Coach Kellie Harper

[Volfan2012]

Never said we shouldn’t recruit I said we should go away from reliance. I clarified later if people would actually keep reading

I saw a post forgot who it was that said we should stat away from players like Rickea Jackson. I should've looked closer just thought it was to dumb to do so.

 

[VolBall09]

Yes by all means, if by a miracle there's a Rickea type player out there let's avoid her at all cost.

That seems bass-ackwards to me. Our problem wasn't having a Rickea type player, it was the lack of consistent players around her. Problem wasn't Batman, it was the times (like almost every big loss) that Robin failed to show.

Earl seems to be telling us that NIL dollars are finally starting to flow. So it would be exactly KJH luck to get fired right as that finally happens. Which means some mid major 'hope she does better' coach will come in, start getting players, and we'll never, ever hear the end of 'told you it was never NIL'.

I thought for sure KJH would get another year, still think that, but I swear I almost want to see her go both to end the misery for her and her family and bc her luck is so bad it's actually scary.

You keep brining up luck and to me this is so obviously a “reap what you sow” situation.

 

[madtownvol]

Maybe NIL help is on the way cause Kellie is being fired and that is the stipulation to supply NIL support. Just playing Devils Advocate.

That thought crossed my mind too going back to the chicken or egg problem-- something may have needed to change.

 

[VolFuture]

I would say Kellie had the opposite problem. Her big failing was not being able to get the ball to RJ in clutch moments. Too many crucial possession came down to 5-6 Powell trying to hit a circus shot in the paint against 6-4 opposition. Rickea averaged 20 pts a game pretty much creating her own offense all season. She is the best offensive talent we have had since CP3, she should have been out Caitlin Clark.

Well powell wasn’t truly a pass first pg. I wish we did more by committee. Powell did need to score tho but her iq just wasn’t there all the time.

 

[madtownvol]

Well powell wasn’t truly a pass first pg. I wish we did more by committee. Powell did need to score tho but her iq just wasn’t there all the time.

See my edit to my response. I do see your point. I did not mean to seem argumentative. I am such a huge RJ fan that it effected the tone of my response to you

 

[Volfan2012]

Well powell wasn’t truly a pass first pg. I wish we did more by committee. Powell did need to score tho but her iq just wasn’t there all the time.

If she had passed more I see about 5 more wins this season. A lot of those shots she took against LSU caused us to lose by 15 and someone else taking them could've made up that difference. Plus someone to guard HVL. She had times in game when she would lose us about six or seven possessions with ill advised shots or passes.

 

[madtownvol]

If she had passed more I see about 5 more wins this season. A lot of those shots she took against LSU caused us to lose by 15 and someone else taking them could've made up that difference. Plus someone to guard HVL. She had times in game when she would lose us about six or seven possessions with ill advised shots or passes.

JP was a double edged sword. She bought great energy and was a great rebounder for her size. But alas, her decision making under pressure.

 

[Jax_Vol]

My point was our best players are getting injured from playing too many minutes and encountering too much defense because they don't have the backup they need.

This team only had 3 legit players. Jackson, Puckett and Spear. Everyone else was half injured or needs more development.

Development is yet another debatable topic.

Example since she has played her last game:

Is Tess a better player today than she was four years ago?

Stronger, better defender. But,...

 

[Jax_Vol]

JP was a double edged sword. She bought great energy and was a great rebounder for her size. But alas, her decision making under pressuee

Yeah, that is valid. After losing Belmont xfer mid-season, by the end...I thought we were better with JP playing vs on the pine.

But, she admittedly does turn it over too much.

 

[glv98]

Well i phrased poorly. I meant systemic reliance. Bc ur right the other players weren’t expected to be consistent in output. This is where I think Kellie has to grow the most as a coach.

Never said we shouldn’t recruit I said we should go away from reliance. I clarified later if people would actually keep reading

I would say Kellie had the opposite problem. Her big failing was not being able to get the ball to RJ in clutch moments. Too many crucial possession came down to 5-6 Powell trying to hit a circus shot in the paint against 6-4 opposition. Rickea averaged 20 pts a game pretty much creating her own offense all season. She is the best offensive talent we have had since CP3, she should have been out Caitlin Clark.

Edit: Let me add, I do see your point. I think Kellie still has a big of democratic, share the ball mindset that works at a mid-major where you generally don't have game changing players. I think she is slowly transitioning away from that but it may have been too little too late.

If she had passed more I see about 5 more wins this season. A lot of those shots she took against LSU caused us to lose by 15 and someone else taking them could've made up that difference. Plus someone to guard HVL. She had times in game when she would lose us about six or seven possessions with ill advised shots or passes.

I don't think KJH was over or under reliant on RJ on purpose. It's just that the supporting cast was so inconsistent, and that includes Jordan Horston last year. Ditto JP's over and/or under passing. That wasn't the plan, that was desperation. Bottom line, we just never had enough reliable players to go with RJ.

Perfect example was LSU this year. Someone else was taking shots, they just weren't hitting any. So RJ got tripled and JP got desperate.

I think the intent was always Batman/Robin, but Robin had to show up and take pressure off Batman.

 

[spojo13]

Does anyone know Kellie’s Adjusted win/loss vs AP

Like who we played or beat that was in the final poll but not when we played them

Colorado comes to mind but Kellie doesn’t get a “ranked” win over them bc of timing

So rough first go on this. I used the final AP rankings on espn.com and went through our schedule. It looks like it moves to 11 Ws and 40 Ls. Colorado ended up ranked that year but so did UCLA who we lost to and weren’t ranked at the time. Had a couple of losses to GA in the first few years where they weren’t ranked at the time and were at the end. In the first season, we beat ND who was ranked at the time but were unranked by final rankings.

 

[glv98]

Development is yet another debatable topic.

Example since she has played her last game:

Is Tess a better player today than she was four years ago?

Stronger, better defender. But,...

Tess has a covid year if she wants it. But no, she hasn't gotten much better.

But Sara Puckett definitely has. Kaiya Wynn has improved within the limits of her ability. But Jill has not. Rickea Jackson got better both years she was here, finishing spectacularly after a so-so NCAA tourney last year. Jordan Horston definitely got better, after an excruciating process.

So like with most teams, development has been a mixed bag.

 

[Jax_Vol]

Tess has a covid year if she wants it. But no, she hasn't gotten much better.

But Sara Puckett definitely has. Kaiya Wynn has improved within the limits of her ability. But Jill has not. Rickea Jackson got better both years she was here, finishing spectacularly after a so-so NCAA tourney last year. Jordan Horston definitely got better, after an excruciating process.

So like with most teams, development has been a mixed bag.

That is true. Puckett has improved. Karo also now helps more with the muscle. It felt like Jill never got healthy this year.

Yeah, if Kellie could find someone to draw up a couple of last two-minute plays to get us an easy basket, I would be more onboard.

Think Bruce Pearl spoiled me in that regard

 

[VolFuture]

That is true. Puckett has improved. Karo also now helps more with the muscle. It felt like Jill never got healthy this year.

Yeah, if Kellie could find someone to draw up a couple of last two-minute plays to get us an easy basket, I would be more onboard.

Think Bruce Pearl spoiled me in that regard

Many girls were dealing with more than they let known. (Like JP) and it was sickening watching people here bash them

 

[DarkPhoenix]

I would say Kellie had the opposite problem. Her big failing was not being able to get the ball to RJ in clutch moments. Too many crucial possession came down to 5-6 Powell trying to hit a circus shot in the paint against 6-4 opposition. Rickea averaged 20 pts a game pretty much creating her own offense all season. She is the best offensive talent we have had since CP3, she should have been out Caitlin Clark.

Edit: Let me add, I do see your point. I think Kellie still has a big of democratic, share the ball mindset that works at a mid-major where you generally don't have game changing players. I think she is slowly transitioning away from that but it may have been too little too late.

That’s what I’ve been saying the last 2 season, but I was unsure if it was Kellie not getting her the ball or Dickea not demanding the ball like she should in those moments, I think the player should go to her Pg and let her know to get her the ball.

 

[madtownvol]

That’s what I’ve been saying the last 2 season, but I was unsure if it was Kellie not getting her the ball or Dickea not demanding the ball like she should in those moments, I think the player should go to her Pg and let her know to get her the ball.

glv98 made a reasonable point about others not stepping up enough when Rickea was double teamed but I compare how other teams utilize their stars, be it Juju or Caitlin. You run screens, you get the star in motion so that the defense is constantly having to scramble. Teams played the "anyone but Rickea" defense and Kellie made it too easy for them.

Back in the day (and with a better supporting cast), the offense always ran through Candace even though she drew a similar kind of defensive attention. Honestly, I think KJH placed too much emphasis on RJ getting on the glass. I get she was compensating for Horston but you are hitching a prize racehorse to the plow. Play Hollingshead more and with one instruction - hit boards like Dennis Rodman and get the ball to RJ. That is your only job.


Kellie hit the jackpot with Rickea. It was 15 years between she and CP3. That was a generational opportunity.

If this post sounds like I am anti-Kellie, again, on the whole I think she is a good coach but I agree with VolFuture's amended post that she was not great at getting the most out of a "star."

 

[DarkPhoenix]

glv98 made a reasonable point about others not stepping up enough when Rickea was double teamed but I compare how other teams utilize their stars, be it Juju or Caitlin. You run screens, you get the star in motion so that the defense is constantly having to scramble. Teams played the "anyone but Rickea defense and Kellie made it too easy for them.

Back in the day (and with a better supporting cast), the offense always ran through Candace even though she drew similar kind of attention. Honestly, I think too much emphasis was placed on RJ getting on the glass. I get she was compensating for Horston but you are hitching a prize racehorse to the plow. Play Hollingshead more and with one instruction - get boards like Dennis Rodman and the get the ball to RJ. that is your only job.


Kellie hit the jackpot with Rickea. It was 15 years between she and CP3. That was a generational opportunity.

If this post sounds like I am anti-Kellie, again, on the whole I think she is a good coach but I agree with VolFuture's amended post that she was not great at getting the most out of a "star."

I agree with everything u said, the coaches never made an offense that would let Rickea thrive like the other coaches do for their stars, it was like she was just another player and I could never understand it. With Rickea on your team u should make at least one final four, even with our flawed roster. She’s not the kind of player like Juju Watkins where she can have the ball in her hands at all times but just look at how UCLA runs their offense, everything goes through Lauren Betts, we could have run something similar. Really sad how Rickea had to go out, being one of the best and not being able to show it on the biggest stage.

 

[glv98]

I agree with VolFuture's amended post that she was not great at getting the most out of a "star."

I'd agree more if you said 'not great at getting the most WITH a "star", instead of not getting the most OUT of a star. Not sure how much more any coach could have gotten out of a star then the numbers RJ put up, esp against elite competition and esp late in the season.

 

[AllVols3]

I agree with everything u said, the coaches never made an offense that would let Rickea thrive like the other coaches do for their stars, it was like she was just another player and I could never understand it. With Rickea on your team u should make at least one final four, even with our flawed roster. She’s not the kind of player like Juju Watkins where she can have the ball in her hands at all times but just look at how UCLA runs their offense, everything goes through Lauren Betts, we could have run something similar. Really sad how Rickea had to go out, being one of the best and not being able to show it on the biggest stage.

What games were you watching? RJ got hers whenever and against whoever we played. CKH hasn't won at the highest level we all know that. What you're saying is Stupid, players make plays not coaches RJ did that night in night out. JS on the other hand was very inconsistent. She didn't show up to some of the big games. The rest wasn't capable of getting theirs without a set-up for great guard play, which is the exact reason we lost to NC St. We need Elite guard play. Idc who the coach is we need better players. You win with Jimmies and Joe's not X's and O's. That'll always be the case.

 

[madtownvol]

I'd agree more if you said 'not great at getting the most WITH a "star", not getting the most out a star. Not sure how much more any coach could have gotten out of a star then the numbers RJ put up, esp against elite competition and esp late in the season.

I agree with that "with" edit.

I would have liked to see more assists and fewer rebounds from Rickea. Kellie had no shortage of hardworking, plow horse players who get attack the boards. J.H. and Wynn, with hops and quickness, could have played that role.

RJ's 4th quarter averages typically dropped and that could be for lot of reasons including fatigue (though if she had not had to bang against posts who outweighed by 20-40 pounds she might have been fresher). But in the 4th, good teams clamped down and often took her out of the game.

The injury screwed things up and it several took games for Rickea to get all the way back.

If you look at just those games where she was 100%, RJ's stats are really astronomical but I still think she was under utilized, particularly in those clutch game moments. Her almost game winner against SC came off a rebound, not a set play. that seemed to be the scheme-- someone else takes the shot and RJ is supposed to get the rebound. even for a great player, that is putting the odds against her.

Should Jewell or Sara have stepped up more, yes 100%. But seeing that not happen consistently, should Kellie have gotten with her staff and figured out how to get RJ in better spots? -- I think so. She had a player who could post up, drive the basket and was deadly in the mid range. Every other team that beat us, had a player who had a skill set like that (though not as skilled) and killed us. So, it can be done.

 

[DarkPhoenix]

What games were you watching? RJ got hers whenever and against whoever we played. CKH hasn't won at the highest level we all know that. What you're saying is Stupid, players make plays not coaches RJ did that night in night out. JS on the other hand was very inconsistent. She didn't show up to some of the big games. The rest wasn't capable of getting theirs without a set-up for great guard play, which is the exact reason we lost to NC St. We need Elite guard play. Idc who the coach is we need better players. You win with Jimmies and Joe's not X's and O's. That'll always be the case.

I watched every game and u can go back and read my game lists where I complained about how they was going long periods of time without passing her the ball, and that’s just a fact.

 

[glv98]

Her almost game winner against SC came off a rebound, not a set play. t

That rebound/put back was off RJ's own miss. I don't think there was ever a time in the two yrs that getting the ball to RJ in clutch situations was not the plan.

Ironically, RJ was only able to snag that rebound and putback bc she bricked the original shot so badly, highly unusual for her, Took a crazy bounce off the bboard back to her and looked like finally the LVs had gotten a lucky bounce!! Until . . .

 

[glv98]

I watched every game and u can go back and read my game lists where I complained about how they was going long periods of time without passing her the ball, and that’s just a fact.

But I don't think that was ever, ever, the coaching plan. IMO that was player execution, or lack thereof, of several players.

 

[madtownvol]

I watched every game and u can go back and read my game lists where I complained about how they was going long periods of time without passing her the ball, and that’s just a fact.

There is a an element of truth in both positions As a thought experiment, imagine that Hayley Van lith had transferred to the LVs to pair with RJ. Suddenly, Kellie looks like a much better offensive coach.

On the flipside, Powell is a good athlete, quick, excellent handle. I can't grasp why Kellie (a great game manager PG in her own right) could not teach JP to run better offensive sets. Both JP and Wynn had dribble-itis, which made it too easy for opposing defenses, particularly in clutch times. [I give Wynn a pass because she was the emergency "now you are a PG" option.]

Maybe Destinee would have made a difference but the Kellie curse kicked in again. But, you go to battle with the players you have and adapt as needed...

 

[madtownvol]

That rebound/put back was off RJ's own miss. I don't think there was ever a time in the two yrs that getting the ball to RJ in clutch situations was not the plan.

Ah, your memory is better than mine.

I just watched the 3 minute highlight reel of that game and would you agree that, in that game, RJ was actually utilized a bit differently than in many other losses, They ran her off screens more. got the ball in her hands at the top of the key with players in motion so that she had passing options. I did not see those kind of sets as much in NCST game. it was more just RJ have a magic night and proving the old adage, a great offensive player can beat good defense.

On that last play against SC, that play was a tribute to RJ's greatness but it was a poorly designed scheme-

Hey, RJ lets get you in position where you have to shoot over a 6-7 shot blocking monster!!!. Only her athletic greatness enabled her get that shot off and not get stuffed and then a little bit of luck that the ball rebounded back to her and then a fantastic off balance shot. My gosh, what a player......