PhillyHoya
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Post by PhillyHoya on Apr 14, 2014 8:19:46 GMT -5
Adair's hiring confirmed via email by Lee Reed:
Natasha Adair Named New Georgetown Women’s Basketball Coach
Adair returns to Georgetown after a successful stint as an assistant
WASHINGTON – Georgetown University Director of Athletics Lee Reed named Natasha Adair the new head coach of the women's basketball program on Monday. Adair becomes the ninth women's basketball head coach in the history of the program.
She comes to the Hilltop from the College of Charleston where she was at the helm for two seasons. However, Adair is no stranger to the Georgetown program after serving as an assistant coach for six seasons (1998-2004).
“I’m very pleased to introduce Natasha as the new head coach for our women’s basketball program,” Reed said. “She is a rising star in the coaching ranks and the success each of her schools have had is a testament to the hard work she has put in with her student-athletes. She will ensure that our young women develop both on and off the floor and we are very excited to welcome her and her family back home and to the Hilltop.”
This past year, in College of Charleston’s first season in the Colonial Athletic Association, Adair led the team to a record of 19-15, marking the third-highest win total in the school’s Division I era. Additionally, the squad finished third in conference play, defeated five postseason teams from a year ago and advanced to the semifinals of both the CAA Championship and the Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI).
In her first season at The College, Adair guided the Cougars to 16 wins. The squad also earned a spot in the WBI postseason tournament. She is the first coach to lead teams to back-to-back postseason berths in program history.
Prior to College of Charleston, Adair spent 14 seasons in the assistant coaching ranks.
The Silver Spring, Md., native spent eight years as an assistant to women's basketball head coach Mike Petersen at Wake Forest University. She was promoted to associate head coach in 2007 and helped guide the Demon Deacons to four postseason tournament appearances, including the program's second 20-win campaign (20-14) and a run to the NIT Second Round this past season.
As the recruiting coordinator and post coach for the Deacons, Adair successfully recruited a number of top-ranked players in the country and was part of the winningest women's basketball staff in Wake Forest history, coaching a senior class that posted 72 wins from 2009-12.
Prior to Wake Forest, she served as an assistant coach for six years at Georgetown. Similar to her position with the Deacons, Adair was primarily responsible for the post players. She was instrumental in the development of All-American, WNBA All-Star and three-time WNBA champion Rebekkah Brunson, who was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft by the Sacramento Monarchs.
In her 14 years combined in the ACC and BIG EAST, Adair developed and mentored 12 players who went on to play at the professional level.
Adair played two seasons at Pensacola Junior College before transferring to the University of South Florida under head coach Trudi Lacey, former general manager and head coach of the WNBA's Washington Mystics. She led the squad in rebounding during the 1993-94 season with 238 (8.8 rpg) and graduated with a degree in communications in 1994.
A former high school All-American and a top recruit in the country with interest from UConn, Syracuse, Georgetown and USF in 1989-90, Adair (née Barnes) was inducted into the Albert Einstein High School Hall of Fame in November of 2011.
She and her husband, Aaron, have two children: son, Aaron Michael (16), and daughter Allyssa Michelle (8).
A press conference will be held on Tuesday at 2 p.m., at McDonough Arena.
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drquigley
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Post by drquigley on Apr 15, 2014 9:57:55 GMT -5
I've said it before, GU should be the premier women's bball program. Look where we are and what we can offer a woman athlete. Unlike the men who have millions of dollars being waived before them, education should be a real concern for women athletes. A GU degree should mean something to them. Plus 4 years of life in D.C. and Georgetown should be much more attractive than 4 years in Storrs or South Bend. I'm sure you have women jocks just like men but at the end of the day a woman bballer has to appreciate that she will have a much longer (and less financially secure) life after basketball than a man. I just don't understand why we can't use the to our advantage when recruiting.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 15, 2014 10:10:43 GMT -5
I've said it before, GU should be the premier women's bball program. Look where we are and what we can offer a woman athlete. Unlike the men who have millions of dollars being waived before them, education should be a real concern for women athletes. A GU degree should mean something to them. Plus 4 years of life in D.C. and Georgetown should be much more attractive than 4 years in Storrs or South Bend. I'm sure you have women jocks just like men but at the end of the day a woman bballer has to appreciate that she will have a much longer (and less financially secure) life after basketball than a man. I just don't understand why we can't use the to our advantage when recruiting. I think this perspective makes a lot more sense from the perspective of a mature opinion but I am not sure it would resonate with the 16 or 17 year olds that simply want to play on a good team. Since the women are not on national TV very much, things like facilities matter more too. While the IAC will help, the games are still played in front of sparse crowds at McDonough. There are also other good options out there. While Connecticut might generally not be considered on the same academic level as Georgetown, the positives they have (NCAA championships, dominant program, etc.) will easily outweigh any benefits Georgetown has if the recruit simply wants to win. They know they can get that at Connecticut, and it's much more questionable here. You also have schools like Notre Dame who are also very good academically, and are successful. I just don't think the average 16 or 17 year old interested in playing basketball cares as much about being in DC versus South Bend or Storrs. And as I said, when you factor in some of the outside elements (like the fact that the women's program gets a lot more attention in Storrs than Georgetown will ever get in DC), it's not so clear.
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drquigley
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Post by drquigley on Apr 15, 2014 15:09:37 GMT -5
Probably right. Also, not many true game changers out there in the women's game. If all you care about is winning then you probably head to UCONN. But I'd still like to be the one talking to these young girls parents and be the one showing them GU. Also ask JT2 to help.
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Post by Problem of Dog on Apr 16, 2014 1:24:35 GMT -5
I've said it before, GU should be the premier women's bball program. Look where we are and what we can offer a woman athlete. Unlike the men who have millions of dollars being waived before them, education should be a real concern for women athletes. A GU degree should mean something to them. Plus 4 years of life in D.C. and Georgetown should be much more attractive than 4 years in Storrs or South Bend. I'm sure you have women jocks just like men but at the end of the day a woman bballer has to appreciate that she will have a much longer (and less financially secure) life after basketball than a man. I just don't understand why we can't use the to our advantage when recruiting. This is incredibly 1) stupid, and 2) sexist. Given the resources committed to our women's program, we have no business competing with the UCONNs, Notre Dames and Marylands of the world. And I don't think we will any time soon.
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CAHoya07
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Post by CAHoya07 on Apr 16, 2014 11:41:51 GMT -5
I've said it before, GU should be the premier women's bball program. Look where we are and what we can offer a woman athlete. Unlike the men who have millions of dollars being waived before them, education should be a real concern for women athletes. A GU degree should mean something to them. Plus 4 years of life in D.C. and Georgetown should be much more attractive than 4 years in Storrs or South Bend. I'm sure you have women jocks just like men but at the end of the day a woman bballer has to appreciate that she will have a much longer (and less financially secure) life after basketball than a man. I just don't understand why we can't use the to our advantage when recruiting. This is incredibly 1) stupid, and 2) sexist. Given the resources committed to our women's program, we have no business competing with the UCONNs, Notre Dames and Marylands of the world. And I don't think we will any time soon. Even recent history suggests that we do have business competing with at least the Marylands and UConns of the world. Perhaps not on a consistent basis, but it has happened. 2011 NCAA Tournament March 22 - Round of 32 Georgetown 79, Maryland 57March 27 - Round of 16 Connecticut 68, Georgetown 63We competed at a very high level just three years ago, and I see no reason why we can't get back there again. Of course, it helps to have a game changer like Sugar Rodgers. But the women's team will be helped just as much as the men's team by the IAC, and with this seemingly good hire, I think there is plenty of reason to be optimistic for big improvement over the last couple seasons' disasters.
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DFW HOYA
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Post by DFW HOYA on Apr 16, 2014 12:20:38 GMT -5
We competed at a very high level just three years ago, and I see no reason why we can't get back there again. Of course, it helps to have a game changer like Sugar Rodgers. But the women's team will be helped just as much as the men's team by the IAC, and with this seemingly good hire, I think there is plenty of reason to be optimistic for big improvement over the last couple seasons' disasters. I wouldn't confuse competing in a game with competing as a program--Florida Gulf Coast competed with Georgetown for 40 minutes but the programs aren't even remotely competing with each other. One of the ongoing limitations to Georgetown women's basketball has been coaching and recruiting reach. Pat Knapp tended to recruit kids in Pennsylvania because that was what he knew. Terri Williams-Flournoy focused on kids from the Tidewater, because that was a region she knew. By contrast, the Geno Auriemmas of the coaching world are recruiting nationally. The 11 kids on the UConn roster come from eight different states. It's touch to walk into the house of the next Diana Taurasi or the next Briana Stewart and sell someone on Georgetown if they've never seen your team play. Natasha Adair may be a fine coach but she's not a national name and 35-31 is not a two year record which is going to open a lot of doors. Perhaps as a result of Flournoy's awkward jump to Auburn, Georgetown may be seeking coaches that are less likely to jump ship and be willing to settle in without a lot of external pressure. The challenge for this new coach is to set some expectations on where the program is going and how soon she will get it there. If Georgetown is comfortable with where it was under Knapp, that's one strategy. If Georgetown expects Sweet 16 runs, another strategy follows. Fans matter, too. Most on-campus sports are experiencing notable declines in attendance. Football (2,225) draws about the same but road fans have a lot to do with that. Men's lacrosse (735) is half of where it was under Dave Urick, women's basketball (734) has dropped about 20% from Flournoy's last season. Even men's (745) and women's (358) soccer aren't drawing as their records would suggest.
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Post by Problem of Dog on Apr 16, 2014 12:53:01 GMT -5
This is incredibly 1) stupid, and 2) sexist. Given the resources committed to our women's program, we have no business competing with the UCONNs, Notre Dames and Marylands of the world. And I don't think we will any time soon. Even recent history suggests that we do have business competing with at least the Marylands and UConns of the world. Perhaps not on a consistent basis, but it has happened. 2011 NCAA Tournament March 22 - Round of 32 Georgetown 79, Maryland 57March 27 - Round of 16 Connecticut 68, Georgetown 63We competed at a very high level just three years ago, and I see no reason why we can't get back there again. Of course, it helps to have a game changer like Sugar Rodgers. But the women's team will be helped just as much as the men's team by the IAC, and with this seemingly good hire, I think there is plenty of reason to be optimistic for big improvement over the last couple seasons' disasters. That's exactly one year. And TWF is long gone.
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drquigley
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Post by drquigley on Apr 18, 2014 10:05:18 GMT -5
But a top athlete in Bball can turn a program around (see P. Ewing) and more than get the attention needed to go pro. And I can't believe a female bballer wouldn't be more attracted to GU and its environment than Storrs. Unlike their male counterparts a woman bballer has to weigh the reality of a pro career (is schlepping alone across Europe on a ball team as attractive to a woman as a man?) against the value of a college education. Like I said, let me in the home of a female athlete and pitch the value of a Georgetown education to her family. I'd have a better shot at getting top talent than JT3 does. Because Storrs has Geno. If you are D1 women's basketball player the first thing you care about is basketball and where you will get better, general education comes 2nd. You also have a chance to win a championship every year, possibly go undefeated, be apart of an amazing legacy, be well connected in the basketball world, play at least twice as many games on ESPN/Primetime National television, and have actual fans/following at your school and throughout the state. The fact that you can't see why Uconn is a far far FAR more attractive option for any women's basketball player that Georgetown, and frankly pretty much every other program out there, shows how little you know about the sport. You are right. I don't know a lot about women's bball. I appreciate the education. I thought that the parents of a female athlete would be much more concerned with the value of the education she received than those of a male athlete since the world after women's bball is so much less attractive. With the exception of a handful of ex- UCONN stars can you name a former woman bballer 5-10 years after graduating? But a quality D1 athlete of any sex has probably been focused on the sport for so long that they and their families are oblivious to the realities of life after basketball. That was always JT2's pitch when recruiting but in today's world of instant fame, ESPN, and blogs I'm sure young girls attitudes about life are being warped just like their male counterparts. Does JT3 still have the deflated basketball on his desk?
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drquigley
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by drquigley on Apr 18, 2014 10:17:59 GMT -5
I've said it before, GU should be the premier women's bball program. Look where we are and what we can offer a woman athlete. Unlike the men who have millions of dollars being waived before them, education should be a real concern for women athletes. A GU degree should mean something to them. Plus 4 years of life in D.C. and Georgetown should be much more attractive than 4 years in Storrs or South Bend. I'm sure you have women jocks just like men but at the end of the day a woman bballer has to appreciate that she will have a much longer (and less financially secure) life after basketball than a man. I just don't understand why we can't use the to our advantage when recruiting. This is incredibly 1) stupid, and 2) sexist. Given the resources committed to our women's program, we have no business competing with the UCONNs, Notre Dames and Marylands of the world. And I don't think we will any time soon. Stupid and sexist to point out that the women's game has no where near the financial rewards (or post college lucrative career opportunities) of the men's game and that a woman bballer should be more concerned with the value of her degree than a man? No matter how good a bballer my daughter is I have to accept the fact that a few years after college people will have no idea that she played Div1 bball and when trying to start her career they will look at her degree and not her stats. As to resources I agree that we will have trouble competing with the UCONNS but the fact is that we do and so we should play to our strengths, i.e. our location and our academics.
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Post by Problem of Dog on May 30, 2014 23:16:14 GMT -5
Big East Freshman of the Year Natalie Butler has landed at UCONN after transferring from Georgetown. Awesome.
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Post by HometownHoya on May 31, 2014 1:29:34 GMT -5
Big East Freshman of the Year Natalie Butler has landed at UCONN after transferring from Georgetown. Awesome. Thanks for the great and prompt news. Can always expect it from you .
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SSHoya
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
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Post by SSHoya on May 31, 2014 6:10:42 GMT -5
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DanMcQ
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Post by DanMcQ on May 31, 2014 7:31:03 GMT -5
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DoctorHoya
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Post by DoctorHoya on May 31, 2014 7:35:24 GMT -5
Pretty sure it was sarcasm
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DanMcQ
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Post by DanMcQ on May 31, 2014 8:05:55 GMT -5
Pretty sure it was sarcasm Me too.
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