WBB: NESCAC

[Rick Vaughn]

Colby's McBride is a finalist for the UVM job...With her Canadian roots and UVM's great success with Canadian players, I think she could be the favorite.

http://blogs.burlingtonfreepress.com/oncampus/2010/05/10/cliffsnotes-on-uvms-coaching-candidates/

[Title9Fan]

Thanks for posting the update Rick.  She'd be an outstanding choice for UVM and a big loss for Colby.  

[senatorfrost]

  I agree on McBride but I think Debbie Black will get it. She appears to be a better fit. The coach from New Haven is on a downward slide so I'd be really surprised if she got it. I think McBride has done a pretty good job and remember when she first came to Colby she dumped a lot of players, so she started pretty much from scratch.
 

[Title9Fan]

Congratulations to Lori Gear McBride - named Head Coach at University of Vermont!
Best wishes and best of luck - ! 

[Rick Vaughn]

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20100515/SPORTS0101/100515008/1002/SPORTS/Vermont-names-Gear-McBride-coach

The formal announcement.  Hate to toot my own horn, but I called it.

Toot, toot!

[sumfun]

Colby's a very good opportunity.  Any idea if someone has the inside track or who might be interested?   They lose two seniors who were starters, but have a good and tall group of returning players.

[Title9Fan]

Some will think that what Colby wants in a head coach is  a "very good" opportunity and others will avoid it like the plague.

What I'd like to know is this:

Are NESCAC colleges chasing away some of their best women's basketball coaches (Pemper, McBride in the last couple years) or are they just too good for D3 and they're being targeted for recruitment by D1 programs? 

Does D3 (& NESCAC) value outstanding WBB coaches who truly know the game in-depth and coach it well -- or do D3 ADs prefer an administrator/PR type of coach who could never/would never/will never coach D1.

[senatorfrost]

  Obviously I was wrong. I would have chosen McBride because I like coaches who come with good W-L records. However, I really thought Black would get it. Colby still looks pretty good for next year what with the tall girls coming back as well as the frosh guards.

[Maine 1]

The question with colby next season will be depth. I am not sure what they have coming in, and they had a very thin team last season.  They lose two starters, including there two best outside threats, so they will be very thin unless they have some good new recruits.

[Title9Fan]

With the exception of Amherst, there wasn't any depth throughout NESCAC last year, and I don't consider Amherst deep either -- they float to the top in terms of depth only by comparison.  Depth is a factor of coaching strength.  Not only in terms of recruiting prowess, but in terms of knowing how to develop players early; design game plans to exploit talent and maximize productivity; and time the season's peak.   Under Gromacki, Amherst is developing depth -- but it takes more than a season or two.  

As for Colby, that "thin" team acheived the best record in Colby history.  They had a few players who came off the bench who have big upsides -- particularly in the back court.  The Asst who is taking over as interim head coach might be able to capitalize on that if she learned anything from McBride.  McBride understands how to acheive depth and the program was on its way to becoming a major D3 program nationally.  

What happened with Colby and Amherst in terms of coaching performance this past year, makes NESCAC women's basketball better.  Anyone who doesn't appreciate that, just doesn't understand the game.

[wbbhoopsfan]

Colby should have another year or two of success in them, but if you look at the roster and incoming players, recruiting will really need to rev up in order to sustain the success.  Nothing different from Bowdoin in many ways; when you bring in a new coach, particularly one without the experience of its predecessor, then you enter into a situation that may not be as productive.  At the same time, I think some of the NESCAC administrators might be growing frustrated with good coaches "jumping ship" for better jobs.  The hirings at Bowdoin and Colby are much "safer" than the previous ones.  It also sends a message about how important on-the-court success really is in the league to the Maine schools.

[Title9Fan]

I completely agree, wbbhoopsfan.  I would only add that I think the administrators need to get over it.  Top talent will always get recruited.  Guess we're in for a long ride on the mediocre train with the lame excuse that smart kids can't play ball.  Tara VanDerveer would disagree, but hey -- only the mediocre are always at their best -- and some administrators prefer that long, smooth ride, only comparing themselves and their teams to other local/regional teams.  The big picture -- shooting for the national title -- seems to not even enter the discussion.  Maybe that's why Amherst is becoming the engine that could and the one that lots of WBB fans throughout the NE want to see win it all.  Because they WANT it!!   

[wbbhoopsfan]

Much of Amherst's success can be credited to the coach, as GP does a great job.  But, it is no coincidence that the AD at Amherst is herself a star at the Division III level in Suzanne Coffey.  She is a cut above and recognizes the importance of success in athletics to a school.  For a place like Amherst, it is one more attractive quality on top of national ranking (academic), endowment, location, etc.  It's not only wbb, either - they are good in virtually every sport.  You gotta want it.

[sumfun]

Not to mention their men's and women's tennis teams are in the top 4 in the country, and football was undefeated.   Across the board, Suzanne Coffey has supported the already excellent coaches that were there and brought in top notch coaches when there was an opening.  She came from Bates....wondering if she had similar success at Bates or has Amherst given her the green light to recruit coaches and kids that will make a difference?

[amh63]

There is a nice write up of the summer experience of two starters/stars on the Amherst website.  Sort of a tease type article for the up coming season.  No news on incoming players until mid Nov., I guess.