The Lauren Hill Game From The Other Side

((HT: CBS News))

We all remember the Lauren Hill story from last week...

Our coverage is hyah of the game, the day after, and all the reaction...

CBS News' Steve Hartman put the story at a 180-degree angle and this is what he saw...

He went to the Hiram College side and found an entirely unexpected perspective...


Is it dusty in here or is it us...???

Lauren Hill: The Next Day

((HT: WCPO-TV))

The HQ showed you a little bit of the story from Cincinnati on Sunday with Mount St. Joseph's hoops player Lauren Hill as she got to play her first college basketball game over the weekend as she fights DIPG- an unforgiving form of brain cancer.

So, what now...???

That's really a question for all of us as we move forward with windows greater than Lauren's...

Brother Phil's buddy Popo caught up with her to find out what she thought about what happened over the weekend...


The Cure Starts Now Foundation is where people battling pediatric cancer (and those who wish to help in the fight) can go in the future. If this is something that encourages you as we all move to our next days, check them out.

We'll keep you posted on MSJ's season...

Lauren Hill's First Collegiate Game

((HT: Fox Sports))

The story is nothing short of amazing...

Mount St. Joseph's post player Lauren Hill is fighting DIPG- a cancer that attaches itself to the brain stem and spiders out from there. It's an inoperable brain tumor that has given all of us the chance to learn about this monster and how we can possibly attack it from this moment on.

The cancer has given her a more evil diagnosis and a very short timetable- maybe a month or so.

The MSJ season opener with Hiram College was moved up- thanks to the NCAA giving special papal dispensation- and the game was moved to Xavier University's arena. The 10,000-plus seat arena sold out in an hour.

And, as it should have been, Hill made the first and last baskets in the game.

Here's the first basket on the day...


Here's Brad Johansen and Debbie Antonelli with Lauren when the game was secondary to the voice of the day


#LayUp4Lauren is the hashtag for the efforts

Richmond Confirms 2 WBB Staffers Dead In Hot Air Balloon Accident

((HT: WTVR-TV))

While the search intensifies for the third victim in a surprising and tragic hot air balloon accident in Richmond, Virginia, the University of Richmond has announced that two women's basketball staffers were among the dead.

Associate head women’s basketball coach Ginny Doyle and director of basketball operations Natalie Lewis were on the balloon that crashed.

The balloon containing Doyle and Lewis struck power lines and caught on fire and the gondola separated from the balloon itself. Two people were seen either falling or jumping from the gondola once it caught on fire and eyewitnesses report hearing people saying:

"Jesus, help us. We're going to die!"


Grief counselors were available on campus and baseball games with St. Bonaventure were cancelled.

"As alumnae, classmates, and colleagues and as invaluable and devoted mentors for our student-athletes Ginny and Natalie have been beloved members of our community,” UR President Edward L. Ayers said in a statement. “Their leadership and friendship will endure in the lives of so many.”

“Words cannot begin to express our sorrow,” UR Athletic Director Keith Gill said in a statement. “We are all stunned by the tragic news. Our thoughts and prayers go out to their loved ones.”

Here's the presser identifying the second victim


The Virginia State Police are now calling the search for the third victim a recovery mission instead of a rescue mission.

Weird Ending For Women's Game With UNC and Tenn-Martin

((HT: WTVD-TV))

First, a little context...

This shut down the UNC-CH campus Sunday afternoon...


At the same time, the Tarheels were playing the Skyhawks at Carmichael on campus...
UT-M had a 12-point lead at the half and an 18-point lead in the second half. But, as is normally the case, the home team came storming back in the late stages. Even after the game, fans were forced to stay inside Carmichael after police announced there was an armed and dangerous person near the campus.

But... here's where the fun starts...
Rebecca, Kara, and Kevin discuss...


The Tarheels get Michigan State next...

Right Cross Stops Women's Hoops Game

((HT: Bleacher Report))

This is almost Rudy T-Kermit Washington stuff...

Finnish women's hoops... and a punch begat another cold cock...

Tapiolan Honka forward Shanel Harrison punched an opponent on the change of possession after physical play at the other end...

Here's the play in full... from both ends...


Before joining Tapiolan Honka, Harrison played college basketball at La Salle and Virginia Tech.
She has been kicked off the squad...

Randy Moss' Daughter Sets D3 Scoring Record

She was at the University of Florida, but nowadays Sydney Moss is tolling at Thomas More College. She set the new NCAA Division III scoring mark with 63 points in a 106-88 win over Waynesburg (Pa.) University in the President's Athletic Conference tournament...

The old record was 61

Here's some highlights
((HT: Jason Dudas))


Thomas More improved to 27-0 and a conference final.

So you know, the D1 record is 60 by Cindy Brown for Long Beach State against San Jose State back in 1987.

Southern University's Ban Continues

((HT: WAFB-TV))

Southern University couldn't get it done in time...

The improvements in their academic data that the NCAA wanted to have in place were not done in time for the winter sports to keep from being banned in the postseason upcoming...

Southern's men's basketball team have clinched at least a tie for the SWAC regular-season title and the women are in second place, a half-game behind Texas Southern with a few games remaining in the regular season. The men's team found at the decision at practice yesterday.

The NCAA requires information in and around the Athlete Performance Program and APR. The information initially given to the NCAA was incomplete and a full review and revision was requested. As a result, the athletic program was given a post-season ban that would be revisited for the winter sports.

But it didn't work out...

Reaction on campus is, obviously, rough...
WAFB 9 News Baton Rouge, Louisiana News, Weather, Sports

The NCAA and the university issued a joint statement that said, in part:

“The NCAA has informed us of the enormity of the challenge before us, but we continue to work exhaustively in our efforts to comply with their requests, and share in their goals to provide the best institutional support for student athletes,” said William Broussard, athletics director at Southern. “As stated in the initial press conference to announce the post-season ineligibilities due to the ongoing data review, the NCAA has partnered extensively with our coordinated, campus-wide effort to report data from previous years accurately, perform and recommend corrections, and re-design policies and procedures for reporting accurate data in the future.”

NCAA staff members began working closely with Southern in March 2013 in an effort to help the school resolve its data issues. Staff also expedited internal deadlines and continues to work on a compressed timeline in all matters related to the school’s athletic teams.

“Our staff is committed to working with Southern on its data issues,” said Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president for academic and membership affairs. “We hope the result of this collaboration is a fully-functioning, robust system of tracking retention and eligibility on Southern’s campus, to help student-athletes achieve academically and get the support they need to succeed.”

UK-Baylor Goes For 263 Points... In Women's Hoops...

((HT: ESPN))

The Kentucky-Baylor doubleheader at Jerry World took a little longer than it would have normally...

Because the women's game went 4 overtimes and was good for 263 points total in the 133-130 win by 5th-ranked Kentucky...

Here's the highlights...


Odyssey Sims was good for 47 and Jennifer O'Neill poured in 43 to lead both squads...

The previous high for a Division I women's game was 252 points in SMU's 127-125 win over TCU, also in four overtimes, on January 25, 1997. The two schools combined for 84-of-198 from the floor and 82-of-112 from the foul line on 80 fouls...

Kim Mulkey Gets A Suspension

Okay...

How many of you remember this from the Final Four weekend...???
((HT: ESPN/NCAA))


The HQ didn't, but the folks in Indianapolis did...

So, as a result... the Baylor head coach has been given a one-game suspension for the March post-season tournament. The folks who run the college game also are holding the Bears championship per diem for the regional round...

Which, probably hurts more than the suspension does...

Mulkey, in the eyes of the NCAA, is a repeat offender. She was reprimanded in 2011 for criticizing the NCAA when they put texas A&M in her bracket- a team it had faced three times that season. Texas A&M won the game in the tourney and the national title.

"The committee unanimously felt that the behavior of Coach Mulkey was unacceptable and has no place in the women's basketball championship," said Carolayne Henry, committee chair and senior associate commissioner for the Mountain West Conference.

And there you go...

University of Tennessee to Build Pat Summitt Plaza

((ht: utsports.com))

The University of Tennessee athletics department announced Wednesday morning that they will build a plaza, complete with bronze statue of legendary woman's basketball coach Pat Summitt.

Summitt who retired in 2012, coached at the school for 38 seasons, winning 1,098 games, 8 NCAA Championships and a ton of SEC titles.

According to the school's press release, the Plaza will be on the corner of Lake Loudon Blvd and Philip Fulmer Way and will have the statue along with a tribute to the success of her teams.

Read the Press Release RIGHT HERE

And the website for the Plaza/Project is RIGHT HERE

It's a fitting tribute to a coaching legend who's career was cut short after her diagnosis of Alzheimer's. We applaud the school and athletic department for doing this.

Baylor Women Knocked Out By The Other Louisville

((HT: KWTX-TV))

A lot of people, okay... everyone... is calling the Baylor exit from the Women's tournament as one of the biggest (if not THE biggest) upset in tournament history...

The Louisville Cardinals hit 16-of-25 from three-point (which is absurd), hung around, hung around some more, and hit two free throws with less than 3 seconds left in regulation for the 82-81 win.

Baylor was winners of 74 of their last 75 games, defending national champion, and all of that important stuff...

So much for all that important stuff...

Here's what Baylor had to deal with in a team that didn't back down...
((HT: ESPN/NCAA))


The applause you heard was from Notre Dame, UConn, and everyone else left in the tournament that won't have to deal with the most dominant player of this era.

Louisville is 27-8 and was part of all four 6-seeds making it to the Sweet 16, and now they're one going a little further than Delaware.

Oklahoma St. Women's B-Ball coaches killed in crash

Kurt Budke

((ht: newsok.com))

**UPDATE** at bottom of this story.

A horrible story to report this morning. Oklahoma State women's basketball coach Kurt Budke and assistant Miranda Serna along with another passenger and a pilot were killed when their plane crashed in Perry County, Arkansas late Thursday night.

Newson6.com in Tulsa said they were flying in a Piper PA-28 Cherokee airplane.

According to Newsok.com, the coaches were on a recruiting trip.

Budke had been the head coach since 2005 and won 112 games while coaching in Stillwater. His teams made the NCAA tournament 3-times and also made 2 other post season appearance.

Read the entire story from Newsok.com RIGHT HERE

Budke leaves behind a wife and three kids, Serna, was a long-time assistant, she also coached in Stillwater the past seven years before coming over from Lousiana Tech with Budke.

Okie State President Burns Hargis released a statement saying: "The Oklahoma State family is devastated by this tragedy. Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of Kurt Budke, Miranda Serna and the other victims."


As do ours.

**UPDATE**--

The plane belonged to former Oklahoma State Senator Olin Branstetter and his wife Paula. It was not the 1st air tragedy for the Oklahoma State Athletic department. In 2001, one of the 3 planes the men's basketball team was flying in to a game in Colorado crashed.