ESPN Please note the following corrections

[DblT81]

Maybe somebody with a *connection* could pass along the following corrections to the ESPN commentators about the game highlights:

1. This is Texas Tech's FOURTH CONSECUTIVE trip to the Sweet 16, not the first time in four years.

2. Kari Jo Simmons is no longer on the Tech team, so it would have been kinda hard for her to get the nice assist tonight.

3. Jia Perkins is black. If a white player for Tech is shooting and scoring, it is probably not real good to describe the play as a score by Jia Perkins.

4. Amber Tarr is #32 and is a few inches shorter than Cisti Greenwalt. She knows how to rebound and stick back, too.

5. After lauding LaToya Thomas' great abilities in the pre-game and predicting she would be a handful for Tech, it would have been nice to give recognition to Tech after the game for handling her just fine.


Also, during time-outs of the TTU-MSU game I would switch over to the Texas-UCSB game. Multiple times the guy doing the play by play was mentioning names on the UCSB team and talking about how they were high something (points, rebounds or whatever) in the Big 12 or Big 12 Freshman of the year (he certainly was NOT talking about UT's Schreiber). Guess he didn't know what conference UCSB was in so he would just use the Big 12 for both teams. And his sidekick did nothing to correct him. Can they not hear each other? Argh!

[Bevo]

DblT, I'll tell you what the folks at ESPN know:

1) UConn is a great team and will win the tournament http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/rolleyes.gif

2) Pat Summitt coaches Tennessee.

3) Alana Beard is a great player for Duke.

They are vaguely aware that some uneducated wbb fans in middle-America think that the best conference is the Big XII, but they will talk about UConn some more just to set the record straight.

While I appreciate the coverage that ESPN gives the game, they could really use some expansion of their horizons.

[grojc]

DB, I saw what you saw last night, but don't you thing it was someone handing the announcer the wrong script to go along with the highlight reel? She realized what was going on by the end of the reel. Those four women know more about this game than any of us on these boards. And ESPN makes it possible for us to watch this tournament. They really take the job of promoting women's basketball. I don't think the game is big enough for us to be so sensitive.

[Jennifer]

They may know a lot about basketball, but don't know alot about the teams that aren't in the East.

If I made the kind of mistakes in my job that they make, I would be getting really nervous.

[tamn8or]

I think it takes good coverage to help the sport grow, not just any coverage. People who are new to the sport see the analysts mess up and they're turned off. It looks amateur and supports many sports fan's opinion that wbb is a second-class sport. I was willing to give them a break in past years, but they've been doing this for a while now and it's not getting any better.

Drake is a good example, IMO. Vera Jones kept talking about how little they knew about Drake. No one knew who Stephanie Schmidt was. Or Carla Bennett. Drake is not completely a Cinderella team -- they've been to the tournament for the last 4-5 years and they were a 7 seed. They're worthy of a little homework. (At least know the names of their players.) It's not like they have to know all 300+ Div. 1 teams, there are only 64 in the tournament.

[mred]

Originally posted by tamn8or:
(At least know the names of their players.) It's not like they have to know all 300+ Div. 1 teams, there are only 64 in the tournament.

It's not like they even have to know all of the players, either. Just knowing about the key ones would be great.

Carla Bennett completely dominated the game against Welle two years ago when Welle was a sophomore and Bennett was a freshman. That was the last in a series of bad games for Welle at the beginning of the season which forced her to figure out what was wrong with her game and focus on the basics until the game came back to her.

Bennett is a high quality center; she looked a lot like Welle without the scoopshot last night. She was a WBCA honorable mention AA as a sophomore last season. She has been first-team all-MVC all three years. She did not come out of nowhere.

[mred]

I should also post that I am actually pretty happy with the tournament coverage so far. The Big XII has received a lot of airtime. I know there's a UConn lovefest going on, but they are the undisputed best team in the country right now. I also know they are making a lot of mistakes, but considering the sheer number of games on TV I'll allow a certain number from the broadcast teams.

[Jennifer]

Speaking of TV games--is OU the only #1 seed not getting on ESPN in the first two rounds?
Vandy and Uconn are on tonight, Duke was on yesterday.
For the #2's--TN and Stanford were (Stanford will be on again tonight), Purdue is on tonight, and Baylor wasn't scheduled but did get some airtime last night.

[grojc]

And jeez, they'd only been at for about ten hours, and it was after midnight. People really need to lighten up.

[DblT81]

grojc,

I give credit when credit is due and I criticize when it is warranted.

Where were you when I started a thread at the end of the season for the good work Fox did broadcasting the Big 12 women's games at the end of the season? Those who frequent this board had an opportunity to express appreciation for the better effort by the conference and the network.
http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/001813.html

I agree that media exposure is sooo important to wcbb. That is why we must give praise when they get it right and be critical when they don't. The squeeky wheel gets the grease and we will miss out if we sit idlely by and take a poor effort without comment.

I have been critical of Tech's media relations people because I think they could do a better job. I know they don't have the resources that UT or OU have, but still, they could do better and there have been some improvements in that area.

Now, if a recruit is sitting out there watching the ESPN highlight show and she sees the ESPN analysts get the names right of every player for Duke and Connecticut correctly, but then they stumble through the highlight for Texas Tech, that is a negative for Texas Tech. I don't care if ESPN has the restroom attendant preparing the highlight tape and script for the analysts. It was still a screw up and they should do better regardless of whose fault it was.

I agree with Jennifer, somebody should be nervous about their job. I doubt any of them are worried and that is too bad for teams in middle America.

[grojc]

And jeez, they'd only been at for about ten hours, and it was after midnight. People really need to lighten up.

[DblT81]

I'm not sure I got that grojc. Mind repeating it again? http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif

[swok34]

is OU the only #1 seed not getting on ESPN in the first two
rounds?

yep, the game tonite is on "pay tv"....maybe ESPN has seen Villanova play, too....and didn't want everyone asleep. Though you are right, OU is the only #1 seed with no TV time, South Carolina has had no TV time and Baylor had no TV time....all the other 1's and 2's have had TV time....and I'm not counting "pay tv" in this statement.

I watched both the Baylor and the Kansas State game last night, as well as the last half of the Colorado game with channel flips over to the Texas game.......

I really hope tonite's games do not mimick the Baylor or the Kansas State game, and I really don't think it will....had enough excitement LAST night.

[Jennifer]

Well, with the other two #2's being TN and Stanford, of course they were going to get TV time. I guess it helps that Stanford is on the West coast--they can easily give them the later slots when most the rest of the country is alseep.

[grojc]

Originally posted by DblT81:
I'm not sure I got that grojc. Mind repeating it again? http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif

I meant that the ESPN crew had only been at it for about 10 hours and the show was on after midnight in the East. Let's give these guys a break. Our teams our not the most important thing in the world. I remember when all we got to watch was the final four on CBS. We've come a long way, but not that far. Don't bite the hand that feeds you. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. I think this all applies.

[BigUtFan]

Originally posted by Bevo:
DblT, I'll tell you what the folks at ESPN know:

1) UConn is a great team and will win the tournament http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/rolleyes.gif

2) Pat Summitt coaches Tennessee.

3) Alana Beard is a great player for Duke.

They are vaguely aware that some uneducated wbb fans in middle-America think that the best conference is the Big XII, but they will talk about UConn some more just to set the record straight.

While I appreciate the coverage that ESPN gives the game, they could really use some expansion of their horizons. Enough said!! I could not agree more. The entire selection show was devoted to UConn and Tennessee. Obviously I am biased, but I certainly hope Saturday's game does not turn into the Alena Beard show and Duke, Duke, Duke. Don't we get enough of it with Duke's mens team?