Berry Tramel
DES MOINES,
Iowa — From 0-16 in the
Big 12 two short seasons ago to a No. 3 seed in the
NCAA Tournament, it can be quite the blur.
Make no mistake, the
Oklahoma State Cowgirls are on the fast track of women's basketball.
That's why all this talk about
OSU's assignment — the Cowgirls were placed in the New Orleans, not the Oklahoma City, Regional — needs to end as we stand back and take it all in and say what needs to be said about this remarkable team.
Wow.
Think about it. From No. 12 in the
Big 12 to top 12 in the nation (by
NCAA Tournament seed). That's a bullet-train ascent up Mount March Madness.
"In the
Big 12, people do not (normally) take big leaps in the conference,” coach
Kurt Budke marveled Friday on the eve of
OSU's first-round
NCAA game against
East Tennessee State. "It's just small baby steps at a time.”
Instead, the Cowgirls took Amazon steps. Only 13 months ago,
OSU was 5-8 in the
Big 12, looking at a WNIT bid and darned proud of that progress.
Since then, Budke's belles made a stirring run to the 2007
NCAAs, ended OU's Bedlam dominance, caught the
Sooners in the
Big 12 standings and passed the
Courtney Paris crew going into this postseason.
"It's been a dream come true,” said
OSU backup center
Megan Byford.
You sure wouldn't expect the ascent to level off here in old Big Eight stomping grounds. The Cowgirls should win two games, then take their chances in Louisiana.
Did
OSU deserve to be sent to Oklahoma City with or instead of the
Sooners? Absolutely.
Did
OSU get sent off because it lacks tradition or name recognition of maybe even a female coach? Probably not the latter. Connecticut's
Geno Auriemma raised such discrimination claims several years back, but there are three males on the 10-member committee.
Probably the women's basketball establishment wants
OSU to pay its dues, which can begin tonight.
"We do not want to be satisfied on just getting here,” said
Cowgirl Shaunte' Smith.
Perhaps that's what happened a year ago, when the Cowgirls were sent home by Bowling Green.
"We're back and ready to finish out the whole 40 minutes,” said
OSU's
Danielle Green. "We were supposed to win last year.”
Actually, that's not so.
OSU was a 10-seed last season, Bowling Green a 7. It's natural to think of the Budke Era in two views: 0-16, then
Andrea Riley arrives and the Cowgirls are terrors.
But there
were steps. The three straight
Big 12 wins to end the 2007 regular season, earning an
NCAA invite. The comeback win over Kansas to open this
Big 12 season. The sellout crowd at Gallagher-Iba the night the Cowgirls took out the
Sooners. The thrilling games at Kansas City last week against Texas and
Texas A&M, the first barely won, the second barely lost.
A whole bunch of steps, some baby, some behemoth, have created this blur.
"We feel like we have taken the next step in our program,” Budke said. "This is a different team that is coming into the tournament.”
The difference? This team is intent on winning.
