NCAA: Pac-10
Chiney Ogwumike Personifies "Exceptional Character" At Gatorade Athlete Of The Year Luncheon
by Q McCall on Jul 16, 2010 2:36 PM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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Within a few minutes of chatting with 2010 Gatorade Girls High School Athlete of the Year Chiney Ogwumike after the Gatorade Athlete of the Year Luncheon in Los Angeles on the afternoon before the ESPY awards, the differences between her and her sister Nneka -- whom she will join this fall at Stanford University -- became a bit more concrete.
As many women's basketball fans may already may be aware, Nneka was described in a New York Times article earlier this year as a player still critiqued for passivity, whereas Chiney is considered a more aggressive player. Having spoken with Nneka in a phone interview prior to Chiney winning the 2009-10 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year, that difference in basketball styles is also evident in their career paths: as Nneka told the Times earlier this year she loves to talk and wants to be a lawyer. Yet she not only loves to talk, but does so with an affable intensity and vibrant sincerity that is almost disarming, but supported by a steady focus on the matter at hand, even as she discussed the rather ordinary task of choosing her major after being nationally honored as an extraordinary student-athlete.
"I'm interested in Law and Business, but I'm also interested in Communications," said Ogwumike, in an almost rehearsed tone, indicative of how well-thought out her plans are relative to her peers. "So I hope to get something called a JD/MBA after graduating school where you get a law and business degree in three years. So that's the plan right now, but I hear that changes when to college."
However, it was not only the vibe she seemed to exude as she rotated around to talk to various media members after the luncheon, but more specifically a level of charisma well beyond that of her exceptionally talented peers, including 2010 Gatorade Boys High School Athlete of the Year, Brandon Knight, who is headed to Kentucky to fill John Wall's spot.
"He's a quiet kid," said Ogwumike, while leaning in closer and whispering about Knight -- a friend who she met at the 2010 McDonald's All-American game -- who was standing a few feet behind her during our interview. "And I'm not the quiet kid so we just hit it off and it was a really great experience to see him win and know him previously and see his family. It's just a great day."
Yet despite the differences in personality, the thing that both 2010 Gatorade Athletes of the Year have in common -- and likewise, Chiney and her sister Nneka -- what they both demonstrate is Gatorade's emphasis on honoring student-athletes who manage to do more than excel on the field.
A few questions: What is going on at Oregon State University?
by Q McCall on Jun 4, 2010 5:00 PM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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The best response to Sunday's article in the Oregonian about the "culture of fear" that recently departed women's basketball coach LaVonda Wagner created at Oregon State came from Sue at the blog They're Playing basketball:
They're Playing Basketball: More on Oregon State
I'm not sure why this is still being brought up, unless Oregonlive has a secret wish to get Oregon State Coach LaVonda Wagner fired, but here's another piece on the embattled head of the program.
My initial reaction to the article was to ignore it for the same reason. Then I realized it was a front page story and was just confused. Of course, Wagner was then dismissed two days later making the article almost seem like a deliberate smear campaign prior to the announcement, as Sue alluded to.
After poking around a bit and reading the articles that have come out in the wake of Wagner's departure, I am left with a number of questions. This is not at all to defend Wagner or even suggest she was unjustly fired -- she clearly made some mistakes and her 2009-10 record was certainly not stellar. It's the situation in its entirety that just looks bizarre.
Kate Lanz Transfers from Oregon State: "It wasn't a positive environment"
by Q McCall on Apr 19, 2010 2:28 AM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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Michelle Smith suggested that Talisa Rhea wasn't the only player who wanted out of Oregon State and now we have confirmation of that rumor as freshman guard Kate Lanz has requested and received a release from the program.
Women's basketball: Kate Lanz to leave Beavers | OregonLive.com
"I decided to leave because for me to be successful I needed to be in an environment that was positive and it wasn't a positive environment," Lanz said. "I needed to make a change."
Lanz was certainly not as productive a player as Rhea, but her statement might help to explain why Rhea left and certainly lends credence to the notion that something is not quite right with the program.
Update - 4/21/10: Statement from the Oregon State athletic director about transfers
Related Links:
Why Rhea’s Transfer is Exciting for SeattleU & Troubling for Slumping Oregon State
On CGB's Summary of "Cal v. Miami WNIT Championship Game Photo Essay 4.3.10 Parts I & II"
by Q McCall on Apr 6, 2010 5:09 PM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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I confess: I might be a little bit more excited than most people about Cal's WNIT championship because I'm both a Berkeley native and have family that work in the system of furloughs. I remember the NIT Cal won with Geno Carlisle and Cal is now the 8th school to have won both tournaments, for whatever that's worth.
But even if Cal's championship just makes you yawn, TwistNHook's two-part photo essay of his experience at Haas Pavilion (posted at SBN's CaliforniaGoldenBlogs in two parts) is absolutely phenomenal (assuming that you can forgive his ethnocentric taunts of a Miami player in Part II).
How Pohlen Contributed to Stanford's Final Four Win Despite Poor Shooting
by Q McCall on Apr 5, 2010 8:45 AM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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When Stanford University visited the University of Washington about halfway through Pac-10 conference play this year, I decided to keep track of something different: the number of times point guard Jeannette Pohlen drove inside the three point line.
I had watched her for a number of games before that and was struck by the fact that she seemed to do nothing more than dribble the ball up court and just stand at the top of the key swinging the ball. So I vividly recall that against Washington - and granted, it was a sloppy game - she crossed the three point line twice in the entire game, excluding fast breaks. Even on fast breaks, it looked like she tried to spend as little time in the paint as possible.
The point is not that Pohlen is a bad point guard, by any means -- among the most impressive things about her performance against Washington is that she was very decisive and just whipped the ball to the open player, acknowledging that one of the best ways to wear down a defense is to make them pay for leaving players open. Nor is it that I ever felt Pohlen was incapable of driving to the basket - in fact, playing for a team like Stanford, opting to simply bring the ball across mid-court, initiate the offense, and then just swing the ball is probably a good point guard decision.
The point is that she almost never even attempted to attack the basket and yet it struck me as odd because it always seemed that she was skilled enough to do it more.
So while on one hand her game-winning fast break layup against Xavier University in the Sacramento Regional Final might have justifiably struck some as a departure from what they expect from Pohlen, on the other hand that was exactly what I was waiting to see from her. As Sports Illustrated's Ann Killian wrote on Saturday, it's less of an unlikely breakout performance from Pohlen and more a matter of her demonstrating the full range of what she's capable of contributing to a basketball team.
In last night's 73-66 Final Four victory over Oklahoma University that earned Stanford the right to challenge undefeated University of Connecticut in the National Championship, Pohlen - and in particular, her ability to drive and create opportunities for herself and others - might have been a more significant factor in Stanford's victory than people have recognized.
Ogwumike on Stanford: "We’re not complacent with where we are"
by Q McCall on Mar 27, 2010 9:00 AM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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Sitting down for my evening coffee (fix) yesterday, I came across two articles that revolved around the significance of 1985 to women's basketball.
The first was an article at Courant.com about University of Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma arriving in Storrs in the spring of 1985, already intent on making women's basketball history.
UConn Softball Coach Has Seen Basketball's Rise Under Geno - Courant.com
Geno Auriemma, brimming with youthful enthusiasm, recited his plans for the UConn women's basketball program not long after arriving in Storrs in the spring of 1985. The Huskies would not only compete at a high level, the new coach said, they would sell tickets. They would fill the Field House with fans, Auriemma promised.
The second was an article from the Star-Ledger about Rutgers coach and then-Ohio State University coach Tara VanDerveer actually making women' basketball history with the first-ever advance sellout on February 3, 1985 before Auriemma even had an opportunity to wax improbable about making UConn relevant.
On one level, I suppose it's difficult for me to really put these two events in context beyond the information provided in the articles -- in 1985 the highlight of my days was watching GI Joe and Transformers back-to-back and then seeing how quickly I could change the channel before enduring the Laverne & Shirley theme song (I hated it for unknown personal reasons).
However, given that most people assume that Auriemma and Vanderveer are on a collision course to meet in the National Championship twenty-five years later, it's interesting to reflect on the potential significance of this game to women's basketball history.
Almost as much as people assume that UConn will dominate all challengers on their way to the championship, people assume that the final victim will be Stanford. And although the momentum UConn has built only seems to be growing with each successive victory in their 74-game win streak, Stanford doesn't intend to relent in their second chance to stop this runaway train. Anything less than winning the championship would be a disappointment for 2010 Pac-10 Player of the Year Nneka Ogwumike.
"When you're there, why stop," asked Ogwumike during an interview with Swish Appeal on Thursday, laughing when asked about the team's expectations if they met UConn a second time. "It's not just getting there, it's winning the whole thing."
Of course after being thoroughly outplayed in the second half against UConn back in December, a win would essentially require that Stanford has improved at a rate beyond that of UConn in the same period. It's a difficult task, but one of the things that might have quietly defined Stanford's season.
"We're not complacent with where we are - we're getting better and better," said Ogwumike. "I think we're doing a really good job of progressing into the team we want to."
Chiney & Nneka Ogwumike Become First Siblings to Win Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year
by Q McCall on Mar 25, 2010 4:27 PM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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When 2010 Parade High School Player of the Year Chiney Ogwumike (Cy-Fair High/Houston, TX) arrives at Stanford this fall, she and sister Nneka - 2010 Pac-10 Player of the Year - will embark upon a journey to become the best sibling duo ever to play Division I basketball together.
For now, the family will have to "settle" for making a different type of history.
Chiney was named the 2009-10 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year today adding that award to her previous Gatorade honor of Gatorade State Girls Basketball Player of the Year for Texas. With the award, the sisters become the only sibling duo to ever win the national title -- male or female -- in the history of the program for any sport (Nneka won in 2008).
"There have been I think 214 people that have won," said Nneka in a phone interview with Swish Appeal an hour prior to Chiney receiving the award. "And out of those 214 only two of those are siblings and I think that's cool that we're the first siblings ever. And that's a really great accomplishment. Winning Gatorade alone is amazing. To be able to share it with my sibling is even better."
Evaluating Pac-10 WNBA Draft Prospects: Coach, Fan, & Statistical Analysis
by Q McCall on Mar 25, 2010 3:24 PM EDT
in NCAA: Pac-10
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The Pac-10 had a down year placing only two teams in the NCAA tournament and most people justifiably assume similar results for the WNBA draft: one first round prospect in Stanford center Jayne Appel.
However, there are other players from the Pac-10 who have WNBA aspirations, though some may be more realistic than others.
The Minnesota Lynx recently launched their WNBA draft site and asked Swish Appeal for contributions on two Pac-10 players who are considered among the top 15 prospects: Appel and California's Alexis Gray-Lawson.
However, after hearing from players and coaches around the Pac-10 during conference play, it became apparent that two other Pac-10 players are going to give the pros a shot: Stanford's Rosalyn Gold-Onwude and Oregon's Taylor Lilley.
So in the spirit of social media networking, I also reached out to three other blogs to get their take on the Pac-10's draft hopefuls: SBN's California Golden Blogs, Chasing the Title, and C and R Stanford Women's Basketball Blog. As a NBA fan, there is probably more information available about fringe second round NBA picks than most WNBA first rounders. So our hope is to provide more comprehensive analysis of the prospects from our modest Pac-10 conference as we head into tournament season (while Stanford plays in the Big Dance, both Cal and Oregon will be playing in the WNIT).
So with a combination of observations, thoughts from coaches, and statistics, we make the first of our contributions to WNBA draft season.
For individual player bios, click on the names below:
Jayne Appel | Rosalyn Gold-Onwude | Alexis Gray-Lawson | Taylor Lilley
West Coast Conference bonus:
Vivian Frieson, Forward, Gonzaga
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