Odd NCAA WBB Historical Trivia

[visitingcock]

Post your NCAA trivia here.. I'll start

Other than UConn and Tennessee, only one team has reached the NCAA Championship Game three times in a row, Auburn has a perfect 0-3 record for its reward. Tremendous run of three championship games surrounded by two bookend Elite 8 appearances. What a tremendous team for a five year run - with almost nothing to show for it.

1986–87	Joe Ciampi	31–2	8–1 (1st)	NCAA Elite Eight
1987–88	Joe Ciampi	32–3	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1988–89	Joe Ciampi	32–2	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1989–90	Joe Ciampi	28–7	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Runner-Up
1990–91	Joe Ciampi	26–6	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Elite Eight

 

[bballnut90]

Post your NCAA trivia here.. I'll start

Other than UConn, only one team has reached the NCAA Championship Game three times in a row, Auburn has a perfect 0-3 record for its reward. Tremendous run of three championship games surrounded by two bookend Elite 8 appearances. What a tremendous team for a five year run - with almost nothing to show for it.

1986–87	Joe Ciampi	31–2	8–1 (1st)	NCAA Elite Eight
1987–88	Joe Ciampi	32–3	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1988–89	Joe Ciampi	32–2	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1989–90	Joe Ciampi	28–7	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Runner-Up
1990–91	Joe Ciampi	26–6	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Elite Eight

Side note: it’s wild how the SEC was a top tier conference for so long but only Tennessee had won a title until 2017. You had Auburn in the 80s/early 90s as a dominant team, Georgia lost in multiple title games, LSU went to 5 straight Final Fours in the 00s. Probably others I’m missing but they couldn’t get the job done until South Carolina in 2017. (Not to mention Mississippi State losing in back to back title games in 2017/2018)

 

[bballnut90]

Post your NCAA trivia here.. I'll start

Other than UConn, only one team has reached the NCAA Championship Game three times in a row, Auburn has a perfect 0-3 record for its reward. Tremendous run of three championship games surrounded by two bookend Elite 8 appearances. What a tremendous team for a five year run - with almost nothing to show for it.

1986–87	Joe Ciampi	31–2	8–1 (1st)	NCAA Elite Eight
1987–88	Joe Ciampi	32–3	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1988–89	Joe Ciampi	32–2	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1989–90	Joe Ciampi	28–7	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Runner-Up
1990–91	Joe Ciampi	26–6	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Elite Eight

Also, Tennessee reached it 4x in a row from 1995-1998

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

In talking about championships, it has to be noted how few coaches won more than one, how many very good coaches only won once, and indeed how many coaches never had a championship, Ciampi, Vivian Stringer, Kay Yow, Sue Gunther many HOFers.

OTH, all time great coaches like Hatchell, Marsha Sharp, Jody Conradt coached at high success for many years and won once.

Carolyn Peck is an example of a coach who you wonder how they got their natty.

And how many folks today have absolutely no idea who Linda K. Sharp was. One of the few.

 

[BigTenGuy]

. . .
Carolyn Peck is an example of a coach who you wonder how they got their natty. . . .

She did a very good job in her short stint at Purdue, but somehow parlayed the following coaching record into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame:

WNBA	44–52 (.458)
NCAA	129–87 (.597

 

[visitingcock]

In talking about championships, it has to be noted how few coaches won more than one, how many very good coaches only won once, and indeed how many coaches never had a championship, Ciampi, Vivian Stringer, Kay Yow, Sue Gunther many HOFers.

OTH, all time great coaches like Hatchell, Marsha Sharp, Jody Conradt coached at high success for many years and won once.

Carolyn Peck is an example of a coach who you wonder how they got their natty.

And how many folks today have absolutely no idea who Linda K. Sharp was. One of the few.

Well, wbb is really only about 50 years old and has sprung from the 1970’s socio/political Changes codified by the Civil Rights Act and Title IX. The championship games of that 50 year period has been dominated by Geno and Pat with 25 appearances in the Title games between those two legendary coaches!

I would have bet , as a freshman in 1973, that the PAC 12 /California teams would dominate the sport based upon “Left Coast” openness to change - particularly a willingness to spend money on female sports at the public school level. Well, Cali does have great high school wbb, but PAC schools didn’t capitalize on it. though Tara was an exception and Great Coach.

NIL is gonna change things, I think. Other than Kim and Dawn ( both of whom have succeeded recently by using SEC generated NIL) I think the Great Coach era is approaching the end ) The era of big conference NIL will level things out among the big schools. The PAC immigrants may yet be dominant as they escape a poorly administered conference.

Only one school has ever had championships under two coaches and that was in the first 5 years of the almost 50 year NCAA history. Texas, U$C and Notre Dame have a shot at changing that. Can a UConn succeed in doing so after Geno retires? Will UConn’s supporters play the NIL money game in the future? Will SCar and LSU do so when Dawn and Kim retire?

Okay, I have drifted here but I see the Great Coach era coming to an end to be replaced by the rich school era that will spread championships out more evenly among schools/supporters willing to play the money game.

No more coffee this morning!

 

[Alydar]

Post your NCAA trivia here.. I'll start

Other than UConn and Tennessee, only one team has reached the NCAA Championship Game three times in a row, Auburn has a perfect 0-3 record for its reward. Tremendous run of three championship games surrounded by two bookend Elite 8 appearances. What a tremendous team for a five year run - with almost nothing to show for it.

1986–87	Joe Ciampi	31–2	8–1 (1st)	NCAA Elite Eight
1987–88	Joe Ciampi	32–3	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1988–89	Joe Ciampi	32–2	9–0 (1st)	NCAA Runner-Up
1989–90	Joe Ciampi	28–7	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Runner-Up
1990–91	Joe Ciampi	26–6	7–2 (2nd)	NCAA Elite Eight

* - asterick due to the 64 team format didn't start until 1994. And seeding was regional until 1996.

Still, it was a hell of a run by Ciampi. I'm wondering if there was a star Auburn player during that period?

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

She did a very good job in her short stint at Purdue, but somehow parlayed the following coaching record into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame:

WNBA	44–52 (.458)
NCAA	129–87 (.597

She had great stars on the team she inherited at Purdue. They beat Rutgers in the Regional Final, we were there.

Rutgers had them at some point during the game, IIRC, but they came back. Peck was a very "rah rah" style coach (Frese is another). It is not my favorite style of head coaching although it obviously can work. Maybe Vivian and Tara were a bit undemonstrative, but that work as well.

 

[JellyBean]

Carolyn Peck is an example of a coach who you wonder how they got their natty.

Why would anyone wonder how Coach Peck won a title? Coach Lin Dunn turned Purdue into a consistent program for roughly 9-10 years, but they could never get over the hump to win a title. I think Purdue made it to the Final Four a few times under Coach Dunn. Then Coach Nell Fortner took over for a year or so and Purdue took a minor step back. Then Coach Carolyn took over and was there for two years. The team improved and won a title. Sometimes a coach comes in and pushes the right buttons and things happen, good or bad. In Coach Peck's case, she had a magical run and it paid off.

 

[JellyBean]

She had great stars on the team she inherited at Purdue. They beat Rutgers in the Regional Final, we were there.

So, were these the same "great" stars that underperformed and went 17-11 under Coach Fortner? The same "great" players under Coach Lin Dunn who went 20-11 and lost in the First Round of the NCAA? I think Coach Peck saw what talent she had on that squad and unleased their potential.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

So, were these the same "great" stars that underperformed and went 17-11 under Coach Fortner? The same "great" players under Coach Lin Dunn who went 20-11 and lost in the First Round of the NCAA? I think Coach Peck saw what talent she had on that squad and unleased their potential.

Coach Peck "coached them up" as the saying goes. She did, indeed, do an excellent job with that team, as I said, we saw her coach them from a deficit to a win in the game against Rutgers.

Right coach, right team. But thereafter, not so much. And she absolutely did it with a team that she didn't recruit if I recall correctly.

I actually like Peck and liked Coach Dunn, it is Nell Fortner that I don't root for due to nasty remarks about Rutgers she made when she was announcing.

 

[bballnut90]

So, were these the same "great" stars that underperformed and went 17-11 under Coach Fortner? The same "great" players under Coach Lin Dunn who went 20-11 and lost in the First Round of the NCAA? I think Coach Peck saw what talent she had on that squad and unleased their potential.

It’s also that players improved during their time. We saw a similar trajectory from Iowa being unranked most of the 2020-21 season to becoming runner ups 2 years later with the same roster. For both Iowa and Purdue, both teams had virtually the same rosters in consecutive years which undoubtedly helped development and chemistry. Purdue was heavily reliant on young players in the 96 and 97 seasons, and they blossomed into leaders and great players their last 2 seasons

 

[bballnut90]

In talking about championships, it has to be noted how few coaches won more than one, how many very good coaches only won once, and indeed how many coaches never had a championship, Ciampi, Vivian Stringer, Kay Yow, Sue Gunther many HOFers.

OTH, all time great coaches like Hatchell, Marsha Sharp, Jody Conradt coached at high success for many years and won once.

Carolyn Peck is an example of a coach who you wonder how they got their natty.

And how many folks today have absolutely no idea who Linda K. Sharp was. One of the few.

Frese should be included in the Hatchell/Sharp/Conradt group.

Other names of the best coaches who haven’t won one include Vic Schafer, Jeff Walz, Sherri Coale, and Gail Goestenkors. Gail Goestenkors in particular I believe would have won several titles had she stayed at Duke. She had Duke running like a fine tuned machine that had championship caliber squads several years even if they came up just short a few times.

 

[WFFL]

She did a very good job in her short stint at Purdue, but somehow parlayed the following coaching record into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame:

WNBA	44–52 (.458)
NCAA	129–87 (.597

she got the lobo treatment of course..

 

[Jmul760170]

So, were these the same "great" stars that underperformed and went 17-11 under Coach Fortner? The same "great" players under Coach Lin Dunn who went 20-11 and lost in the First Round of the NCAA? I think Coach Peck saw what talent she had on that squad and unleased their potential.

There's a little more to it than that, but I'll try to condense it down some.
Purdue went to the final 4 under Dunn in 1994 without a senior on the roster. The next year they went to the Elite 8 and finished 24-8. By the end of the season, 2 starters had transferred out to Western Kentucky.
Stephanie White and Ukari Figgs joined the team for the 95-96 season and after finishing 20-11 and losing in the NCAA 1st round, Dunn was fired. Lots of stories out there about Dunn's behavior, players asking for her to be removed. So the AD pulled the trigger and fired Dunn and all holy hell broke loose. 4 players transferred out ,Nell Fortner was hired and only had 3 players returning from the year before. She managed to keep the incoming recruiting class for the most part and recruited a track and field all american to the squad and led the team to a Big 10 regular season title and a 17-11 record. Fortner left to coach the 2000 Olympic team and Peck was promoted from assistant coach to head coach.
Peck coached them to an Elite 8 her 1st year and the championship in 1999, beating Duke(with 2 transfers from Purdue in the starting line up) in the final. However she did it with a team that Dunn and Fortner had recruited as she didn't have a single player on the championship team that she had signed as the coach.
Peck left after that year to go to the WNBA, so there's only a couple years there to base any assessments on her coaching ability, but I think her overall record is a pretty good indicator.