NMSooner'80
8/10/2010, 09:39 AM
Young Lobos Will Face Stiff Competition This Season
By Ken Sickenger / Journal Reporter
Monday, 09 August 2010 23:18
You might think an extremely youthful UNM women's basketball team would be in line for a light schedule in 2010-11.
If so, you'd be mistaken.
Coach Don Flanagan unveiled a schedule on Monday that might best be described as somewhere between ambitious and brutal.
A Lobos squad with 11 sophomores and freshmen will face the likes of Texas Tech, Cal, Arizona and Oklahoma. UNM also could draw Oklahoma State and Arizona State as tournament opponents.
Texas Tech, Cal, Arizona and Oklahoma State will visit the newly remodeled Pit, while New Mexico travels to Oklahoma, UTEP and participates in the Arizona State Classic in Tempe. UNM's pre-Mountain West Conference slate also includes Cal Irvine, San Francisco, Lamar and home-and-away battles with New Mexico State.
Considering that Cal won last season's WNIT championship and Oklahoma was a Final Four qualifier, the schedule rates among the toughest of Flanagan's 16-year UNM career.
"I'm not sure we've had a tougher one," Flanagan said. "We could have three games against Pac-10 teams, three against Big-12 teams and the Mountain West is not gonna be any picnic."
The obvious question: Why such a loaded schedule when the Lobos have such limited experience? Amanda Best and Jessica Kielpinski are the only seniors on a team with three juniors and a slew of underclassmen.
Flanagan said it is partly a matter of coincidence. The Cal game is part of a home-and-home series that started when UNM played in Berkeley in 2007. The return game was repeatedly delayed until this season.
New Mexico also secured a home-and-home series with Oklahoma, which will visit Albuquerque in 2011-12.
"We owe it to our fans to schedule as tough as we can," Flanagan said. "When you're scheduling, you can't do it realizing you're gonna be young in a given season. We are young this year, but it's up to us to rise to the competition."
Flanagan said he gave his players copies of the schedule as they finished summer classes and workouts. He hoped the schedule would serve as motivation.
"They were pretty excited about it," Flanagan said. "They know they have to work hard the rest of the summer.
"Of course, most of the young players don't know what they're getting into with a schedule like this. That's probably a good thing."
By Ken Sickenger / Journal Reporter
Monday, 09 August 2010 23:18
You might think an extremely youthful UNM women's basketball team would be in line for a light schedule in 2010-11.
If so, you'd be mistaken.
Coach Don Flanagan unveiled a schedule on Monday that might best be described as somewhere between ambitious and brutal.
A Lobos squad with 11 sophomores and freshmen will face the likes of Texas Tech, Cal, Arizona and Oklahoma. UNM also could draw Oklahoma State and Arizona State as tournament opponents.
Texas Tech, Cal, Arizona and Oklahoma State will visit the newly remodeled Pit, while New Mexico travels to Oklahoma, UTEP and participates in the Arizona State Classic in Tempe. UNM's pre-Mountain West Conference slate also includes Cal Irvine, San Francisco, Lamar and home-and-away battles with New Mexico State.
Considering that Cal won last season's WNIT championship and Oklahoma was a Final Four qualifier, the schedule rates among the toughest of Flanagan's 16-year UNM career.
"I'm not sure we've had a tougher one," Flanagan said. "We could have three games against Pac-10 teams, three against Big-12 teams and the Mountain West is not gonna be any picnic."
The obvious question: Why such a loaded schedule when the Lobos have such limited experience? Amanda Best and Jessica Kielpinski are the only seniors on a team with three juniors and a slew of underclassmen.
Flanagan said it is partly a matter of coincidence. The Cal game is part of a home-and-home series that started when UNM played in Berkeley in 2007. The return game was repeatedly delayed until this season.
New Mexico also secured a home-and-home series with Oklahoma, which will visit Albuquerque in 2011-12.
"We owe it to our fans to schedule as tough as we can," Flanagan said. "When you're scheduling, you can't do it realizing you're gonna be young in a given season. We are young this year, but it's up to us to rise to the competition."
Flanagan said he gave his players copies of the schedule as they finished summer classes and workouts. He hoped the schedule would serve as motivation.
"They were pretty excited about it," Flanagan said. "They know they have to work hard the rest of the summer.
"Of course, most of the young players don't know what they're getting into with a schedule like this. That's probably a good thing."