Basketball Women

The women's national college basketball tournament will get more air time and possible scheduling changes under a $200-million, 11-year TV deal announced Thursday by the NCAA and ESPN. The expiring NCAA-ESPN contract, covering a number of sports, was for $19 million over seven years. NCAA President Cedric Dempsey said the contract to televise 21 national championships was 1 1/2 years in the making. The biggest effect will be on the women's basketball tournament.

There was a point early in Sunday's women's basketball final when Brazil seemed to be getting the best of the United States. Hortencia was popping three-pointers, weaving her way to the hoop for underhand shots off the glass, slapping a hand on the press table as she flew by, ponytail whipping in the wind as she exulted in her dominance. U.S. Coach Jody Conradt thought maybe she was up against an impossible task.

Dana Craft, associate athletic director at Southwest Texas State, called Linda Sharp in the spring of 1989, hoping the USC women's basketball coach could recommend some candidates for the vacant Bobcat job. The discussion focused on top assistant coaches around the country until a surprise candidate emerged. "The conversation was real light, and then, jokingly, I said, 'Why haven't you asked about me?' " Sharp said. "That knocked her socks off. She was surprised, but we went from there."

Everyone knows Brea-Olinda is the best girls' basketball team in the county, probably the state, and one of the best in the nation. The Ladycats could win the Orange League without their starting five. But there are other issues in the sport. One thing you can't say about it in 1993-94 is that it's listless. It's not. In fact, it's all lists. ONE FALSE RUMOR * Cypress' Jessica Eggleston (averaging 31.3 points) wants to play volleyball in college instead of basketball.

From out of the gloom of a season on pace for perhaps 25 defeats, there arrives at UCLA a shining star, portending brighter days for the women's basketball program. Her name is Kristee Porter and she evokes memories of another ultra-talented Bruin volleyball-basketball standout, Natalie Williams. Williams, class of '94, was a two-sport phenom who nearly made the 1996 Olympic volleyball team, then moved on to an all-star basketball career in the ABL and WNBA.

Cal State Northridge did not score for the first 4:32 and did not make a basket for the final 4:31 but had enough in between for a 57-54 victory over Montana on Saturday night in a Big Sky Conference women's basketball game at the Matadome. Kristi Rose's two free throws with 4:08 left broke a 53-53 tie and the Matadors (8-11, 4-4 in conference play) won for only the second time in six games. "It was a great team effort and a big step forward for us," Matadors Coach Frozena Jerro said.

Heidi Hardeman, one of Orange County's premier scorers, came into her senior season at Troy hoping to get mentally tougher, choose a college and have a dream season. With Troy ranked in the girls' basketball top 10 and teammates who gave the Warriors an even better chance to win, all looked good for Hardeman until Dec. 4. That was when her life turned into "a roller coaster" both on and off the court. Hardeman never had to be tougher mentally.

The USC women's basketball team is in postseason play for the 10th consecutive season. It is an unremarkable statistic for a team that has won the national championship twice. On reputation, the Trojans are a team that should advance to postseason play. This, though, is not a typical Trojan team. On paper, this USC team should have self-destructed early in the season and gone downhill from there.

Women's professional basketball is just plain fun. A creature of the men's NBA, the televised new WNBA is the answer to a basketball junkie's (blush) summer blahs, featuring lots of quickness, flying bodies, over-dribbling, sporadic good shooting and inconsistent play that's wild, wild, wild. Think of good boys' high school basketball, where energy often exceeds the uneven skill level, and you pretty much have the picture. In other words, a real hoot.

Nancy Lieberman's indoctrination into international basketball went something like this: During a qualifying tournament in Hamilton, Canada, before the 1976 Summer Games, a sharpshooting Bulgarian guard was unstoppable, and the U.S. women were on the verge of losing an Olympic berth. In desperation, Coach Billie Moore sent Lieberman into the game with instructions.