If you’re a sports fan, you know sometimes there are moments when you want to mute the television and just watch a game.
It might be the play-by-play announcer or the analyst. It really doesn’t matter. Regardless of the sport, there are some men and women who make watching and listening to a game unbearable.
Debbie Antonelli isn’t one of those announcers. If you’re a basketball fan, it’s safe to put Antonelli into a category with professionals like Fran Fraschilla Dan Dakich, Jay Bilas, and Doris Burke — just to name a few — who provide analysis and commentary that is insightful and educational. I always have felt it’s the job of analyst to praise and to criticize when it is warranted. In nearly 30 years as a basketball analyst, Antonelli has made sure to do that. She prides herself in doing her homework and not just being a mouthpiece for coaches or someone who is going to lavish praise or to be a fan sitting at courtside.
That’s why it was a pleasure to visit with Antonelli on Thursday prior to the No. 14 Mississippi State women’s basketball team’s game against Arkansas at Humphrey Coliseum. Unfortunately, it’s becoming the chances to visit are becoming more and more infrequent due to the fact Antonelli doesn’t have as many SEC games as she has had in the previous years. I always thought the best in the nation — in this case the SEC — would want the best in the business broadcasting its games. That, though, is an issue for another day.
On this day, Antonelli had plenty to say about the state of women’s basketball. A former player for legendary coach Kay Yow at North Carolina State, Antonelli also worked in the marketing departments at Kentucky and Ohio State, so she has a unique take on the game’s place in a crowded sports world.
Unlike others, Antonelli will put the work behind what she advocates. Long a proponent of athletic directors giving coaches incentives in their contracts for their teams’ offensive efficiency, Antonelli has stressed the ned for coaches and players to spend more time working on their offensive skills. To show that she is capable of producing results, Antonelli took 100 shots from the elbows every day in July last year at home in Charleston, South Carolina. Some days, Antonelli said she had two-a-days because the T-shirts were coming in so quickly. She didn’t do it in an air-conditioned gym or with an automated ball returner. She had one ball and one rebounder.
A year ago, her theme focused on the fact that a veteran like her could beat anyone because she has put the time in and rely on muscle memory. She accomplished her goal because her month-long efforts attracted a lot of attention and feedback.
This year, Antonelli tweaked it an added a timed element to her shooting. She said she didn’t go elbow to elbow but slid across the free-throw line. She said the fastest he was able to make 100 shots was 5 minutes, 32 seconds. That’s 100 of 104.
Keep that in mind the next time you watch a women’s game. Granted, every players doesn’t always get to take a 15-footer in a game. Antonelli also didn’t have the temptation to move a few feet out and try 3-pointers. But that’s her point. Antonelli can go nearly perfect in a shooting drill, so why can’t today’s players?
Maybe they can, you say. Antonelli is shooting against air, so she is bound to have that high of a percentage, you argue. But I have watched enough women’s basketball in 25-plus years to know there aren’t a lot of players who could do what Antonelli did.
Is that an indictment on the players? No. I also remember how fun it was to be a college student and how many different things there were to do to occupy my time. Imagine how challenging it is for a student-athlete on scholarship. But it begs the question how much time are players spending on their own making themselves better?
Is that an indictment on the coaches? In a way, yes. Coaches don’t have to be offensive geniuses to put their players in positions to maximize their strengths. Is running a play for someone to take a 3-pointer from 25 feet the best shot? Is passing the ball down low to a post player who has doesn’t have the footwork or the ability to seal her defender the wisest move?
Too often, those are the kind of plays we see in the women’s and the men’s game. Antonelli is right. They’re not spending enough time shooting the basketball. They are spending more time with the strength and conditioning coach than they are developing their skill. She also feels kids don’t play outside or organize outdoor activities as much today as they need to.
“While we keep working on making our game better, it’s really important that as we open up the court that we have players who can make plays when the court opens up,” Antonelli said.
The Connecticut and South Carolina women’s teams are the only ones that are shooting 50 percent better from the field this season. It wouldn’t be so mind-blowing if there were 50 or 100 teams in Division I. There are 343 teams in Division in 2014-15.
In the past 10 seasons, 45.9 percent is UConn’s lowest field goal percentage. In their four national title runs in that stretch, the Huskies twice finished first in the nation in field goal percentage and twice were second.
Is coach Geno Auriemma reaching those numbers because he has the best players or because his players work the hardest? That’s a great question. The reality is it might be a little bit of both. Antonelli believes there is a secret to UConn’s success.
“It is what I call the great Connecticut secret,” Antonelli said. “Nobody knows it — only Geno — take shots you practice at game speed, take uncontested shots. That’s it.”
Sounds simple, right? How many times have you seen a player take a shot with a hand in their face, or early in the shot clock with none of their teammates in rebounding position. Antonelli is right when she says it comes down to discipline, execution, and accountability. You don’t need to be the smartest or the fastest or the tallest individual to play the game with those thoughts in your head and use them to your advantage.
Imagine if you have a multi-million dollar practice facility to work on your game. Imagine if you have the drive to be the best in the nation. That’s a powerful combination to use to get better at a skill — shooting the basketball — that Antonelli believes is the hardest in the game. Not every program has a basketball practice facility and a basketball arena that players can go to work on their games. All schools, though, have a rec center and/or outdoor courts for students and student-athletes to work on their games. But Antonelli is right when she says there only are a few teams every year that have a chance to win the national title. That is disappointing for a former player who loves the game and remains to be an advocate of offense and better execution on that end of the court.
“Maybe in our game the people who have been leaders or coaches find it too easy to teach their team to work harder and play defense instead of spending the time on offense,” Antonelli said. “Maybe it is just easier to play a crappy schedule and get 20 wins and put yourself into a position to get to .500 in your conference and, maybe, get into the tournament, if that is what you goal is.
“We talk parity because it is important. For some reason, it’s important in our game. I don’t hear the argument when Kentucky is always on top of the standings on the men’s side. It is the same with Kansas, which has won 10 consecutive Big 12 Conference men’s (regular-season) titles. How come we don’t talk about parity over there? It is not an issue for the guys. It seems to be an issue for us, but why? The same teams show up in softball and volleyball. Why is it important? Maybe parity is not important. Now that we have the Power Five, what is going to happen to the other ones.
“There are so many issues to be managed. Somebody has to make decisions and be in charge, and I don’t know who is in charge (of women’s basketball).”
Keep Antonelli’s thoughts in mind the next time you watch a men’s or a women’s basketball game. You can rest assured you won’t have to turn the volume down if she is an analyst on that broadcast.
Adam Minichino is sports editor at The Dispatch. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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