|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
An extraordinary accomplishment
Posted: Wednesday February 23, 2000 10:30 AM
Andy Landers, a three-time National Coach of the Year, is in his 21st season at Georgia. Landers has averaged 24.3 wins a year, third-best among all active Division I coaches with as much tenure. The Lady Bulldogs are one of only four teams to reach the NCAA Final Four five times. Georgia is 26-2 and ranked No. 3 in the nation. Check out Landers' diary every other week on CNNSI.com.
February 22, 2000
Well, the curtain is coming down on the regular season and our basketball team has been nothing if not outstanding all year long. That we have accumulated a 19-1 on-the-road record is an extraordinary accomplishment. In addition, we've gone 7-0 in SEC games on the road, a milestone achievement as well. The fact that to this point we have gone through the rugged Southeastern Conference with one loss makes me feel that we have the kind of basketball team that can compete with anyone in the country. The last week presented still yet another double challenge on the road Thursday night at The University of Kentucky and Sunday at the University of Arkansas. While we built big leads in both games, we did not hold onto them and had to fight off both home teams coming down the stretch. We were mature and composed enough, however, to notch out the "W's." It's an exciting time for our basketball team; I could tell they were starting to feel just a bit of pressure from having played so many big games on the road as we closed out at last week. That feeling, however, has turned into enthusiasm with two home games left: Alabama and Vanderbilt. I can sense that they are getting excited about the prospects of winning the regular Southeastern Conference Championship, and should we be fortunate enough to beat both these fine teams this week, we will clinch no less than a share of the Southeastern Conference title.
It's also the time of year when teams, coaches and fans start to point toward both the conference and NCAA Tournaments. Our team is presently in an excellent position to receive a No. 1 seed in both tournaments. Naturally, with games left on the regular season schedule, and the difficulty of the SEC Tournament brackets, we could be defeated in these and our aspirations of being a top seed could go out the window. But we've put ourselves in position for both, which is all anyone could hope for heading into the home stretch. More than anything, however, it is the time of year for teams to play their very best. I am pleased with the work and sacrifice this team has devoted to being as good as it is, and am anxious to see them kick it into tournament gear as we go down the stretch.
-- Coach Landers
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
