2023 -24 RhodyWBB News and Updates

[SmartyBarrett]

With the loss of Lassiter to graduation, Rams needed an upgrade at the point. This checks that box and then some. HUGE get.

Grad transfer. Averaged 16.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.4 steals for Manhattan last season. 1,000 point scorer.

[steviep123]

[SmartyBarrett]

[Rhody74]

I know Tammi loves URI, but this could be her a year from now.

[jcru]

There is one big difference though.

Verdi lost four key players including his best player, Samantha Breen. With her, he had UMass at or near the top of the Conference. The writing was on the wall, URI and a few other teams were set to displace his team at the top of the Conference next year. Meanwhile, Pitt was pushing him hard to take the job.

I keep saying this, and people love to ignore it, but when you are a coach that builds a team, and then it is over and you are entering a rebuilding cycle and you are also at that point the most interesting you are going to be for a prospective employer.

1. Everyone wants to max out the amt they can make
and
2. No one "loves" a rebuilding job, it's exhausting

So long as Tammi keeps on reloading this team with talent, we may at least avoid that second factor, maybe we have a shot to keep her for several years.

[RhowdyRam02]

"A source informed the Post-Gazette that Pitt offered the women’s head coaching job to both Robyn Fralick (Michigan State) and Karl Smesko (Florida Gulf Coast) prior to Verdi. Fralick reportedly declined the offer to leave her position at Bowling Green for the opening at Michigan State, while Smesko chose to remain at Florida Gulf Coast, where he’s served as head coach since the 2002-03 season."

https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/Pit ... 2304060136

[RhowdyRam02]

Verdi and Tammi seemed to have a lot of mutual respect for one another. Maybe a possible out of conference opponent?

[PeteRI]

This is why we can't have nice things. Instead of pessimistic speculation about how we can't keep a great coach why don't we simply enjoy the phenomenal program Tammi has literally built from nothing and look forward to her - and our - continued success?

[Rhody72]

This is why we can't have nice things. Instead of pessimistic speculation about how we can't keep a great coach why don't we simply enjoy the phenomenal program Tammi has literally built from nothing and look forward to her - and our - continued success?

Has Tammi exceeded expectation when she got her contract extension? I think so. Then, URI should reward her. URI can safely predict an increase ticket sales. Make a portion of this money available to her for personal compensation, coaches salary, recruiting budget, charter flights, or whatever else she wants. "ata girls" only go so far.

[Ramulous]

I am with 72 on this.

[Billyboy78]

[jcru]

This would be massive.

[RhowdyRam02]

"De'Myla Brown
Guard – 5'7 – University of Illinois – North Little Rock, Arkansas
Brown comes to Houston after playing the 2021-22 season with the University of Illinois. The guard averaged 8.1 points per game with two rebounds and 1.4 assists while totaling 30 steals throughout the season. She played in 27 games for the Illini starting 12 and averaged 21 minutes per game.

"De'Myla is an outstanding combo guard with point guard attributes," Hughey said. "She is a three-level scorer who loves to get her teammates involved. She is quick, disciplined and fits our culture. We are extremely excited to have her join our family."

Before her time with Illinois, Brown was an NJCAA Division I first-team All-America 2020-21 at Chipola College. While there, the Arkansas native helped her team to a Final Four appearance in the 2021 NJCAA Division I Championship Tournament after capturing the FCSAA State/NJCAA District VIII Championship as tournament MVP."

That's from the Houston website announcing she would be part of their 2022-23 team

[RhowdyRam02]

Wow, Dolly Cairns is transferring. It was clear there were transfers coming based on the fact we had more players coming in than leaving and we were still hunting transfers, but I didn't expect her to be one who was leaving

[SGreenwell]

Wow, Dolly Cairns is transferring. It was clear there were transfers coming based on the fact we had more players coming in than leaving and we were still hunting transfers, but I didn't expect her to be one who was leaving

Eh, she went from averaging 32 MPG to 21 MPG, and the competition across the roster looks to be getting tighter, between the HS recruits and the transfers Reiss is bringing in. We're obviously deeper if she stays, but she might have dipped into 20 MPG or less next year.

[rjv]

Not surprised mins/point avg per game decreasing and incoming players.

[Billyboy78]

[PeteRI]

She was so much fun to root for. All heart and a deadly shot. Unfortunately for her the rapid development of the Splash Sisters and incoming guards for next season led to diminished playing time. She will definitely be missed!

[Trousers 2]

She should transfer the way Coach of the year treated her was a farce. St.Louis game she was the one who got you back in the game in the 2nd half didn’t play the last 6 minutes.I get it Sophie played great and they played the same position,but is there some law in Rhode Island that they can’t be on the court at the same time especially when your losing joke. That coach of the year will tell you my defense won’t be as good if they are out there together. If your defense is so good shouldn’t be losing.

[Jersey77]

She should transfer the way Coach of the year treated her was a farce. St.Louis game she was the one who got you back in the game in the 2nd half didn’t play the last 6 minutes.I get it Sophie played great and they played the same position,but is there some law in Rhode Island that they can’t be on the court at the same time especially when your losing joke. That coach of the year will tell you my defense won’t be as good if they are out there together. If your defense is so good shouldn’t be losing.

Sounds like a little sour grapes, and not a Tammi fan.

[Trousers 2]

Don’t think it’s sour grapes Just an opinion thought she could have been used differently down the stretch of a lot of games. (That’s Dolly)Sometimes talent makes coach’s look a lot better than they really are.

[jcru]

She's a cutie. She'll do alright no matter where she goes. I didn't see a scenario where zero players transferred out. Hopefully it's not many however.

No one who remembers the last two years will soon forget Dolly.

[Billyboy78]

Don’t think it’s sour grapes Just an opinion thought she could have been used differently down the stretch of a lot of games. (That’s Dolly)Sometimes talent makes coach’s look a lot better than they really are.

You're the only person I've seen complain one bit about Tammi. We are all thrilled to have her here. Apparently, you have an axe to grind, for some reason.

[scorpio]

It is not good for team morale that the captain is leaving. Dolly carried the team offensively for much of the 2021-22 season and one of the reasons she had less minutes this season was due to the concussion she had.

In my opinion, the team has had too many one year COVID transfers (some in their 6th year of college). This does not show loyalty to the players brought in as freshmen. So of course many of them will get frustrated and take advantage of not having to sit out a season if they transfer. Especially the players that don't have an extra COVID season that end up competing with 6th year "one and done" players for playing time....

[jcru]

This is the new reality, and no one is immune from it. The captain saw a dip in playing time, and decided to go elsewhere her final season. These are perfectly normal things in the NCAA circa 2023. I don't see a reason to admonish Tammi in any way, shape, or form here. Coaches are expected to increase the level of talent on their team on a yearly basis. Check. Coaches have to make tough decisions, often in real time, about who is going to play and for how long. Check.

As far as team morale goes, nothing is better for team morale than winning. Because if the team weren't winning, it wouldn't just be a tragic case of just one player leaving, half the team would be leaving. This is the best case scenario. She was a great ambassador of the team, she's adorable, she's talented, but she is well within her rights to explore other opportunities if she isn't happy with the downward yearly trend in minutes, as more and more talent is brought onto the team. The 6th year "one and done" players, that you mentioned, are for the most part gone. There were I believe I counted four of them last year, they don't impact Dolly in any way this upcoming season. They have precisely one, coming in as of this conversation, I suppose it could be as many as two. 4 to 2, doesn't really do much for that argument. Is she intimidated by the freshmen?

More and more players want to be a part of this. As we get better players, there are many more people in the rotation. I believe Tammi is using a 10 player rotation. If anything, a captain, on a team like this one, is expected to lead by example and not complain when you come into a situation where you have all the playing time in the world as a freshman, but three years later, are sharing the time on the court because the team is getting progressively better. Believe it or not, many many other athletes over the course of history, have sacrificed more than that, over the course of their careers, to see their team as a whole improve. I give Tammi a report card of all A's, and at the same time I do not begrudge a player for making an adult, personal decision.

Are we going to miss a talented outside shooter? I'm sure we will. Will this be the last person to ever transfer for their final year, here on this team, while Tammi is coach. Who knows? But I doubt it.

[Trousers 2]

Don’t have axe to grind with Tammi think she’s great person,I think she loves her players dearly. All around nice person but didn’t always agree with her coaching decisions.

[Trousers 2]

Every good coach makes mistakes to become a great coach is to learn from them Rhody woman’s basketball had great season. At the end of the day it’s just some guy’s opinion.

[jcru]

It's fine. I think the confusion was when you lead with "She should transfer the way Coach of the year treated her was a farce".

Calling her 'coach of the year' as opposed to her name, in internet speak, usually translates to expressing real anger and resentment.

Over the weekend, my brother reminded me how Bobby Knight was fired from Indiana. They have a building not unlike Keaney maybe a little more modern or renovated, and in the vestibule entrance, a student was passing by to get in while Bobby Knight was leaving, and he called out "Hey, Knight!" and Bobby grabbed him by the throat and said "It's Mister Knight or Coach!"

And that was the end of Bobby's legendary tenure at Indiana.

I don't agree that how things played out was a farce, but we aren't there for the day to day, I didn't think there was any underlying motive to not play her other than the mundane stuff like people are hot or cold, or they don't figure into a certain stretch because of defense.

I do agree that if Dolly wants to explore the market, she is well within her right to do so, shouldn't get any flack for it.

[Rhody72]

I thought Dolly was a great captain and teammate, and played a steady floor game. Towards the end of the season her shooting proficiency declined except her FT shooting. At the end of close games, she was good to have on the floor when ahead but not behind. Tammi showed her respect by starting her game after game. I think Dolly is showing respect to Tammi and her team by leaving. She was the glue we needed to get this far. Sophie even came to URI to play with her. Dolly is not a PG and is too small to play the off-guard on a good team. It is difficult to be a leader if you want to play and not a starter.

[Cameron_Dollar]

To come on to this board and diparage Tammi or Dolly serves no purpose. Dolly was her first recruit. I don't believe the staff was happy with her at times nor was she happy with the staff. That is why the portal is there. These things happen every day in college sports. Wish her well and move on. She is a great shooter and can help her next program. Sometimes, a change of scenery is necessary.

[4Diffs]

To come on to this board and diparage Tammi or Dolly serves no purpose. Dolly was her first recruit. I don't believe the staff was happy with her at times nor was she happy with the staff. That is why the portal is there. These things happen every day in college sports. Wish her well and move on. She is a great shooter and can help her next program. Sometimes, a change of scenery is necessary.

Very well said. This is the type of transfer that makes sense. She was not happy with her playing time, it looks like the staff may have been moving in a different direction. I think it is the best for both sides. What the portal has done though is not this. This was always going to be a transfer situation even in the past. You now have starters and even stars leaving teams and programs. That rarely happened before. Now it routinely happens which I think sucks. Grass is not always greener, looking forward to what happens when guys leave teams where they are starting, playing 30 minutes and they end up not getting off the bench. Yes I am looking at you Makhi. Arkansas was much too big a leap for him and hence he is back in the portal. He sits out a year this time I believe.

[Billyboy78]

[Billyboy78]

I forgot that she still has 2 years of eligibility.

[Jersey77]

To come on to this board and diparage Tammi or Dolly serves no purpose. Dolly was her first recruit. I don't believe the staff was happy with her at times nor was she happy with the staff. That is why the portal is there. These things happen every day in college sports. Wish her well and move on. She is a great shooter and can help her next program. Sometimes, a change of scenery is necessary.

Very well said. This is the type of transfer that makes sense. She was not happy with her playing time, it looks like the staff may have been moving in a different direction. I think it is the best for both sides. What the portal has done though is not this. This was always going to be a transfer situation even in the past. You now have starters and even stars leaving teams and programs. That rarely happened before. Now it routinely happens which I think sucks. Grass is not always greener, looking forward to what happens when guys leave teams where they are starting, playing 30 minutes and they end up not getting off the bench. Yes I am looking at you Makhi. Arkansas was much too big a leap for him and hence he is back in the portal. He sits out a year this time I believe.

I don't blame her or Tammi.
Not every player is going to be happy with their role or playing time.
It is also up to the staff to keep trying to improve the talent on the roster.
Best wishes to Dolly.

[Ramulous]

I hope Dolly ends up at a school that fits her academic goals. For her parents I hope it is a shorter drive to her home games. They drove 4 hours each way to all her home games. It was hard for them.

For my family I hope she lands at a school close enough to Rhode Island so we can catch some of her games so we can still watch her in person.

We have gotten to be good friends with her mom and dad. We love Dolly as a person and player.

[Georgejenkins]

Feel like Tammi and the rest of the coaching staff messed up letting dolly go. Although the transfer portal is huge, you want to build the program up and she was the best recruit so far. Aside from that she is a proven great shooter (which is arguably the most important thing in basketball) that had a bit of a down year. Tammi has done so much for this program but I’ve also noticed so many flaws in her coaching. The 2 time “coach of the year” has ONE A-10 tournament win in her 4 years and 2 of the 4 losses they were the higher seed. Still blows my mind how Dolly got the team back into the St. Louis game and she wasn’t played down the stretch.

[Spook5365]

Dolly was a great player here and worked very hard. Loved watching her play. An important recruit for Tammi and the program. She struggled mightily after coming back this year and not for lack of effort on her part. IMO Tammi stuck with her as much as she possibly could, but unfortunately the production was no longer there. Yes, she had important moments like the St Louis game but truly was not the same player. Simply a player who got out of sync maybe for a variety of reasons. I’m sure she will get it back and wish her the very best. From a fan perspective I don’t see any issues here with how it was handled by the coaching staff. (Playing time).

Last season Marta Vargas missed time and lost her starting job ( multi year starter) to Dolly late in season. Dolly was a better player but I thought it messed up the on court chemistry a bit because it was so far into the schedule. Plus the shock affect of instant offense off the bench from Dolly. So these things happen in different ways for different reasons and are not always easy decisions for coaches I’m sure.

[RhowdyRam02]

Well said Spook, and to add to this, we don't know how much the coaching staff "let Dolly go" and how much Dolly decided to leave and both parties are just handling the situation the best way possible.

It sucks Dolly's leaving, but this is how college sports works now

[Spook5365]

Rinat and Adler have also entered the portal. Rinat significant loss imo as far as her potential. Thought next year would be big jump for her.

[Cameron_Dollar]

Remember the portal door swings both ways. If someone is leaving, expect a suitable replacement to come in.

[LoveThoseRams]

Rinat was a bit of a surprise to me.

Is there any cause for concern, or are we upgrading with the recruits coming in?

[RhodyMadness072]

I heard big announcement coming

[Jersey77]

Rinat was a bit of a surprise to me.

Is there any cause for concern, or are we upgrading with the recruits coming in?

I do think we have some talented freshmen coming in, and many have penciled in Eva as an immediate starter.
But at this point I feel we can use another big.

[Billyboy78]

Emmi didn't start but got decent minutes. Maybe she wants to go somewhere and start. If Tammi is really high on Eva and Katie as shooters, maybe Emmi would also lose minutes to them.

[Billyboy78]

I heard big announcement coming

Regarding what? Player coming in? Player leaving? Coaching? What?

[Cameron_Dollar]

Notre Dame has eight guards on their roster and needed a big desperately. Anna DeWolfe from Fordham is 5'8" and ND couldn't pass her up. They signed her out of the portal. You can't go wrong when you bring in quality players.

[RhowdyRam02]

I heard big announcement coming

[Billyboy78]

I heard big announcement coming

Interesting...

[rjv]

Maybe something about OOC schedule for 2023-2024?

[jcru]

Oh, snap.