This season marks the 30th anniversary of Kamie Ethridge being named national POY and helping lead her Texas Longhorns to an undefeated record and the 1986 NCAA title. Last year she was named head coach at Northern Colorado and proceeded to lead the Bears to a school-record 22 wins and the 3rd round of the WNIT. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Ethridge about winning an Olympic gold medal and being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Your father/sister played college basketball and your mother played high school basketball: who is the best athlete in the family, and do you credit at least some of your success to genetics? I think my dad was a really good athlete. He was only 5’8” but played multiple sports, including basketball at TCU. My mom was a good athlete but did not have an opportunity to play sports beyond high school. My siblings and I were all athletes so I definitely give credit to our genes.
You were a 2-time All-American at Texas and the 1986 national POY: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? Texas was a premier school and just light years ahead of everyone else in terms of their support/marketing of women’s athletics. I give so much credit to the machine: I played on a dominant team that lost only 9 games during my college career! We had tremendous firepower and we had depth that was way before its time. I feel that I was a product of tremendous support and played alongside some of the best athletes in the world.
You also served as team captain as a senior: what is the key to being a good leader? Captains were not really voted on: the seniors just served as captains. I have learned a lot since then: leaders make people better no matter how they do it or who gets the credit. You have to do whatever it takes to give your team a chance to win.
Take me through the magical 1986 NCAA tourney:
During your win over Oklahoma in the Regional Semifinal you jumped in the air/brought the ball in front of your body/took it around your left shoulder/passed behind yourself to Clarissa Davis for a layup: how did you come up with such a move, and did everyone freak out after you pulled it off? There was an old guy at Texas Tech named Kent Williams who showed me that move during a pickup game 1 day. I tried it a number of times in practice and it would often skip away: I had to go run and get it before Coach Jody Conradt saw that the ball went out of bounds! There are very few times when you can use such a move during a game, but it was the perfect time and ended up in the hands of a perfect player. It was a big moment and the crowd kind of went crazy because they were so surprised. Coach Nell Fortner once told me that she would be on the edge of her seat while watching me play, and that was 1 of those moments.
Your 1985 tourney ended in a 2-PT loss to Western Kentucky when Lillie Mason made a turnaround jumper at the buzzer: how devastating was that loss, and how sweet was it to beat them by 25 PTS in the national semifinal in 1986? I think the loss in 1985 spurred our success in 1986. We felt a lot of pressure to get to the Final 4 in Austin the prior year and just could not get it done. It was a gut-wrenching loss that took us all a long time to get over. We were angry because we had disappointed a lot of people and from that moment on nobody thought we would lose at all the following year. We wanted to make a statement against them in 1986 and we were able to prove that we were the best team in the country.
You beat USC in the title game to complete the 1st–ever undefeated season by an NCAA women’s basketball team: how was your team able to set a Final 4 record by scoring 97 PTS against a Trojan team featuring Cheryl Miller/Cynthia Cooper, and what did it mean to you to win a title? We had a high-powered offense and pressed a lot/ran due to our great athletes. We just had more of a chip on our shoulder and had never won a title before so we were not going to be denied. Getting to the Final 4 was a relief to us: once we got there we just knew that nobody could stop us. Cheryl got in foul trouble and we were able to dominate from start to finish. It was great to win a title with 8 seniors who grew up together. We lost to Louisiana Tech a couple of times in the NCAA tourney earlier in our career and wish that we could have won another title.
You graduated with 776 career AST, which remains the most in school history: what is your secret for being a great PG, and do you think that anyone will ever break your record? I definitely think that someone will break my record. We did not have the 3-PT line back then so I wonder how my game would translate to the current day. I was good in the open court and created easy baskets for my teammates, which I took a lot of pride in. We just wanted to make it easy for others.
You played for team USA at the 1988 Olympics: what did it mean to you to win a gold medal? It was an amazing experience: as an individual it was the greatest accomplishment that I was ever a part of. When you have the gold medal around your neck and hear the anthem being played, it is pretty unbelievable. Coach Kay Yow showed a lot of loyalty in even selecting me for the team and it was 1 of the best moments in my career.
In 2002 you were inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame: where does that rank among the highlights of your career? When I look at that honor, I think the only reason I got it was due to the coaches I had and the fact that as the PG I was the face of an undefeated team. It is unbelievable to be inducted into the Hall of Fame at any level and I do not think that it is something that I am really worthy of. I am proud to represent my school and that undefeated team in particular.
In 2014 you were named head coach at the University of Northern Colorado: how do you like the job, and how long do you plan on sticking around for? I will stay as long as they have me! I love my job and waited a long time for the opportunity, but I also love the chance to build a culture and find people who are committed to the same vision. It is exciting to be a part of a program, lead some young women, and give them some lifelong lessons both on and off the court.