Boston
Globe
Basketball Notebook
College hoop: New book gives an inside look
By Judy Van Handle, Globe Staff, 10/23/2002
Next month, when the first women's collegiate basketball games tip off, the answers to two of the biggest questions in the sport will begin to take shape.
To wit: Can Connecticut repeat as national champion - or Big East champ, for that matter - with as many as four freshmen in the starting lineup? And will the incoming class prove to be as successful as the group that left Storrs last spring with two NCAA titles?
But those questions actually beg many more. Why does one school wind up with so many good players? How does a coach attract talent to a program? How do high school stars choose a school? What is recruiting like in Divisions 2 and 3, and how do their methods differ from Division 1? And will women's basketball eventually be tainted with as much slime and scandal as the men's game?
Those are only a few of the questions that Lisa Liberty Becker attempts to answer in her book, ''Net Prospect: The Courting Process of Women's College Basketball Recruiting.'' After interviewing nearly 100 people involved in the sport (many from New England), coaches, players, parents, and others who make up the recruiting mosaic offer some lively opinions and anecdotes.
''Recruiting is a big head game,'' said Becker. ''The coach will say, `We really want you. You're our No. 1 choice.' And that's what the player wants to hear. But people can make mistakes in recruiting, both players and coaches.''
"Women's college basketball recruiting hasn't yet become the cesspool of recruiting that exists in the men's game, but as the money comes so will the temptations. Becker, a senior writer for Women's Basketball magazine, interviewed more than 80 players and coaches for her examination of a system that is increasingly pressurized as coaches develop their careers and universities attempt to stay ahead of the pack so that when the big bucks do appear, they have a leg up on the field. She begins by laying out the basic recruiting guidelines for NCAA Divisions I, II, and III as well as for junior colleges and the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics). She then examines the roles of parents, high-school coaches, recruiting camps, the nascent "street agent" scene, and the ubiquitous scouting reports. Becker's book is both a clear-eyed examination of where the women's recruiting process is today and a cautionary tale of where it may be headed. This will be of value to parents, athletes, coaches, and fans. Required reading for high-school girls anticipating playing college basketball."
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Booklist
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"After reading this book I realized how much I need to learn about the recruiting process. I have been coaching for 15 years and think this book will be a great resource not only for me as a coach but for my players and parents as well. There is information which covers every angle of the process. The insights of the top coaches and players across the nation adds a great deal of credibility."
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Leslie Davis, head coach, Cambridge Rindge & Latin
2002 Massachusetts Division I High School Coach of the Year
