With a roster that features a nice mix of experience and young talent, Purdue women’s basketball coach Katie Gearlds knows the future looks bright.
However, the only thing Gearlds is concerned about is the present, and that has not been that great for her Boilermakers. Purdue women’s basketball will bring an 11-14 overall, 4-10 Big Ten record into Wednesday’s matchup against Michigan State (18-7, 8-6) . The two teams played last month with the Spartans picking up a 97-70 win. The Boilermakers enter fresh off a disappointing 77-65 setback against Nebraska.
After the loss to the Cornhuskers, Gearlds bemoaned several points of emphasis that cost Purdue a chance to win, touching on what has become a constant theme at times — a lack of focus and missed shots.
“The lack of mental focus. You can miss shots. I’m not mad we miss shots. Yeah, we miss shots, and it sucks. Our inability to change a ball screen coverage, our inability to make adjustments as the game went on just wasn’t good,” Gearlds said.
Gearlds would know what it takes to be a good basketball player, as her resume speaks for itself. The former Beech Grove High School (IN) standout was Indiana’s Miss Basketball in 2003, claimed a state title, and was the MVP of the 2003 McDonald’s All-American Game. As a member of the Purdue women’s basketball team, Gearlds was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and earned Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors during her career. Prior to arriving at Purdue as coach, Gearlds led Marian University to back to back NAIA national titles.
She knows plenty about winning. That is one reason why this season has been tough on Gearlds.
“It sucks,” she said of losing.
Typically, when a team has younger talent, the head coach preaches patience to the team and staff, but Gearlds admits the roles are reversed as of late.
“I think they are preaching it to me. Everybody’s been preaching it to me, not the other way around. We want to win and it hasn’t translated to wins this year, unfortunately. Those kids live in the gym. Those kids are working. We can talk two or years from now, but we are all trying to win here in the moment and win basketball games at Purdue right now,” Gearlds said.
Purdue women’s basketball will look to get a win Wednesday night when it hosts Michigan State at Mackey Arena.
