Deb Patterson has great hops

[Jimi]

And she showed them tonight at Bramlage. In the first half Kansas State shot 37.5% from the field and 22.2% from three. Missouri's foul line defense was good to as KSU only shot 42.9% from there. We were also outrebounded. Coach P. was literally HOPPING MAD. The only good stat was 4 turnovers. The good news is the score was only 29-32 MU at the half. Coach P. also did well in the clip board throw and the triple jump. Her stellar athletic performance lasted into the second half in response to another scoring drought and some really poor official calls as well as some (you guessed it) dumb turnovers.

Fortunatly for her Nicole Ohlde delivered 28 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 blocks and a steal. Mahoney chipped in 17 points 8 assists and two steals. Wecker had 11 points and 12 rebounds. It was NOT her night to score. She broke into double figures with a minute to go. Oh! and in the second half KSU shot 60.9% and 83.3% from the foul line. Coach P. was so upset at the end of the half that I told my friend the team would be out late from half time. She made my prediction good. The team came out with about 30 seconds left on the clock. They just went to the bench, huddled and came out for the second half. This was a unique game. At one point we scored only three free throws in over five minutes, And extended our lead! Missouri was held to only 6-27 in the second half. The Wildcats won 68 - 52 in a game that was an emotional ride for the Coach. She was very pleased with some things and MIGHTY upset with others. In the interest of safety we should take away her high heeled shoes if she is going to get that upset. She did avoid getting any technicals and she kept coaching through it all.

Domenico's box score won't look like much but she had an excellent floor game and kept her head through it all. Coach P. and I are both proud of her.

[JohnHenry]

So does Kamie play good cop ?

[Jimi]

I'd have to answer no. Patterson does not play bad cop. I understand your question though, and in a sense I would say the whole staff plays good cop when they need to. Kamie Ethridge, Kristen Becker and Sue Serafini all have the respect of the players and deal well with them. So does Coach Patterson. She can sure get HOT though, and last night was one of those nights. It may well be that it was needed. The team certainly did step it up in the second half.

In my minds eye I can still see Coach Patterson jumping sideways several feet per jump in her high heels while yelling at the players during a game in 00-01. I don't think I had ever seen anyone jump SIDEWAYS that high and far before and certainly NOT in high heels. She must have iron ankles, a guardian angel or both. And with all faults, I won't trade her for anyone else.

[JohnHenry]

Deb rocks, Jimi. You can't put a value on what she has accomplished at KSU. It takes a special kind of coach (and staff) to take a program from almost nothing to the top 10, in an area that you certainly wouldn't call a recruiting hotbed. This means that she and her staff have a real knack for DEVELOPING players, a talent that isn't all that common.

You can praise Jody C. for many things, but being a great developer of players is probably not one of them. Mentoring girls into good citizens, and strong women - sure. Teaching great fundamentals, great defense, leadership skills and teamwork - those, too. And she's always had an eye for talent, needless to say. But generally she marshalls that talent and adds discipline and team cohesiveness and it's up to the players to work at becoming better shooters, etc. This approach can work if you can bring in all the right players, but Patterson and Etheridge have turned girls with "potential" into big-time performers in short order.

In this age of competitiveness and growing talent pools in the women's game, Jody's style has become a thing of the past. Pulling in the top talent every year isn't a given for any school, and being able to get the most from the players you have means you can look for those diamonds-in-the-rough and continue to compete for titles.

We have a good crop of talent on board and the old master is doing a fine job of leading them ( and apparently enjoying it a lot, too), but I hope we land a real 'juicer' like Kamie when Jody decides to hang it up. In fact, the more I look at Kamie, the more I like the idea of her coaching here. She has a proven track record of developing players and piecing together winners in tough places...


http://www.texassports.com/images/photo_gallery/2002_03/001/wbb_122102/images/stephens_stacy_03.jpg

[swok34]

Deb wasn't happy at the OU game when Laura Andrews was left open and knocked down a three........she then put Nicole Ohlde on her.

And they were up by 20 http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif Man, payback's hard.

[JohnHenry]

Frankly, the job Kamie has done with Mahoney & Koehn alone would be enough for me to hire her... http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif

[Jimi]

I hope we don't lose Kamie but of course sooner or later we will. I hope if she ever leaves it will be to a Big Twelve team. One of the things I enjoy about Kansas State women's basketball is the generally high level of coaching that you see from your opponents. If you beat somebody in this league you have to earn it and they will expose and exploit any weakness. Its fun to see the minds work and the adjustments made.

Thats also one of the things I enjoy about racing. Its not just the drivers and/or the engines. Chassis set-up and strategy by the crew chief is very important. Many if not most dirt track races are won or lost BEFORE the green flag drops.

That is one thing I miss in preseason. The schools we play, even in the WNIT do not have the chance to study us as well and they don't usually know the best ways to take advantage of you. Some of the teams that lose in this league are not bad. They just have a flaw that these coaches will exploit if their team has the ability to do it. That's why match-ups are important. The match-ups are not just between players. Its also between coaches.

I wouldn't sell Jody too short JohnHenry. She is still a heck of a coach. And I don't think she's ready to quit yet.