THOUSANDS WELCOME BACK NATIONAL CHAMPS
4/8/2019 8:49:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Mulkey Tells Crowd That This Group Had Great Chemistry
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Less than 20 hours after hoisting the national championship trophy in Tampa, Fla., the newly crowned Baylor Lady Bears shared it with thousands of their fans in a welcome-back celebration Monday afternoon at the Ferrell Center.
"Coaches can coach a lifetime and never win a championship," said coach Kim Mulkey, whose team won the program's third national championship by defeating defending champion Notre Dame, 82-81, in Sunday's title game before a crowd of 20,127 at Amalie Arena.
"Coaches can try every year to have great team chemistry. They can lead them and guide them, but sometimes you just get a group of girls where you sit back and go, 'They've got it.' And this bunch had it."
That chemistry started with a slogan the team adopted last summer: Together to Tampa. It wasn't just getting to Tampa, it was doing it together, as a team.
"Together to Tampa means it was going to take all of us to get there," said 6-7 senior All-American Kalani Brown, who recorded her 40th career double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds in Sunday's win. "This team is so unselfish, and we just love each other, genuinely. Everyone is pulling for everyone, and that all season, and that's really what it takes to get a national championship. Coach preached that all season, and we brought it home to you, Baylor Nation."
Brown (15.8 ppg, 8.2 rebounds) and grad transfer point guard Chloe Jackson (11.7 ppg, 5.3 assists) were the only seniors on a 37-1 team that won its last 29 games. They cut down nets for the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles and then the Greensboro Regional and national championship.
"It's a blessing, like words can't even describe the feeling," said Jackson, who earned Most Outstanding Player honors after scoring a season-high 26 points in the final.
On her decision to leave LSU and transfer to Baylor for her final season, Jackson said, "It was definitely a leap of faith."
"I just had to trust in God. He had a plan for me," Jackson said. "I knew Baylor already had a great team, and I just hoped that I could be the piece to complete the puzzle. Sure enough, I feel like I was."
The national championship celebration Sunday night and even Monday was tempered by 6-4 junior All-American forward Lauren Cox going down at the 1:22 mark of the third quarter with an apparent knee injury. She was taken off the court in a wheelchair and then came back in the fourth quarter with walking crutches.
"I just knew I needed to get back out there, just to show that I was OK," said Cox, who averaged 13.0 points, 8.3, 3.7 assists and 2.6 blocks per game. "I was still on the sideline, cheering as hard as I can for them. I had to hold myself back from jumping up on some of the plays."
At the end of the game, Brown ran to Cox and gave her a long embrace, telling her, "This was for you, we finally did it."
"Lauren is probably one of the best players I've ever played with," sophomore wing DiDi Richards said. "She's probably the best teammate I've ever had. It kind of feels like it's impossible to lose when Lauren's on your team, so I'm just happy she's on my team."
Baylor was leading by 12 when Cox got hurt and was up 66-55 going into the fourth quarter. But, Notre Dame tied it at 74-74 midway through the final period on Marina Mabrey's fourth 3-pointer of the night and third in the fourth quarter.
"When Lauren went down, you can't hoodwink people, they know what she means to each of them individually and to our team," Mulkey said. "I had to come to grips with it on that floor and come back to the team in that huddle and convince them that we're OK. We're going to win this basketball game. You take a freshman and you put her in her place, and she just has ice water in her veins, NaLyssa Smith."
Brown and Cox were named to the Final Four all-tournament team, joining Mabrey and Arike Ogunbowale from Notre Dame. But, when ESPN reporter Holly Rowe announced that Jackson had won the Most Outstanding Player award, a surprised Jackson blurted out, "What?"
"I always get surprised, even when they called me for the all-regional team," she said. "This team is just amazing, and there's so many great players on this team. It could have gone to anybody on the team. LC deserved it."
Cox was expected to have an MRI taken on her left knee, but Mulkey promised that she will be back.
"That kid, if she didn't get hurt . . . would have probably been the No. 1 pick in the draft next year. That kid probably would have been the national defensive player of the year next year. That's how good she is. And she will be back, I promise you that. It may take her a year. We'll rest her, do whatever."
While Brown is a projected first-round pick in Wednesday's WNBA Draft, Jackson might have helped her stock with solid performances in the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm excited about the future. I know I'm going to be great, whatever I end up doing," Jackson said. "I haven't talked to any scouts. Agents have reached out, so that's all I'm really dealing with right now, just trying to sign with an agent before the draft."
Baylor University President Linda Livingstone, who made the trips to Greensboro, N.C., and Tampa, Fla., for the last four games, said Mulkey and her coaching staff "are the reason these young women perform the way they do and carry themselves the way they do."
"Thank you for your leadership and the impact you have on this team, this university," Livingstone told Mulkey. "We look forward to what's ahead for this team. As great as this win was for Baylor, it was great for Waco, it's great for the state of Texas, it's great for the Big 12 Conference and it's fabulous for women's basketball."
Baylor Bear Insider
Less than 20 hours after hoisting the national championship trophy in Tampa, Fla., the newly crowned Baylor Lady Bears shared it with thousands of their fans in a welcome-back celebration Monday afternoon at the Ferrell Center.
"Coaches can coach a lifetime and never win a championship," said coach Kim Mulkey, whose team won the program's third national championship by defeating defending champion Notre Dame, 82-81, in Sunday's title game before a crowd of 20,127 at Amalie Arena.
"Coaches can try every year to have great team chemistry. They can lead them and guide them, but sometimes you just get a group of girls where you sit back and go, 'They've got it.' And this bunch had it."
That chemistry started with a slogan the team adopted last summer: Together to Tampa. It wasn't just getting to Tampa, it was doing it together, as a team.
"Together to Tampa means it was going to take all of us to get there," said 6-7 senior All-American Kalani Brown, who recorded her 40th career double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds in Sunday's win. "This team is so unselfish, and we just love each other, genuinely. Everyone is pulling for everyone, and that all season, and that's really what it takes to get a national championship. Coach preached that all season, and we brought it home to you, Baylor Nation."
Brown (15.8 ppg, 8.2 rebounds) and grad transfer point guard Chloe Jackson (11.7 ppg, 5.3 assists) were the only seniors on a 37-1 team that won its last 29 games. They cut down nets for the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles and then the Greensboro Regional and national championship.
"It's a blessing, like words can't even describe the feeling," said Jackson, who earned Most Outstanding Player honors after scoring a season-high 26 points in the final.
On her decision to leave LSU and transfer to Baylor for her final season, Jackson said, "It was definitely a leap of faith."
"I just had to trust in God. He had a plan for me," Jackson said. "I knew Baylor already had a great team, and I just hoped that I could be the piece to complete the puzzle. Sure enough, I feel like I was."
The national championship celebration Sunday night and even Monday was tempered by 6-4 junior All-American forward Lauren Cox going down at the 1:22 mark of the third quarter with an apparent knee injury. She was taken off the court in a wheelchair and then came back in the fourth quarter with walking crutches.
"I just knew I needed to get back out there, just to show that I was OK," said Cox, who averaged 13.0 points, 8.3, 3.7 assists and 2.6 blocks per game. "I was still on the sideline, cheering as hard as I can for them. I had to hold myself back from jumping up on some of the plays."
At the end of the game, Brown ran to Cox and gave her a long embrace, telling her, "This was for you, we finally did it."
"Lauren is probably one of the best players I've ever played with," sophomore wing DiDi Richards said. "She's probably the best teammate I've ever had. It kind of feels like it's impossible to lose when Lauren's on your team, so I'm just happy she's on my team."
Baylor was leading by 12 when Cox got hurt and was up 66-55 going into the fourth quarter. But, Notre Dame tied it at 74-74 midway through the final period on Marina Mabrey's fourth 3-pointer of the night and third in the fourth quarter.
"When Lauren went down, you can't hoodwink people, they know what she means to each of them individually and to our team," Mulkey said. "I had to come to grips with it on that floor and come back to the team in that huddle and convince them that we're OK. We're going to win this basketball game. You take a freshman and you put her in her place, and she just has ice water in her veins, NaLyssa Smith."
Brown and Cox were named to the Final Four all-tournament team, joining Mabrey and Arike Ogunbowale from Notre Dame. But, when ESPN reporter Holly Rowe announced that Jackson had won the Most Outstanding Player award, a surprised Jackson blurted out, "What?"
"I always get surprised, even when they called me for the all-regional team," she said. "This team is just amazing, and there's so many great players on this team. It could have gone to anybody on the team. LC deserved it."
Cox was expected to have an MRI taken on her left knee, but Mulkey promised that she will be back.
"That kid, if she didn't get hurt . . . would have probably been the No. 1 pick in the draft next year. That kid probably would have been the national defensive player of the year next year. That's how good she is. And she will be back, I promise you that. It may take her a year. We'll rest her, do whatever."
While Brown is a projected first-round pick in Wednesday's WNBA Draft, Jackson might have helped her stock with solid performances in the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm excited about the future. I know I'm going to be great, whatever I end up doing," Jackson said. "I haven't talked to any scouts. Agents have reached out, so that's all I'm really dealing with right now, just trying to sign with an agent before the draft."
Baylor University President Linda Livingstone, who made the trips to Greensboro, N.C., and Tampa, Fla., for the last four games, said Mulkey and her coaching staff "are the reason these young women perform the way they do and carry themselves the way they do."
"Thank you for your leadership and the impact you have on this team, this university," Livingstone told Mulkey. "We look forward to what's ahead for this team. As great as this win was for Baylor, it was great for Waco, it's great for the state of Texas, it's great for the Big 12 Conference and it's fabulous for women's basketball."
Players Mentioned
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