Bertha Teague Classic

[Gator]

Coale, for the 100th year in a row, said that she was so pleased to honor Teague through participation in the Classic and added that Teague seemed to be known more outside of Oklahoma than in.... Finally hooked, I decided to find out who this Teague person was. She:
--- compiled an astonishing 1,152-115 record, 91% (high school)
--- was one of the first three women enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
--- AND she went out on a high note: "In her last game as coach, her team won the state championship, 46-45, for the classy Teague known as "Mrs. Basketball of Oklahoma."

http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/Teague.htm

Now SHE was a pace setter! The games played in her honor might be a bit meaningless in the past couple of years, but .....

[BearLady]

I too noticed Sherri's comments about the upcoming BT Classic, following the game against TCU earlier this week. What especially caught my attention was her reference to the legend as 'Mrs. Teague'.

That's true, she was Mrs. Teague. It just seems that she's more frequently referred to as Bertha Teague or Bertha Frank Teague. I first began hearing the name when I was just a pup, as my family lived in the area where Mrs Teague coached. My mom and aunt played basketball at a different hs in the area, and of course they always viewed the Byng teams as their arch rival. Most schools in the area felt that way too, so I hear.

I did meet her at a high school all star game in Texas during her later years, after she was no longer coaching. She got a big smile on her face when I mentioned the Latta/Byng rivalry.

Anyhow my ears always perk up when I hear a reference to this legend. Hope this year's Classic is the best yet!

[Jimi]

Coale, for the 100th year in a row, said that she was so pleased to honor Teague
Whoa! Coach Coale looks good to be that old. ;)

[swok34]

http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/img/berthateague1.JPG

All playing for Bertha!!

A short synapsis of the history of girls and women's basketball in the State of Oklahoma (http://www.ok-history.mus.ok.us/enc/baskball.htm)

The women of OSU began in 1973 and OU womens' first season was a year later.

I really like the Bertha Teague, I liked the two day-two game format; but I guess that was too hard to accommodate most schedules for OU, OSU, ORU and Tulsa as they've played the 2 game, 1 day the past 3 or 4 years.

December 3, 2005
Stillwater, OK

OU vs Oral Roberts 1:00 pm

OSU vs Tulsa 3:30 pm

go :ou: go :osu:

[Bball Girl]

When ORU played UNM (I didn't watch...only listened) they struck me as a pretty physial team and that's what I remember from Tech playing them last year. Lots of scrappy and pretty quick play but they'll be no match for OU.

[swok34]

and then there's the chair-throwing coach
:rolleyes:

OU hosted ORU in the opening rounds of the NCAA a few years back...Stacey, Laneisha, Roz were all juniors. I just remember them being very, very physical with Stacey and the coach throwing a chair. :eek:

I'm not a fan of their coach. OU wanted to see this tournament moved to the Ford Center in Oklahoma City. The last time it was supposed to be in Norman, we played at the Ford Center. OSU (Goodenough), Tulsa (McC-Miller) were both agreeable to establishing that every year.......but, not Finkbetter.

[sybarite]

As one who is old enough to remember, her teams were often awesome. I don't know why, but I remember thinking at one time that Byng was a black highschool. She was certainly ahead of her time in working with the community in Oklahoma.

It seemed to me that Byng and Lindsay dominated the central area of the state. They were always among the favorities for the state title. The Byng teams were quick and well-coached.

There are two notable members of the Girls Basketball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma, at least notable to me. One is Scott Ousley who was the coach of the Cordell girls when they won three titles in four years. The other is Pete Jayroe, who is often better known as the father of Jane Jayroe, a Miss America back in about 1965.

[Bball Girl]

and then there's the chair-throwing coach
:rolleyes:


Chair throwing...you'd think that behavior wouldn't be allowed at a school like ORU.

While I'm being a smart alek...I also mean that seriously.

I do remember him from last year at Tech, I wasn't impressed either.

[swok34]

Coale: ORU matchup good for game

By George Schroeder
The Oklahoman

STILLWATER - Sherri Coale understands the sentiment. Playing nonconference games against in-state schools -- as the Sooners will do today against Oral Roberts -- puts her team into a no-win situation.
But Oklahoma's coach has a different take.

"Sometimes," Coale said, "it's important to do things that are good for the growth of the (women's) game, even if there's not an absolute need or a tangible benefit to your team."

And here's the thing: With this OU team, Coale sees plenty of tangible benefits to any game, against any opponent.

OU (6-1) takes on ORU (3-1) at 1 today in the Bertha Teague Classic at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Oklahoma State hosts Tulsa at 3:30 in the second half of the annual doubleheader.

And for the Sooners, the matchup with ORU is more about continuing the improvement. Coale hopes to turn the Sooners into a Final Four contender.

Big 12 play begins next month. Before that, OU plays high-profile games with UCLA (Monday at Lloyd Noble Center), Missouri State, Illinois and New Mexico.

Those heavyweights come after an already-challenging early schedule that saw OU reach the finals of the WNIT.

"The great thing about it is we've found out a lot about our team," Coale said. "We know exactly what we're good at, what we're not good at, what we will get better at, what our Achilles heel might be, what our strengths might be, and what might be possible.

"We're getting better every day."

And with every game. Coale said opponents have tried to defend freshman post Courtney Paris in just about every possible way. They've double-teamed the precocious freshman from every angle. Occasionally, they've triple-teamed her. And so, each game has provided a new test -- and a new opportunity.

The early schedule has served as a crash course for Paris and her twin, Ashley, as well as their teammates.

"We still have a long way to go," junior guard Erin Higgins said. "The fact we rely heavily on our two freshmen, that requires us to move a little bit faster. We have to make sure they understand what's going on, because they're such an integral part of what's going on.

"We feel like we've really made big strides."

So, where does ORU fit? The Sooners have beaten the Golden Eagles 17 straight times. But Coale said OU needs the work, against any and all opponents.

All of it helps prepare OU for January, February and March.

"ORU is a well-coached team," Coale said. "They're always in the NCAA Tournament, and we'll get better as a result of playing them."

No-win situation?

"So what?" Coale said. "We'll get better."

[swok34]

Talk about people missing the boat:

want to know the state of Oklahoma press for the 4 DI teams, here's what OSU and Tulsa get in the Oklahoman, which is the main Oklahoma City paper:

OSU women's hoops: Tulsa vs. OSU

3:30 today
Gallagher-Iba Arena

Radio: KGFY 105.5-FM or www.okstate.com

TV: None

Rankings: Neither team is ranked.

[MsProudSooner]

FYI - A few weeks ago, I had a chance to ask George Schroeder if the presence of the Hornets in OKC was going to have a detrimental affect on the coverage of the women's games. At that time, he said they were negotiating with the powers that be of the Oklahoman for more pages for the Sports section. I don't know how those negotiations turned out.

[OSUCowgirls]

I am excited about today! I hope all four teams bring their A game and that there is a great crowd in GIA. Oh, I thought the OU fans would find this interesting..............While I was at the Cowgirls game vs. UALR on Tuesday, a former OSU men's player sat a row or two behind me and he was talking to some friends. They were talking pretty loud and I heard him say something about going to the game this Saturday so he could watch "that Courtney Paris girl". Now that should say something about how popular she is already becoming in the state. I am excited about watching Elisha Turek too.
Tulsa's Jillian Robbins had 28 points and 22 rebounds in their win over Arkansas. She should be fun to watch. I am ready to see my Cowgirls bring some energy and emotion today. There were some interesting quotes from the O'Colly during the week about their loss Tuesday.

Pegram said Oklahoma State must also do a better job of mentally preparing for opponents. After the Cowgirls’ 64-54 loss to Arkansas-Little Rock on Tuesday night, Pegram said OSU isn’t giving opponents the respect they should.
“We expect to come in on our own floor and people to fold because we’re in the Big 12,” Pegram said. “What we have to remember is we’re in the bottom of the Big 12. So, I think we overlook some people. Maybe we’re playing hard, but we’re not playing smart.”


http://www.soonersports.com//pics6/400/ZW/ZWRREMKVWHIGHQA.20051121020442.jpg http://www.orugoldeneagles.com/image_lib/Turek_Action_2.jpg http://www.wac.org/media/stats/AV/WTURU4.jpg http://okstate.nmn.speedera.net/pics18/400/WJ/WJQCOOQPTBJTQIQ.20051122144012.jpg

[Cowgirlfan]

Published on 2005-12-03


Tulsa visits GIA today
By Jacob Longan
Stillwater NewsPress
Oklahoma State’s women’s basketball team will try to end several streaks today.

The Cowgirls (1-3) meet Tulsa (3-1) at 3:30 p.m. inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. It will be the second game of the annual Bertha Teague Classic — No. 19 Oklahoma (6-1) faces Oral Roberts (3-1) at 1 p.m.

OSU has lost its last two games overall, its last four inside Gallagher-Iba Arena, its last two to Tulsa and its last 14 to Sooner State foes.

And first-year coach Kurt Budke knows it won’t be easy to end any of those streaks today. He said “Tulsa’s talent is 15, 20 point better” than Arkansas-Little Rock, who beat the Cowgirls, 64-54, Tuesday.

“(The Golden Hurricane is) just a very good team,” he said. “They have a lot of returners, a lot of scorers, a lot of proven players, an All-American candidate in Jillian Robbins. We have to show up and get after those people or it will be a tough night like (Tuesday).”

Robbins, a 6-foot-1 junior forward, is coming off a 28-point, 22-rebound game that propelled her team to a 66-64 win over Arkansas Thursday night.

She leads her team in points (16.5), rebounds (13.3), steals (2.3) and blocked shots (2.3).

Tulsa’s entire starting five averages at least 6.5 points per game, with Emily Jaskowiak (13.5) and Tandem Mays (11.8) both in double figures.

In contrast, only three Cowgirls average more than 4.8 points — Whitney Pegram (21.3 ppg, seven rpg), Brisa Silva (11 ppg) and Shaunté Smith (10 ppg, 6.5 rpg).

No doubt OSU has worked on plenty of things since Tuesday’s loss. After the game, Budke said his team took a step back to the beginning. In fact, it was so bad he said he didn’t want to take a technical foul to fire up the squad, something he has done in the past.

“I thought this was something they needed to dig their way out of,” he said. “They needed to figure it out. I can’t do that for 28 games. Someone is going to end up fining me somewhere. They have to figure it out.”

Pegram reflected on the fact that UALR hit more three-pointers in the first half of that game (six) than it averaged per night (4.7) coming into the contest. The Trojans finished 8-of-18 from long range.

“Teams are going to shoot well when they are left wide open,” she said. “When they have a wide-open look at the basket, any player in college basketball, whether it be Division I, NAIA, D-III, whatever, is going to make good shots.”

The Cowgirls will look to play better defense and snap the streaks in today’s game.


About Tulsa

Robbins is just the fifth player in school history with 1,000 points and was the fastest to reach that plateau, doing it in 63 games. She now has 1,011 points and with 314 more she will be the school’s all-time record holder.

The school is in its first year under Charlene Thomas-Swinson, a former WNBA and Florida assistant.

TU has no native Oklahomans on its roster. It does feature a pair of coaches with OSU ties, though.

Assistant coach Amy (Gusso) Williams was an assistant for the Cowgirls the past three seasons. Also, volunteer assistant Brittany Dietz was an OSU player the past two seasons.

OSU leads the all-time series, 16-4.




http://www.stwnewspress.com/story.php?id=5907&type=sports

[soonerfan68]

I ran into "Mrs. Teague" in the bathroom of the high school state finals in Oklahoma City in the mid 80's. She was still VERY sharp in her bball knowledge and we chatted for a few minutes about the current teams playing in the championships. She's a legend for sure and it's a shame she isn't recognized more for what she accomplished.

TRIVIA Question to the Oklahoma high school bball followers: What team played in and won the last 6 on 6 state championship?

[Bball Girl]

With about 3:00 to go...

OU 96
ORU 74

A. Paris had 14 at the half.

[Bball Girl]

OU wins 107 to 76 for ORU.

[vickie1ok]

Tulsa up on OSU 31-30 at the half. Close game all half. Defensive game, both not shooting well but OSU has 12 offensive boards to go along with 12 defensive. Impressive rebounding for Cowgirls.

[BearLady]

What team played in and won the last 6 on 6 state championship?

My guess is Byng High School :)

[vickie1ok]

OSU up 51-46 in 2nd half. Bad shooting (36%) but when you 19 offensive boards, that helps!

[Jennifer]

What team played in and won the last 6 on 6 state championship?

My guess is Byng High School :)

I don't think it is Byng. They are (were) about a 3A school and the larger classes switched over before the smaller classes.

I'm trying to remember who the power houses were in about 95 in the smaller classes. I still lived there then.
Washita Heights? Frontier?

[swok34]

Was it Bethel High School? hmmmm, Ada?

[MsProudSooner]

Was it Cushing?

[YCN]

Sapulpa, perhaps?

[soonerfan68]

was Stigler High School