Coach Sharp on the ISU game

[two cents]

During her radio show last night, Coach Sharp told a couple of funny stories about the ISU game. I don't know how well they'll translate to written word or how accurately I can recall them, but I'll try.

Fennelly, a smart coach, uses "junk" defenses (odd name for an effective strategy) frequently. Tech prepared for these, but they still caused confusion. At one point early in the game, ISU was playing a triangle and two. Candi White thought they were in the box and one. She wanted to deliver the ball to Amber Tarr on one side of the court, but Amber indicated she was covered. Candi dribbled over to the other side of the court to pass the ball to Jia Perkins. Perkins said "I'm covered. Pass it to Amber." Back Candi goes to the other side of the court looking for Amber. Again Amber calls out "I'm covered!" Amber turned to Coach Sharp on the sideline and in a half whisper said "They're playing a triangle and two," as if the notion had never occurred to the coaches. Coach Sharp just said, "yeah I know...."

They subbed Natalie Ritchie into the game generating a four guard offense to break the defense.

Later in the game while in the four guard offense with Jolee Ayers playing the post, Angie Welle was in the block anchoring the 2-3 zone. Jolee who has some range popped out to the perimeter near Amber, in a sense flooding that "zone," forcing the defender to choose a player to cover. Angie, as smart and experienced as she is, probable hasn't seen too many "five-out" offenses. She looked at Jolee and then at Coach Sharp as if to say: "What are you doing?"

I guess you'd call that a "junk" offense.

At one point in the second half Candi got bowled over taking a charge against a much larger player. She staggered to her feet with a glazed look in her eyes. Coach Sharp asked her if she was alright, Candi responded, "I...I...thiiink I...aaam." Again Coach Sharp asked, "Are you sure you're alright?" Candi: "I think so." Coach tried a different tack, "Well, can you walk?" Candi's response: "I think I can...waaalk." Sharp decided that if she wasn't sure she could walk, maybe she needed a sub and told Casey Jackson "go get her for a minute." About fifteen seconds into play, Candi said "Coach, I'm alright. I know where I am now."

Candi does leave it all out on the court.

[swok34]

this is hilarious, two cents, thanks for posting this information.

[cycofan]

Thanks for sharing that. It is very obvious on the court what great respect the coaches and players from these two teams have for each other, and Coach Sharp's comments confirm that.

Sometimes it is hard to tell from the stands what "junk" defense Fennelly is playing. I can imagine how tough it would be to figure out on the court!

[Press]

Great post, two cents, that's too funny. I sure wish I could hear Sharps radio show. She often gets tickled at stuff that goes on and when she explains it it's usually pretty funny. Coach Weese is also also one that is a riot and very funny.

[Bball Girl]

Her other story was a time when Natalie closely guarded and quite a way outside the 3 pt line and off kilter popped up and hit a three only to turn around and be face to face with Fennelly who was just staring at her with a "I can't believe you hit that" expression.

Obviously from the play and also from Coach Sharp's discussion, Tech has GREAT respect for the variety of defenses that ISU can throw at opponents and effectiveness of ISU in running those defenses. Tech spent a lot of time coming up with ways of a) handling those defenses and the changes from one to another and b) pulling a few tricks of their own like putting Tarr in at the 4 and using Casey to start instead of Cisti.


It was quite a coaching chess match hopefully relished by both coaches...Coach Sharp quite enjoys that challenge of playing creative young coaches like Fennelly and Coale (no slight to any other coach...but these two are perhaps two of the more successful and creative young coaches (though I know Fennelly has been around the women's basketball game for a while...I still think of him as young).

[two cents]

Cycofan:

You are right that Coach Sharp has great respect for Bill Fennelly and the program as a whole. A few years ago when Iowa State upset Connecticut in the regional semi-finals, I remember listening to Sharp talk with genuine excitement about calling to congratulate him. She was very, very pleased about that win and its significance for the ISU program.

Coach Fennelly has been equally complimentary of Coach Sharp. In '98 ISU beat Tech in Ames when Tech was highly ranked. I remember Fennelly talking about what an honor it was to win against Sharp, saying that only a few years before he had spent time in Lubbock trying to learn the match-up zone that Tech used in its NC run.

Of course, I think he already knew quite a bit about the match-up zone before his trip to Lubbock for one of those coaches clinics, but you know how coaches are, always greedy for more knowledge.

[two cents]

Press:

It's too bad that Coach Sharp's radio show is not archived on the internet. Aside from telling amusing stories, she goes into as much detail on the X's and O's as any coach I have ever heard. Certainly more detail than I have heard from Tech men's coaches in football, basketball, or even baseball. Most of what little I know about basketball, I have learned from listening to her radio show. She talks in detail about things you would not expect. Last year, I remember her talking about who inbounds the ball and why. She discussed the various options available to the point guard depending on how an opposing post player sets up on defense for the trailing post player moving into the front court before an offensive set.

[two cents]

Bball Girl:

I agree. I think Sharp derives great pleasure from the intellectual challenge of the sport. She developed as an X's and O's coach at Wayland Baptist when the game was not quite as physical as it is nowadays. There are lots of outstanding coaches in the women's game and the Big 12 has its share.

A chess match is an analogy I like too. Watching two good coaches face off is like watching two grandmasters play chess with live pieces. Sometimes, Sharp wins; sometimes she loses. I do get annoyed occasionally with some of Tech's less stalwart fans over on raiderpower. They can be excessively critical when an opposing coach devises a good game plan and the Lady Raiders lose. "She was outcoached!" they holler, as if that were a cardinal sin. I usually think: Well...yeah...I suppose so...that's gonna happen sometimes...even Kasparov has managed to lose a few games...Marsha's won her share, I believe...ease up a little.