C. State is 18th at 133, just behind Texas Tech (134) and ahead of Auburn (127).

The all-time high is a No. 2 ranking, which occurred four times in 1977-78, and four more times in 1990-91.

The most recent Top Five appearance was a No. 3 on Jan. 10, 2000, and the most recent Top 10 ranking was 10th, December 3, 2001. The most recent overall ranking was 18th in the final poll of 2006-07 just before Yow’s team made a dramatic run to the Sweet 16.

-- Mel

By Mel Greenberg

PHILADELPHIA - Holy Family women's coach Mike McLaughlin, in his 14th season with the Tigers at his almater, reached 400 wins Tuesday night after a 64-47 victory over University of Sciences in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Conference game at the Bobby Morgan Arena in University of Science.

The 43-year-old McLauhglin (400-59), whose team competes in Division II, became the fastest women's coach at any level to reach 400 wins and also faster than any Division I men's coach.

It's possible that he might have also been quicker than other men's coaches in other divisions but the data is still under research.

Meanwhile, weather concerns and obligations to his dates with his history kept your Guru here instead of north at the UConn-Rutgers game in Hartford to cover McLaughlin's impending win.

Before you ask, the Guru did not have faith in that other milestone occurring to grab a plane to Oklahoma City Monday night.

The print story on Holy Family will be somewhere in the Philly.com sports site.

The Guru, at the hour, is still playing with plane fares to attend the NCAA mock bracket session Thursday and Friday in Indianapolis and does not plan to be in Knoxville, when Tennessee's favorite rival, as opposed to former rival, will try to prevent Pat Summitt's 1,000th win with the visit from Georgia and Women's Basketball Hall of Fame ('07) classmate of the Guru's Andy Landers.

Summitt, incidentally, got victory 400 in game number 510.

As for Tuesday's night's quick particulars, to steal from the Guru's own print copy:

McLaughlin’s parents were in the stands to watch their son’s achievement, as were his wife Ginny; daughters Courtney (15), whose birthday is next week; Kelsey (9), and son Michael (12).
With the win official, Kelsey jumped into her father’s arms before McLaughlin’s players surrounded him with a big hug.

Holy Family has dominated the CACC, winning 59 straight conference games.

The Tigers enjoyed one of their best seasons last year, going unbeaten until the NCAA II tournament regional final and finishing 32-1.

McLaughlin, after Tuesday's game: "I give our team a lot of credit,” McLaughlin said afterwards. “Our players knew they could be part of history, but they stayed focus on what we wanted to do. We tried to avoid this pre-talk of what could occur.

“They were really focused to make this happen.”

Christine McCollum scored 20 points for the Tigers (19-4, 12-0 CACC), while Lauren Peters and Melissa Brooks each added 15 points.

Allison Weiss scored 15 points for the Devils (9-9, 6-4), who were hounded into 22 turnovers compared to nine by Holy Family.

“I just told our team that those that came before them contributed to this moment and put them in position to be here for this moment for 400 victories,” McLaughlin said. “The players before laid the groundwork.”

The Guru has more planned to file in two other blogs later Tuesday night for those who might be reading this now.

-- Mel

(This is AP's coverage. More to come later -- Mel)

ASSOCIATED PRESS

GIBSONVILLE, N.C. -- North Carolina State women's basketball coach Kay Yow has been laid to rest a week after her death following a long fight against cancer.

Yow was buried Saturday in her hometown of Gibsonville, about 70 miles west of North Carolina State's campus in Raleigh. The Hall of Famer coached at nearby Elon for four years before taking over at N.C. State in 1975 and finishing her career with more than 700 career victories.

About 300 mourners attended the graveside service on a chilly and windy morning, including the Wolfpack team and coaching staff. Each placed a rose on Yow's casket, then boarded a bus for Sunday's game at Virginia Tech.

Gibsonville mayor Leonard Williams read a proclamation calling for flags to be lowered to half-staff for the day in Yow's memory.

The service capped an emotionally draining week for the Wolfpack. After her death last weekend, the team went to a mall Monday to choose clothes for Yow's funeral, a task interim coach Stephanie Glance said was easier to do together than individually.

The team returned to practice Tuesday, then attended a campus tribute ceremony at Reynolds Coliseum -- home of "Kay Yow Court" -- on Wednesday night. The next day, the team played its first game since her death, falling to Boston College 62-51.

On Friday, more than 1,400 mourners -- including Tennessee coach Pat Summitt and former NFL coach and N.C. State alumnus Bill Cowher -- attended Yow's funeral service at a church in Cary, just outside of Raleigh.

"We all have known this was coming and we've all known the life that Kay's lived," said Neil Whitaker, Yow's cousin and funeral director. "You move on, but there are things you have to keep in mind. You need to focus on what she wants us to focus on, and that's being the right kind of person and doing the right things and having a strong Christian faith."

Yow was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987, but led the U.S. Olympic women's team to a gold medal the following season. The disease recurred during the 2004-05 season, forcing to her to leave her team twice in past seasons to focus on treatment even as she raised research money and cancer awareness.

She took a four-game leave in December because she said she had very little energy, and announced shortly after the new year that she would not return this season. She soon entered a hospital and spent about a week there before she died at age 66.

Menwhile, teams across the country Saturday honored Yow, wearing pink ribbons and other attire as part of the ongoing fight against cancer with women's basketball programs supporting the fund begun in Yow's name a year ago by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA).

From pink whistles to pink warm-up shirts, Yow was honored at
women’s college basketball games around the country Saturday, the day
she was laid to rest.

Pink is commonly used by groups that try to raise awareness of the disease and
raise funds to help search for a cure.

Kansas and No. 11 Texas A&M wore pink shirts before their game at
College Station, Texas, and officials at the Rutgers-South Florida,
Oklahoma-Missouri, and Cincinnati-Notre Dame games all used pink
whistles.

“We do everything for her memory and in memory of those we have
lost and celebrating those who have survived and keeping the fight,”
said Kansas coach Bonnie Henrickson after a 73-60 loss to No. 11 Texas
A&M. “It’s her awareness, her public fight with that disease.

“She didn’t lose it, she beat it three times and I think she wins
because she’s created so much awareness and she was willing to step
out in the spotlight and speak to all of us who can do so much. And we
need to do more.”

The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association issued a waiver this
week to allow teams to wear pink game jerseys, headbands, and shooting
shirts to honor Yow until Feb. 22.

N.C. State wore pink trimmed uniforms bearing the name “Yow” on
the back and pink shoes before its game on Thursday against Boston
College. The Wolfpack also had a pink heart with her last name on it
attached to their jerseys.

Teams had already been given permission to wear pink during the
week of Feb. 13-22 as part of “The Pink Zone” to help raise awareness
for breast cancer.

“Kay has championed the cause. All we need to do is whatever we
can do,” said Texas A&M coach Gary Blair, who along with his coaching
staff wore the pink breast cancer ribbons upside down for Yow. “Even
in this tough economic environment we need to find a way to help. It’s
a win-win situation not just for cancer, but for what women’s
basketball can do.”

(Guru's Note: This is AP's coverage of North Carolina State Hall of Fame Women's Basketball Coach Kay Yow's Funeral.)

By AARON BEARD
AP Sports Writer

CARY, N.C. — Kay Yow didn’t ask one of her famous friends to speak
at her funeral. Instead, the longtime North Carolina State women’s
basketball coach had a message for them.
“And now I say farewell,” Yow said. “And it’s been a wonderful
journey, especially since the time I accepted Jesus as my lord and
savior.”
In a video played to the hundreds of fans and colleagues who
gathered Friday at a suburban Raleigh church for Yow’s funeral, she
thanked the legion of supporters who guided her through a two-decade
long fight with breast cancer and recounted with passion her deep
Christian faith.
“It has changed my life,” Yow said. “It has changed the life of
every person who has accepted him.”
Yow was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987, yet went on to lead
the U.S. Olympic team to the gold medal the next year. She won more
than 700 games in her career and was inducted into the Naismith Hall
of Fame in 2002.
But for many, Yow was best known for her unwavering resolve while
fighting cancer, which recurred during the 2004-05 season and had
lingered in the years since. She raised awareness and money for
research while staying with her team through the debilitating effects
of the disease and chemotherapy treatments.
She had to take a four-game leave in December due to what was
described as extremely low energy. She announced shortly after the new
year that she would not return this season. She soon entered a
hospital for treatment and spent about a week there before she died
last weekend. She was 66.
“Her battle with breast cancer was never about herself,” said
Megan Smith, an employee at the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer fund in Atlanta,
before the funeral. “She was such a courageous and humble person at
the same time.”
UConn coach Geno Auriemma, North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell
and Miami coach Katie Meier stopped at a viewing for Yow, while Duke
coach Joanne P. McCallie and her team, Tennessee coach Pat Summitt,
Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer and Texas coach Gale Goestenkors, the
former coach at Duke, arrived early for the service.
Others paying respects included former N.C. State football coach
Chuck Amato and current coach Tom O’Brien, and N.C. State alumnus and
former NFL coach Bill Cowher. Yow will be buried Saturday in her
hometown of Gibsonville.
But none of Yow’s famous friends were slated to speak at a service
she designed.
“She did not want to show any kind of favoritism because there was
just none in her heart. None,” the Rev. Mitchell Gregory, her pastor
at Cary Alliance Church.
Retired professor Janie Brown, the former chair of the physical
education department at Elon University, remembered speaking to Yow a
couple of years ago for a project on the history of women’s sports.
She said Yow spoke about balancing teaching, academic advising and
even the little things like taping her players’ ankles.
“I think that was always her attitude. Whatever the situation, you
deal with it. That’s what she’s done,” Brown said. “I’m a good friend,
but I’m also a great admirer of what she does. And I think we would
hope we could live a life with that kind of influence.”
Friday’s events are part of an emotionally draining week for the
players and coaches she left behind at N.C. State. On Monday, the team
went to an area mall to pick out clothes for Yow’s funeral, a task
that interim coach Stephanie Glance said was easier to do together
than individually.
The team returned to practice Tuesday, then attended the campus
tribute ceremony at Reynolds Coliseum, home of “Kay Yow Court,”
Wednesday night. The next day, the team played its first game since
her death, falling to Boston College 62-51.
At each public event, there have been numerous fans wearing pink —
the color of breast cancer awareness — and eager to share their
stories of how Yow inspired them while battling the disease.
She spent 38 season as a coach, 34 with N.C. State. She won four
ACC tournament championships, earned 20 NCAA tournament bids and
reached the Final Four in 1998.
Yow took a 16-game leave to focus on her health during the 2006-07
season. Her return that year sparked an emotional late-season run to
the NCAA tournament’s round of 16.
She also served on the board of the V Foundation for Cancer
Research, which was founded by ESPN and her friend and colleague,
former N.C. State men’s coach Jim Valvano, who died of cancer in 1993.

(Guru's Note: The Guru's Own Commentary Will Come After Attending the Maryland-North Carolina Game Sunday Night. But this is another aspect of her wonderlife and career worth noting for the moment.).

By Mel Greenberg

PHILADELPHIA - In the long and illustrious career of North Carolina State's Kay Yow, whose Hal of Fame career as the legendary Wolfpack women's basketball coach ended Saturday when cancer claimed her at age 66 after a lengthy battle, the Philadelphia area was practically a second home.

Over the years her teams played three of the Big Five schools -- Temple, St. Joseph's and Villanova with the later two also matchup in NCAA tournaments.

One of Yow's earliest recruiting coups occurred when she was able to land Linda Page, who broke Wilt Chamberlain's high school record in scoring over 100 points in a game.

Page helped N.C. State quickly become a national women's basketball power.

"When it comes to coaches, Yow was one of the great ones," said Mike Flynn, the head of the nationally-regarded Blue Star AAU program who had Page as a member of the Philadelphia Belles and remembers the early trips here Yow made to evaluate the local high school superstar.

Yow also had strong contacts across the river in South Jersey and years later matched up against two local products on the sidelines -- Bernadette McGlade, now commissioner of the Atlantic Ten, and her sister Agnus Berenato, now coach of the Pittsburgh Panthers.

In the early 1990s N.C. State and Virginia, which had attracted Dawn Staley, matched up in some classic ACC confrontations including a triple-overtime encounter won by the Cavaliers.

After Staley became a head coach at Temple, the Owls travelled to Raleigh in Staley's first season and Temple lost in the closing minutes on a night that Yow reached her 600th career win.

Both coaches jokingly noted that the win against Staley was the price for Virginia's win in that game or Yow would have reached 600 one game before Temple's visit in the winter of 2000.

Another local star in later years who helped N.C. State was Gillian Goring, who had played at Germantown Academy and after several stops, joined the Wolfpack because she just knew she had to play for Yow.

Goring, drafted by the WNBA's Washington Mystics, was one of the key players helping the Wolfpack's fabled run to the NCAA's Sweet 16 in 2007 when Yow returned to the bench after missing 16 games because of her dramatic fight against breast cancer.

Yow was one of the charter voters when the Associated Press women's poll was launched in 1976 and her Wolfpack team along with Atlantic Coast rival Maryland were the last two of the teams from the very first preseason poll who stayed in the rankings the longest until dropping out the same week several years later.

Rutgers Hall of Fame coach C. Vivian Strnger issued a statement on Yow's passing Saturday prior to the Scarlet Knights' game against DePaul in Chicago.

“I am deeply saddened by the passing of Kay Yow. She taught all of us how to handle personal battles with a great deal of grace and acceptance and by believing that God would see us through. She rarely complained, as most of us would or ever wonder why this had happened to her. When I myself was diagnosed with breast cancer, Kay was one of the handful of people I told. I asked her why me? Kay was the person I could best identify with and knew would understand. And she did. I admired that she made her life so open and one day I hoped to do the same to help other women.

"Kay showed us how to handle one of the most difficult things-cancer-in the most dignified and courageous manner. She taught us what it is to have real passion for the sport, any sport. She continued to fight and went about doing what she loved best: coaching. She used every ounce of energy she had left to give to those young ladies. She was and will always be an inspiration to so many people.

"We have lost a pioneer and an ambassador of women’s basketball. I have lost a friend. My thoughts and prayers are with her family, both the Yow family and also the NC State family.”

On Saturday, both Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw and Villanova coach Harry Perretta commented on Yow after the Wildcats upset the No. 13 Irish at Villanova.

"She was someone everyone respected and admired for the way she always handled herself throughout her life," McGraw said.

"And I think it's a great loss for the entire basketball committee and our thoughts and prayers are with her."

Perretta had a long-standing friendship with Yow over three decades.

"I got a phone call at 8:30 this morning and hadn't seen anything on the ticker," Perretta said.

"I knew she wasn't doing well, because I had taked to Debbie Antonelli," Perretta said of a former Wolfpack player who now broadcasts games on ESPN and other networks.

"You couldn't get any information how Kay was doing, but I knew she wasn't doing well.

"I got the message to Sister Rose Maria, I called her mother," he said of former Wildcat star Shelly Pennefather, now a cloistered nun who played for Villanova against the Wolfpack.

"It's just a said thing, so many years she fought that disease," Perretta said. "I knew her pretty well.

"It was interesting, when I spoke to her in August, it was really like unbelievable, she was so calm. She said, `You know Harry, medicine can't cure me now, I need a miracle," he related.

"But she wasn't afraid. She wasn't scared. It was like inspiring and it's really sad. But from what I heard she was in a lot of pain so I'm happy she won't have to suffer anymore."

Perretta would like to attend the viewing Friday and funeral Saturday in North Carolina but like many coaches, he may not be able to do so because of his team's schedule.

"What they should do is either have a memorial service at the Final Four in St. Louis, or a week after and right before recruiting starts again, have it in Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh so every coach can attend."

Late Saturday, an email arrived with a reaction from USA basketball, which had Yow in its family off her coaching the U.S. to a gold medal in the 1988 Olympics.

That team had former Penn State coach Suzie McConnell-Serio, now coaching Duquesne and who was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame last spring.

"USA Basketball is mourning the loss today of Kay Yow, a friend, coach, mentor, leader and pioneer in women's basketball. Her accomplishments were many within the USA Basketball family. As a member of seven USA Basketball staffs over a 10-year span, the pinnacle of her USA career came when she led the 1986 USA World Championship and 1988 U.S. Olympic Teams to gold medals. Kay has been an inspiration both on and off the court throughout her storied career. However, it has been during her struggles with cancer that Kay has inspired us most. All of us in the USA Basketball family will miss her wonderful smile, personality and strength of character."

Kay Yow's History with USA Basketball:

As A USA Basketball Head Coach:
Event Medal Record
1988 Olympic Games Gold Medal 5-0
1986 World Championship Gold Medal 7-0
1986 Goodwill Games Gold Medal 5-0
1981 World University Games Silver Medal 6-1

-- Mel

(Guru's note: Here's an AP roundup of reaction to the passing of Hall of Famer and NC State coaching legend Kay Yow. I'll be back with more after the desk shift off emails that have been flooding the in-box, for good reason, Saturday. Some of thiose comments are in this AP story).

By AARON BEARD
AP Sports Writer

RALEIGH, N.C. — Sylvia Hatchell worked as an assistant to Kay Yow
in the Olympics and coached against her for more than 20 years in an
Atlantic Coast Conference rivalry of next-door neighbor programs.
She can’t imagine what it will be like to not see her friend on
the sideline for North Carolina State again.
“Her presence and competitive spirit will be greatly missed in the
ACC,” the North Carolina coach said in a statement after Yow’s death
Saturday following a two-decade fight against cancer. “I don’t know of
anyone in the world of women’s basketball that doesn’t owe a debt of
gratitude to Kay.”
Yow’s death prompted an outpouring of condolences and
recollections, especially from those in the coaching community who
witnessed her long battle with breast cancer. Nearly all remembered
Yow’s grace and courage as she fought the debilitating effects of the
disease, which she was diagnosed with in 1987 and recurred during the
2004-05 season.
She won 737 games in 38 years on the sideline and served on the
board of The V Foundation for Cancer Research. It was founded by ESPN
and former N.C. State men’s coach Jim Valvano, her close friend who
died of cancer in 1993.
Duke men’s coach, Mike Krzyzewski, who’s been active in Coaches
vs. Cancer for years, credited Yow for the “amazing awareness” she
brought to the fight against cancer.
“The really great thing about her was she had the courage to fight
the battle in public,” Krzyzewski said after his second-ranked Blue
Devils beat Maryland on Saturday. “As a result, she not only fought
for her, she fought for everyone who has cancer or will have cancer
and the families involved.”
Duke women’s coach, Joanne P. McCallie, remembered Yow for her
courage, particularly in how open she was as she fought cancer.
“I’ve never known a woman to share her story so eloquently under
such incredible conditions,” she said. “A lot of people are afraid,
they’re afraid to share their story. And Kay was never afraid.
In partnership with The V Foundation, Yow joined efforts with the
Women’s Basketball Coaches Association to launch the Kay Yow/WBCA
Cancer Fund. Tennessee coach Pat Summitt said getting the fund going
“put Kay on a mission.”
“She fought for cancer funding the same way she fought the
disease, positive and determined every step of the way,” Summitt said
in a statement.
Debbie Antonelli, who played for Yow in the mid-1980s, knew her
for more than 30 years and said Yow’s influence went far beyond how
she played the game.
“She’s impacted everything about my personal life, including how I
raise my children,” said Antonelli, a color analyst for FOX. “She gave
a lifetime of service to her faith and to her family and her friends
and certainly to all her former players.”
As news of Yow’s death spread, several schools held a moment of
silence to honor her before games, including the N.C. State-Boston
College, Maryland-Duke, Tennessee-Memphis and Connecticut-Notre Dame
men’s games. There was also a moment of silence before the Kansas
State-Kansas women’s game, where Jayhawks coach Bonnie Henrickson
described Yow as “an unbelievable presence in our profession.”
“You would try to cheer her up and 75 percent of the time, she was
trying to cheer you up. It was never about her,” Henrickson said. “It
was never about her battle. ... I’ve never heard anybody say a bad
word about that woman. And in this business, that doesn’t happen. I
promise you that doesn’t happen.”
Yow’s absence will be most felt by coaches in the ACC, where Yow
has been a fixture for more than three decades. Georgia Tech coach
MaChelle Joseph said Yow “represented what was good about our game,”
while Clemson coach and former Wolfpack player Cristy McKinney
expressed some relief along with sadness that her mentor “is in a
better place” after such a long, painful fight.
As ACC commissioner John Swofford said in a statement, “What an
impact Kay had on so many.”
“She was kind of the soul of our coaching group in the ACC,” said
Virginia coach Debbie Ryan, who has had her own battle with pancreatic
cancer. “It’s just a very, very sad day for all of us.”
———

AP Sports Writers Doug Tucker in Lawrence, Kan., Charles Odum in
Atlanta and Hank Kurz Jr. in Richmond, Va., contributed to this
report.