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Good for the game It's going to be an interesting Final Four
Posted: Wednesday March 24, 1999 07:22 PM
Sylvia Hatchell coached North Carolina to a national championship in 1994. The Tar Heels finished the 1998-99 regular season 24-6 and lost to Clemson in the ACC Championship game. As the No. 4 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament, UNC defeated Northeastern and Alabama to advance to the Sweet 16. The Tar Heels lost to top-seeded Purdue 82-59. We faced a really good Purdue team last Saturday night. As far as the way we played, I've watched the tape and talked to our players and I still don't know what happened to us. I thought we were really prepared. We knew everything about Purdue, about all their players, strengths and weaknesses. I thought our team was as prepared as any team I've ever had. Then Purdue made some early shots and we panicked. That's what I think probably happened to us. We were not aggressive on defense and we started taking bad shots because we were behind. When the going gets tough, we have a lack of leadership out on the floor. We have young players, especially at the guard positions, and it's just something we've got to keep working on. We know we're a much better team that what we showed against Purdue. I just hate that we got to the Sweet 16 and then played probably our worst game of the season. It's just something we've got to learn from and move on. Purdue is very mentally tough team and that's something we need to develop. We can learn a lot from Purdue. I knew Rutgers could give them a good game in the regional final, but Purdue's mental toughness prevailed. Even though they weren't shooting the ball well against Rutgers, they really played well as a team down the stretch and pulled that game out. As far as the rest of the Final Four field, I think Duke beating Tennessee shows that on any night, anybody can beat anybody. Who would have ever thought that Chamique Holdsclaw would score only eight points? Duke is an outstanding team, though. I know that from playing them this year. They have no weaknesses. Duke was fired up and ready and I thought Tennessee might have panicked a little bit, like we did against Purdue. Duke just got more confident as the game went on. Three or four weeks ago, I picked Louisiana Tech to win the whole thing. I just felt like they had the whole package, they were there last year, and I really like their team. Georgia has got a great team, too. The Miller twins have really stepped up. They're bigtime players and a lot of fun to watch. It's going to be an interesting Final Four, with new blood and new people in there. I think that's good for the game and it illustrates the parity right now in women's basketball. I think Duke will make a strong run. Louisiana Tech is really, really tough. Purdue, if they're shooting well, they could go all the way. It's hard to say that anyone has an advantage and I think that's great for women's basketball. The Final Four is the grand finale for the season, even for the teams that aren't playing. It's a time when the coaches come together and can sort of cry on each other's shoulders and give each other support, but it's also when we look at our profession and how we can make it better. I know there are a lot of concerns right now about officiating. I've heard it all year from just about every top 20 coach in the country. That's a big concern right now, along with some of the NCAA legislation. Many of us have been doing this half our lives or longer and we love what we're doing and care so much about it. We've seen it grow throughout the years but I think this is a very crucial time for women's basketball. We need to stay focused on the opportunities that are out there and keep doing things to make our game better. The fact that the Final Four is in major arenas now and sold out from one year to the next shows the growth and popularity of women's basketball and what the future holds. We have a great product and so many highly skilled players. I think that's why you see so much parity. Right now, the best thing going for women's basketball is that there are so many great players out there and so many great teams. And that's what will make this weekend's games so interesting.
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