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Rutgers Out Of A Rut

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 28, 2008

The Rutgers women's team has been all about basketball lately.

Since suffering a 49-44 loss to Duke on Dec. 6, Rutgers has won 12 straight, including seven consecutive conference victories.

It was only a couple of months ago that basketball, unfortunately, wasn't the focus.

Instead of relishing in its Final Four runner-up finish to Tennessee last April, the Rutgers women's basketball team spent its offseason surrounded by controversy.

Coach C. Vivian Stringer and her players were forced into the national spotlight, not because of their performance on the basketball court, but because a radio host decided to take a jab at their appearances.

Rutgers barely had time to celebrate its Final Four run when Don Imus referred to the players as "nappy-headed hos" on his nationally syndicated program. Imus was later fired, while the team went on a whirlwind tour of radio and television appearances, including "Oprah," to defend its honor.

Now that the Scarlet Knights are suddenly drawing comparisons to top-ranked Connecticut, it shows just how far the No. 5 Rutgers program has come. The two teams meet on Feb. 5 and one recent common opponent, Cincinnati, got some perspective on which team will prevail.

Rutgers defeated the Bearcats 71-41 Tuesday night, while UConn defeated them 86-49 on Jan. 19.

"UConn is high-octane, explosive in transition," Cincinnati coach J. Kelley Hall said. "Rutgers pounds the ball hard. They don't make a lot of mistakes. It's going to be an interesting matchup.

"I really think Rutgers can defend them. I believe that."

PROJECTED REGIONAL SEEDS

Staff writer Katherine Smith takes an early look at how the NCAA Tournament field might develop and which teams could wind up in Tampa:

Greensboro

1. UConn (19-0)

2. LSU (16-3)

3. Wyoming (18-1)

4. Ohio State (15-4)

Wyoming recorded a school-record 12th consecutive victory with its 68-55 win against Colorado State last week, solidifying its sleeper team status.

New Orleans

1. Tennessee (17-1)

2. Baylor (18-1)

3. Stanford (17-3)

4. Old Dominion (16-3)

Stanford's victory against California has the Cardinal back on track in the Pac-10 race.

Spokane

1. UNC (18-2)

2. California (17-3)

3. Oklahoma (13-4)

4. W. Virginia (16-3)

Oklahoma's seesaw season doesn't get any easier with Texas A&M, Baylor and Oklahoma State awaiting the Sooners next month.

Oklahoma City

1. Rutgers (17-2)

2. Maryland (22-2)

3. Duke (15-4)

4. Georgia (16-4)

Rutgers is rewarded with a No. 1 seed thanks in part to its consistent play and Maryland's double-overtime stumble against North Carolina.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Tennessee at Duke

ESPN2, tonight at 7

No. 10 Duke (15-4) has struggled to find its identity under new coach Joanne P. McCallie. A victory against No. 2-ranked Tennessee would certainly define the Blue Devils as a team to be reckoned with.

Tennessee (17-1) has outscored its SEC opponents by an average of 28 points in its last five games. Since losing to Stanford, 73-69 on Dec. 22, the Lady Vols have posted seven-consecutive victories, which includes five straight conference wins.

Both teams made an early season appearance in Tampa in a doubleheader, with Duke defeating USF and Tennessee narrowly escaping Oklahoma. Whichever team wins tonight will certainly pave the way for a return trip.

FINAL FOUR MOMENT

Tampa plays host to the Women's Final Four on April 6 and 8. General tickets are sold out for the games at the St. Pete Times Forum, but there will be plenty of other activities surrounding the event for basketball fans to enjoy.

This week's Final Four memory:

Tennessee 93,

Louisiana Tech 75

March 29, 1998

Kansas City, Mo.

Kemper Arena

MVP Chamique Holdsclaw's 25 points and 10 rebounds helped the Lady Vols win their third consecutive NCAA title. Tennessee led 55-32 at the half, the most points at a Final Four in a half. The win capped a 39-0 season.

SLAM DUNK

The Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced its winners for the 2008 WBCA Superlatives for NCAA Division I and Tennessee nearly swept the categories.

Tennessee earned nods for best pep band, best community support, best tradition, best host school and best coaching combo (Pat Head Summitt and Holly Warlick). Summitt also was selected as most competitive coach. Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale was selected as the most fun to watch and most inspirational went to N.C. State's Kay Yow, who is battling cancer.

AIR BALL

The WBCA also recognized Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma as the most likely to get a technical foul.

BY THE NUMBERS

8

Oklahoma State's consecutive win streak snapped by Texas in a 70-63 upset Wednesday night. Brittainey Raven's 19 points helped lead the unranked Longhorns over the No. 14 Cowgirls.

39

Margin of victory in Oklahoma's 78-39 rout of Texas Tech Wednesday night. It was Texas Tech's worst loss since Jan. 11, 1990, when it fell 95-54 to Louisiana Tech. It was also the Lady Raiders' lowest point total since scoring 37 in a loss to Iowa State on Jan. 2, 2000.

100

Career victories for Nebraska coach Connie Yori with the Cornhuskers' 73-60 victory against Texas A&M Wednesday night. It was Nebraska's 12th consecutive home win and the Aggies' fourth loss in five games.

COURTSIDE

On Wednesday night, Baylor coach Kim Mulkey got her 200th victory, becoming the sixth-fastest women's Division I coach to reach the 200 mark. It was also Baylor's 10th consecutive victory.

Mulkey, who led the Lady Bears to the 2005 NCAA title, talked to The Tampa Tribune about the milestone and this year's squad.

What does 200 victories mean to you?

I'm not sure what it means or how I'm supposed to feel. I guess I have a job to do. I'm paid to coach basketball games and educate and graduate young people and hope that maybe that's what it means. That we're winning enough basketball games and we're doing something right.

Do you remember your very first game?

Honestly, I really can't. I've read about it. You have so many tense moments in your career that I can't go back and remember that.

I'm sure you remember your 2005 NCAA championship game. Your program is not that far removed from winning that title. What ultimately did that victory do for your program?

The title exposed our basketball in a positive light. It exposed our university in a positive light. It opened doors in recruiting. It allows more money to be given to Baylor University from alumni. It probably increased enrollment. Any time you're on a national stage of that magnitude, positives trickle down from it.

How often have you watched replays of that game and how long did you allow yourself to celebrate the win?

I haven't watched a replay of the game. I've seen highlights through the banquets and stuff like that. But to sit down and watch it from start to finish, I've not done that. I certainly will one day. We celebrated it for a long time, as we should. It's a memory and a moment that none of us will ever forget that love Baylor University. But, a new year starts the following year and you have to move on. We just keep plugging away.

Baylor seems to be on a roll this season. What do you attribute to the success you're having?

It's the players. Any success a coach has or any wins a coach has, it's attributed to the players. I've been very fortunate to be able to bring players in that understand what hard work is and understand that they're going to get a great education here, play in a great conference in front of a lot of fans and just get after it and play as hard as they can.

Your five starters are each averaging double figures in scoring. What does that say about your team?

We're very balanced. We don't have one go-to player. We have several players that gives us something. When one is maybe having an off night, you know you have others that can pick up the slack. We just have a very balanced team.

How much do you talk to your team about ending its season here in Tampa?

When you set the bar high as we do every year and you experience a national championship and Sweet 16 berths, you become a little greedy. You want to get that all the time. But at the same time, realistically as a coach, you have to assess your team and figure out if a Final Four is a realistic goal for that particular team that year. I think that this team, they just want to take one game at a time and see if we can pile on enough wins to vie for a conference championship and then get to the NCAA Tournament. There are only six games you have to win to win it all and four games to get to a Final Four and anything's possible. You have to stay away from injuries. You have to have a little luck and you've got to be playing your best basketball.

Katherine Smith

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