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EVENTS
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
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Time for craziness begins
Gail Goestenkors, a native of Waterford, Michigan, is in her ninth season as coach of the Duke Blue Devils. The three-time ACC coach of the year led Duke to the 1999 NCAA title game and it's first ACC tournament title in 2000. The Blue Devils won the regular season ACC title and ACC tournament in 2001. Duke is the No. 1 seed in the West for the NCAA tournament. Check out Goestenkors' diary every week on CNNSI.com.
March 13, 2001
Well, it's FINALLY here........MARCH MADNESS! You play ALL year long and always in the back of your mind (and sometimes in the front) is the thought of the NCAA tournament. It's such an exciting time for everyone, players, coaches and fans alike. On Sunday, we had practice, lifted weights, ate training table and then met over at my house for the Selection Show. ESPN was at the house (so I actually had to clean!). The players were even more excited than usual. I had an earpiece in that had me connected to the studio, so I could hear what was being said by Robin, Nell, Vera and Nancy before the show. So.....I knew that we had received the number one see in the West. The players could tell that I knew something and were trying to get it out of me, but I didn't budge. I wanted to see their faces when they saw it announced on television. I'm usually not very good about keeping secrets (just kidding to all my friends) but this one was well worth it! To see the happiness and joy on their faces makes everything worthwhile. I was glad to see the committee gave respect to our conference. You do everything you can to try and set yourself up for a number one seed and then you just have to sit and wait to see what happens. Now the time for craziness begins. As soon as the brackets were announced we were on the phone with other coaches making sure we had all the tapes necessary. We have a satellite dish at school and tape every game that comes on, so we have a very extensive library. Our sports information director, Lindy Brown is THE BEST! He has all the stats, updates and box scores from all of the teams by the time we get into work the next morning. It's such an exciting time, you have to prepare your team for every game and stay focused on each team but you must still plan ahead and be prepared for every potential opponent as well. The level of stress goes up about a thousand percent because you know that every game could be your last. I told Mark, my husband, the night before the selection show that it would Be my last good nights sleep. As long as we're in the tournament, it's almost impossible to sleep. I always feel like I should be at work or watching more tape or doing something. I'm thinking back now to the very first diary I wrote and I remember talking about the last game of the year and how that game stays with you throughout the entire summer. As a coach, you always want to give your team the best opportunity to win and when they lose, you always feel that you could have done something more. My team told me at the end of last year that they wanted to win the national championship. I am going to do everything I can to help them realize their dreams....... Take care, -- Coach G.
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