The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Hall of Fame coach Leon Barmore about his former player Janice Lawrence Braxton winning a pair of national titles in 1981/1982 and a gold medal in 1984.
(photo credit: espn.com)
Janice was born/raised in Mississippi and was a 2-time Parade Magazine All-American: how did you recruit her to Louisiana Tech? Watching her play in high school I would say that she was 1 of the 2 or 3 best high school players I ever saw. We used to keep a shot chart: she made something like 16-18 shots on 1 night I saw her play…and they were not all layups.
She was 6’3”: how much of an advantage was her size on the court? It helped her but after coaching for 25 years I think she is the most versatile player I ever had. She could run the court, make outside shots, and post up. She is 1 of the best all-around players we ever had.
Your team won the 1981 AIAW title game over Tennessee by 20 PTS and finished the season 34-0: how was your team able to stay focused for every single game? We had lost in the Final 4 the previous 2 years so that was certainly a motivational factor to actually finish it. We beat USC in the semifinals and Pat Summitt in the title game.
In the 1st-ever NCAA tourney title game in 1982 she scored 20 PTS in a win over Cheyney State (who had won 23 games in a row) en route to being named tourney MOP: how was she able to play her best when it mattered the most? She is 1 of the top competitors we ever had here. She was a fiery player and took it seriously. That team was even better than the undefeated year: I have said it is the best team I ever had and it is due to her.
In the 1983 NCAA title game you had a 2-PT loss to USC and in the 1984 Final 4 you had a 5-PT loss to eventual champ USC: how close did she come to winning 4 titles in a row, and how intense was the rivalry back in the day? It was very intense. We beat USC in the semifinals in 1981 but then they brought in Cheryl Miller, who I think is the best college player ever, as well as the McGee twins. They also had Cynthia Cooper, who made 3 straight jumpers to beat us in 1983. In 1984 we had to play them in their backyard at UCLA.
She was the 1984 national POY/2-time All-American: what did it mean to her to receive such outstanding honors? She deserved those honors and was very proud of them. You always wonder how players from the past could compete in today’s era: she could play with anyone.
She went 130-6 and made the Final 4 for 4 straight years: did it reach a point where you just expected to win every time that she stepped onto the court? We had a lot of wins! Kim Mulkey also played on those teams: we were not cocky about it but knew that we were good. What pleases me is that we had great success for a 12-13 year period.
She played for team USA at the 1983 Pan Am Games and 1984 Olympics: what did it mean to her to represent her country, and what did it mean to her to win a pair of gold medals? Janice had a lot of pride in playing for her country and appreciated winning those gold medals.
She played pro basketball for 15 years in Italy: how was she able to have such a nice long career overseas? She lasted that long because she was slender/wiry and never got hurt. She took good care of herself and had a good makeup. She was tough: if you threw her down on the pavement she would bounce right back up.
She was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006: when people look back on her career, how do you think that she should be remembered the most? I would put her in the top 2-3 players we ever had here. She was surrounded by some good players but she made the difference in how highly we were ranked.