University of Connecticut Athletics
Nell Fortner and UConn's Geno Auriemma Earn 2000 USA BasketballNational And Developmental Coach Of The Year Awards
11/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Both recipients claimed gold medals this summer in impressive fashion. Fortner piloted the United States to the gold medal and a perfect 8-0 record at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and Auriemma directed the 2000 USA Basketball Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Team to a 5-0 mark and the gold medal at the 2000 COPABA Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Tournament in Mar del Plata, Argentina. As recipients of USA Basketball's Coach of the Year awards, Fortner and Auriemma have been nominated by USA Basketball for the U.S. Olympic Committee's National and Developmental Coach of the Year awards.
USA Basketball's Coach of the Year awards were established in 1996 to recognize USA Basketball head coaches who, during the year of the award, made significant impact on the success of individual athlete and team performance at the highest level of competition and at the developmental level. Fortner joins previous USA Basketball National Coach of the Year winners Larry Brown (1999) of the Philadelphia 76ers, Clem Haskins (1998) of the University of Minnesota, Mo McHone (1997) of the CBA Sioux Falls Skyforce and Tara VanDerveer (1996) of Stanford University (Calif.). Auriemma added his name to the list of USA Basketball Developmental Coach of the Year award recipients which includes Oliver Purnell (1999) of the University of Dayton (Ohio), Jim Boeheim (1998) of Syracuse University (N.Y.), Rene Portland (1997) of Penn State University and Mike Montgomery (1996) of Stanford University.
Fortner and her U.S. squad entered the 2000 Sydney Olympics as the co-favorite with a talented host Australian team. However, by the time the Olympic competition had ended, the Fortner led Americans had proved to Australia and the rest of the world that they stood alone as the best team at the 2000 Olympics. Fortner directed the U.S. to an 8-0 record and the Olympic gold medal after defeating Australia 76-54 in the final. Over the course of the USA's dominating eight game run, which saw the U.S. post wins over South Korea (89-75), Cuba (90-61), Russia (88-77), New Zealand (93-42), Poland (76-57), Slovak Republic (58-43), South Korea (78-65) and Australia (76-54), Fortner's squad outscored its opponents by 21.7 points per game. Utilizing a stifling defense, the Americans limited their opponents to a meager 37.7 percent shooting, while their offense connected for 50.8 percent of its shots. The U.S. also outrebounded its foes by 14.7 boards per game.
"This is a tremendous honor, especially coming on the heels of a gold medal in Sydney," commented Fortner. "But more than anything, this is a direct reflection of the athletes and how they performed as a team. They were an amazing group of athletes and the way they came together in the Olympics is something I'm really proud of."
Beginning its preparations for the 2000 Olympics in September 1999, Fortner directed the USA national team during its seven months of pre-Olympic training to a sterling 38-2 overall record. Opening the team's training on September 7, she led the USA women to the gold medal at the 1999 U.S. Olympic Cup and the championship at the USA Basketball International Invitational, compiling a combined 7-0 record at the two tournaments versus three of the world's strongest women's national teams - Australia, Brazil and Poland. After guiding the U.S. past a WNBA Select Team, 99-73, Fortner coached the USA squad to an 11-1 record against top NCAA Division I programs in November and December. Closing out its January-March training with a 10-1 record against European and South American national and top professional squads, after breaking from April through early August for the 2000 WNBA season, the team resumed its training and concluded its Olympic preparations by compiling a 9-0 mark, earning wins over Olympic teams from Australia, Brazil, France, Poland and the Slovak Republic, three wins against the Canadian Olympic team and a victory over a USA Select Team comprised of top collegians.
Named on April 1, 1997, head coach of USA Basketball's Senior National Program, Fortner's unblemished run at the 2000 Olympics wasn't the first time in her three years with USA Basketball that she guided a USA team to a perfect record and a gold medal at one of international basketball's premiere events. At the 1998 FIBA Women's World Championship, Fortner coached the United States to a 9-0 record and the gold medal in Berlin, Germany. Over the course of her three years with USA Basketball, Fortner capped her USA Basketball career with a 101-14 overall record making her the winningest coach in USA Basketball history. Even more amazing is her 67-3 record (.957) with USA squads competing at the Senior National Team level since 1998.
Fortner, who was named head coach of the WNBA Indiana Fever on August 17, 1999 and will direct the Fever during the 2001 WNBA season, brought impressive credentials to the USA Women's National Team Program. In her lone season as a collegiate head mentor, she compiled a 17-11 record and won a share of the Big Ten Conference title as Purdue University's (Ind.) head coach in 1996-97. Fortner served as an assistant coach for the historic 1995-96 USA Basketball Women's National Team that compiled a 52-0 overall record leading up to the 1996 Olympics, then also served as a member of the 1996 U.S. Women's Olympic Team staff.
Accomplishing more in one year than many coaches do in an entire career, 2000 USA Basketball Developmental Coach of the Year Auriemma followed up a 2000 NCAA National Championship at Connecticut with two gold medals this past summer, one as the head coach for the 2000 USA Basketball Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Team and the second as an assistant coach for the 2000 U.S. Women's Olympic Basketball Team.
"I am very honored to be named USA Basketball Developmental Coach of the Year," commented Auriemma. "It is a tribute to the coaching staff and to the team as well. I had a great summer and I really enjoyed working with the junior team, they are a great group of kids. The assistant coaches, Deb Patterson and Ed Baldwin, were instrumental in our success. This summer was a real learning experience for me and has helped me to be a better coach here at Connecticut."
Taking the reigns of the USA Basketball Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Team comprised of players 18-years-old and younger, the Auriemma led American squad overpowered its opponents by an average of 50.6 points per game en route to capturing a 5-0 record and the gold medal at the 2000 COPABA Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Tournament. After just nine of days of training camp prior to departing for Argentina, Auriemma's squad not only won five games in five days to claim the gold, but more importantly earned the U.S. a berth in the 2001 FIBA Women's Junior World Championship.
Following a three week break after the Women's Junior World Championship Qualifier, Auriemma joined up with the U.S. Women's Olympic Basketball Team coaching staff and assisted Fortner and the Americans to an 8-0 record and the gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
One of the winningest coaches in college basketball history, Auriemma was named the 2000 National Coach of the Year by Naismith, the Associated Press and the WBCA after leading the Huskies to the 2000 NCAA National Championship and a 36-1 mark. The Huskies 36 wins set a Connecticut record and raised Auriemma's 15 year overall record to a shining 393-95 (.805), making him No. 3 among active Division I coaches in winning percentage. He also became the first coach in Division I history, men's or women's, to post five consecutive 30-plus win seasons. When Auriemma arrived at UConn 15 seasons ago, the Huskies had posted just one winning season in the 11 year history of their basketball program. Since then, Auriemma has guided Connecticut to 12 consecutive NCAA Tournament berths (1989-2000); two NCAA National Championships (1995, 2000); four NCAA Final Four appearances; six NCAA Elite Eight appearances; 10 Big East Conference regular season championships; nine Big East Tournament championships; 11 20-plus win seasons and six 30-plus win seasons.
USA Basketball National Coach Of The Year Award Recipients
2000 - Nell Fortner, USA Basketball
1999 - Larry Brown, Philadelphia 76ers
1998 - Clem Haskins, University of Minnesota
1997 - Mo McHone, Sioux Falls Skyforce
1996 - Tara VanDerveer, Stanford University
USA Basketball Developmental Coach Of The Year Award Recipients
2000 - Geno Auriemma, University of Connecticut
1999 - Oliver Purnell, University of Dayton
1998 - Jim Boeheim, Syracuse University
1997 - Rene Portland, Penn State University
1996 - Mike Montgomery, Stanford University
