TEN QUESTIONS WITH...

In May, you were named the 11th women’s basketball head coach in UB history. While going through the process of getting to know more about UB and its athletics program, what stuck out in your mind that made Buffalo a good fit for you?
There were a lot of things. There is a history of success in the women’s basketball program at UB. Knowing the program has the potential to be a success is important for me.

In looking at the potential for recruiting student-athletes to Buffalo, one of the things that impressed me was the number of majors available at the University. That’s a real plus because we can appeal to many different areas of interest for potential student-athletes. Those were two of the most important things as I did research on the University. The diversity was an important aspect.

Even though the Bulls struggled last season, the team does return four starters next year, including MAC Freshman of the Year Heather Turner. The team also features Brooke Meunier, who averaged more than 10 points per game, and Stephanie Bennett, who played point guard during her rookie campaign. Are you encouraged by the group you have to build with?
I’m very encouraged by the returning players and also encouraged by the reports of the incoming freshmen. They offer good balance to the returning players. I’m very impressed that Heather was selected Freshman of the Year given their record as a team. Brooke, as the only senior on the team, we will rely on not only for her scoring abilities but also her leadership abilities. Stephanie has a year of substantial experience under her belt and that will be helpful for us because you need an experienced point guard running the show.

Your coaching record is filled with some impressive highs, as you took both Temple and Minnesota to the NCAA Tournament and coached the WNBA Cleveland Rockers to the Eastern Conference Championship in 1998. What do you think all those teams had in common that made them successful?
Chemistry. That’s it. They had great chemistry. They were teams that worked very hard. Each of those teams understood what was required to be good and the players had the willingness to put in the time to be at the top of the conference.

In 1969, while playing at West Chester University near Philadelphia, you played on an undefeated national champion team. What was that experience like?
Phenomenal. It was absolutely one of my career highlights as a player. It was the first organized women’s basketball national championship, which made it even more special. We played in front of a packed house and generated a lot more media attention than we ever imagined. For me personally, it was a thrill to be a part of that experience.

At Minnesota, you coached a national player of the year in Carol Ann Shudlick. How much of a special thing was it to know that you were working with one of the best players in the nation on a daily basis?
Carol Ann was a very special player. She really exemplified all the things that you hope for in an elite student-athlete. She not only was a great athlete, but a great student. She applied herself in the classroom, so I never had to worry about that. For me, it’s always an honor to work with players of that caliber and certainly an honor to work with Carol Ann.

You’ve also coached a couple teams that have struggled, including your final seasons in Minnesota and Cleveland. What did coaching those struggling programs mean to you?
You know, my team at Minnesota, my last year there was one of my favorite teams. They didn’t win a lot of games but they conquered a lot of adversity. We had lost six key players from that team that year through injury, so the squad was pretty much decimated. The players came to practice every day and worked extremely hard. They really did overachieve individually. They reached their potential and I don’t think there’s anything more gratifying as a coach than to work with a group of young ladies who are willing to work hard enough to be the best they can be even though they had difficulty winning in the conference. Most of those players remaining on the team that year were role players. They were thrust into starting roles and did the best they could, so I was proud of them.

My last season with the Rockers, our starting point guard was lost to injury and our center didn’t return. That was a disappointing season for all of us.

Out of all the coaches you have gotten the chance to work with, both as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach, who has left the biggest impression on you?
I think (Temple men’s basketball head coach) John Chaney. He and the late Jim Maloney, who was an assistant coach at Temple. They both were really open to sharing the X’s and O’s with me. I was new as a college coach (when hired as Temple’s women’s basketball coach) and they took personal time to spend with me and help me learn as a college coach. I really appreciated both of them and I learned a lot from both of them.

While at West Chester University, which is now a Division II school, you excelled in field hockey, women’s basketball and women’s lacrosse. Today, in Division I colleges, most players have to focus on one sport, but how do you think playing three sports in college helped you develop as an athlete and a person?
It created discipline. It helped me to stay focused. I think those are things that as a coach, you have to have. Certainly going from one sport to the next as a college athlete, you had to learn or I wouldn’t have been able to do that.

As president of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association in 1995, you said in an Associated Press article that the main goals were to increase television exposure and to ensure that Title IX provisions stayed in tact as well as pay equity. In the past 10 years, how much do you think women’s basketball has progressed in those areas?
I think it’s progressed tremendously in those areas. We still have some progress to make. There is still some progress to be made but it has been constant. We have made some strides in those areas.

You’ve held down coaching assignments in Cleveland and Minneapolis as a head coach, but, after five years in South Carolina and Washington D.C., are you really prepared for a winter in the Queen City?
Absolutely. I am ready. It’s like being on a long vacation to be in the south for four seasons - in terms of the weather, not the job. When I was in Minneapolis, I became accustomed to snowy winters. In my first year in Minnesota, it snowed 34 inches on Halloween, so I can adjust pretty quickly.

“The 10 Questions With…” feature is compiled by Joe Guistina.