Lady Basketball Buckeyes Tidbits 2005-2006 Season

[SanAntonioBuck]

Way to go lady bucks!

 

[45Forever]

Huge win for the Lady Bucks.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

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1/23/06

Davenport’s shot lifts OSU to win
Monday, January 23, 2006 [FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]The Associated Press[/FONT]

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Ohio State’s Marscilla Packer (right) jumps into the arms of Jessica Davenport in celebration after Davenport hit the game-winning shot as time expired to defeat Michigan State, 67-65, in college women’s basketball Sunday at East Lansing, Mich. Davenport led Ohio State with 31 points.​

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Jessica Davenport caught the long pass like a wide receiver.
Davenport took a 40-foot pass from Marscilla Packer and scored a layup at the buzzer to lift No. 7 Ohio State past No. 12 Michigan State, 67-65, Sunday.
The 6-foot-5 Davenport finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks for the Buckeyes (15-2, 6-1 Big Ten). She went 14-for-19 from the field.
“Jess is always going to be back with that little time left,” Ohio State Coach Jim Foster said of the play with 3 seconds left.
Ashley Allen finished with 15 points, going 5-for-7 from 3-point range. The Buckeyes won their sixth straight game and ended the Spartans’ 23-game winning streak in the Breslin Center, which included five straight over ranked teams.
Davenport got Packer’s attention on the final play after Michigan State (14-6, 4-3) had rallied from a 10-point deficit.
“At first I thought Pack was going to try a long shot, so I screamed her name,” Davenport said.
Michigan State Coach Joanne P. McCallie expected an extra session.
“It definitely should have been an overtime game,” McCallie said. “I had one timeout and didn’t call it. Those kids should have all been in front of us. But that last pass was astounding.”
She said the team was correct to sag off Allen, who was draining 3s.
“The real story was Ashley Allen hitting five 3’s,” McCallie said. “I don’t think she has done that all year. And no, we’re not defending that shot. She can chuck it up there the next time, too.”
The Spartans got 18 points from Liz Shimek, 12 from Victoria Lucas-Perry and 11 from Lindsay Bowen, who sparked a surge from a 65-57 deficit with a 3-pointer, a steal and a layup and free throw.
After two more steals, a free throw by Aisha Jefferson with 3 seconds left tied the game.
“I just remember them lobbing it to No. 50,” Shimek said. “But you can’t base the whole game on that play. It all came down to our defense again. And that last play was a blur.” Michigan State had a 35-27 edge in rebounds, but shot just 34 percent from the field in the second half. The Buckeyes shot 63 percent in the last 20 minutes and had 25 assists on 28 baskets. Ohio State was 8-for-17 from long range, with Packer hitting three 3s.

 

[coastalbuck]

I would have liked to watch that one. Sounds like a hell of a game. Great win by the lady Bucks. The Big Ten is really tough this year, a road win against a ranked team is huge. Keep it going Ladies.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Davenport continues to dominate, I don't get to watch many of their games, but she is always tough inside. Big time player.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

link

1/26/06

OSU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Buckeyes are feeling good after road win over Spartans

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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For a little more than a minute, the sky looked as if it were about to fall on Ohio State for a second season in a row in East Lansing, Mich.
A fast-closing Michigan State team seemed on the verge of taking a huge Big Ten win away from the seventh-ranked Buckeyes in the final seconds
game. passes and a buzzer-beating layup by OSU center Jessica Davenport proved every Chicken Little in the Breslin Center wrong. OSU won 67-65.
Fifth-year senior Debbie Merrill, a transfer from Cincinnati, wasn’t eligible to play in the game last season. She understood what was at stake for her teammates who did.
"I know the people that were here last year really wanted to beat them " Merrill said. "They took away our No. 1 (NCAA Tournament seed). We shared the Big Ten championship with them, and we went up there and lost. So going to their house and beating them was a really big deal."
The tough road win kept the Buckeyes (15-2, 6-1) in a tie for second place in the Big Ten with Minnesota at the halfway point, a game behind Purdue. It also showcased an OSU team that appears to be growing into its offense as it heads into tonight’s game against Wisconsin (7-12, 1-6) in Value City Arena.
Davenport led the way with 31 points and 10 rebounds. Senior guard Ashley Allen nearly brought down rain with five high-arcing three-point baskets. Marscilla Packer — whose pass to Davenport won the game — Brandie Hoskins and Merrill combined for 17 assists.
"I think that’s the first game since I’ve been here where things started going bad at the end of the game that we kept our heads up high," Hoskins said. "We just wanted to win. That’s the best game we’ve played as a team since I’ve been here as far as people stepping up."
Hoskins noted that the Spartans built a 13-point lead in the first half and charged back from a 10-point deficit in the second. The Buckeyes didn’t fold.
"We fought back," she said. "They hadn’t lost at home in 23 games. So that was a great win for us."
OSU coach Jim Foster has been trying to show a more diversified offense this season. A year ago, teams looked to lock down Davenport on the low block, Hoskins in the lane and now-graduated Caity Matter on the perimeter.
"You don’t snap your fingers and change things," Foster said. "It takes players working together that haven’t been together. In (Merrill’s) case, it’s a backto-the-basket player you’re asking to face the basket. In (Hoskins’) case, it was a pull-up jumper. (It’s) getting (Allen) back in the offense and acclimated to it.
"We’d like to think we can get three to four people (in double figures) on a regular basis."
The perimeter assault Sunday by Allen and Packer, who hit three three-pointers, opened the inside for Davenport.
"Ashley and Pack the last couple of games have been unbelievable from the three-point line," Merrill said. "It just takes pressure off. Michigan State plays a match-up zone and usually tries to clog the middle.
"They wanted us to take those shots, but because we were hitting them it was easier to get the ball to Jess. They had to move the zone out, and it left Jess one-on-one. If your guards are hitting, they have to honor the guards."
[email protected]

 

[osugrad21]

CBS



No. 7 Ohio State 73, Wisconsin 46

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- There's no disputing who's the center of attention for No. 7 Ohio State.
Jessica Davenport had 19 points and 14 rebounds and became Ohio State's career leader in blocked shots, leading the seventh-ranked Buckeyes to a 73-46 victory over Wisconsin on Thursday night.
"I think she's the best post player in the country," Wisconsin coach Lisa Stone said. "People want to call her an intimidator, but she intimidates with her numbers. As a person, she lets the game come to her. I can't say enough about her."
The victory was the seventh in a row for Ohio State (16-2, 7-1 Big Ten), which entered the game second in the nation in points allowed per game (51.2). The Buckeyes forced 15 turnovers, had 10 steals, blocked seven shots and limited the Badgers (7-13, 1-7) to just 29 percent shooting from the field.
"Statistically, the game was pretty even, except for our shooting percentage," Stone said. "Jess had a lot to do with that. She's long and you have to shoot over her."
Debbie Merrill added 16 points. All 12 players scored for Ohio State, which was coming off a dramatic 67-65 victory at No. 12 Michigan State on Sunday. Marscilla Packer tossed a long pass that Davenport caught and shot in one motion to provide the winning basket at the buzzer.
"It's a luxury," Buckeyes coach Jim Foster said of the chance to clear his bench. "We have 12 pretty good basketball players. People have to sacrifice."

 

[osugrad21]

Offical Site

1/27

Davenport Sets Record In Rout Of Badgers

Junior center becomes OSU's career blocks leader in 73-46 victory over Wisconsin.

Jessica Davenport blocks a shot by Wisconsin's Danielle Ward during the first half Thursday night in Columbus.

Jan. 26, 2006



Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery





COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - There's no disputing who's the center of attention for No. 7 Ohio State.
Jessica Davenport had 19 points and 14 rebounds and became Ohio State's career leader in blocked shots, leading the seventh-ranked Buckeyes to a 73-46 victory over Wisconsin on Thursday night.
"I think she's the best post player in the country," Wisconsin coach Lisa Stone said. "People want to call her an intimidator, but she intimidates with her numbers. As a person, she lets the game come to her. I can't say enough about her."
The victory was the seventh in a row for Ohio State (16-2, 7-1 Big Ten), which entered the game second in the nation in points allowed per game (51.2). The Buckeyes forced 15 turnovers, had 10 steals, blocked seven shots and limited the Badgers (7-13, 1-7) to just 29 percent shooting from the field.
"Statistically, the game was pretty even, except for our shooting percentage," Stone said. "Jess had a lot to do with that. She's long and you have to shoot over her."
Debbie Merrill added 16 points. All 12 players scored for Ohio State, which was coming off a dramatic 67-65 victory at No. 12 Michigan State on Sunday. Marscilla Packer tossed a long pass that Davenport caught and shot in one motion to provide the winning basket at the buzzer.

"It's a luxury," Buckeyes coach Jim Foster said of the chance to clear his bench. "We have 12 pretty good basketball players. People have to sacrifice."
Ashley Allen had a typical line for Ohio State. She scored just four points but had six assists and five steals.
"We just knew we had to play good defense," she said. "Defense turns into offense."
Davenport, the Big Ten's player of the week the past two weeks, had two assists and four blocks. She started the day tops in the Big Ten in field-goal percentage (.632), rebounding (9.4) and blocked shots (2.59) and tied for the lead in scoring (18.9).
"Jess and I did pretty well," Merrill said. "Their defense was extended so the paint was wide open."
Jolene Anderson had 12 points for the Badgers, who have lost six of seven overall and four in a row in the conference.
The Buckeyes took command early and then pulled away, going up 34-22 despite a listless first half.
Wisconsin's Ashley Josephson hit her second 3-pointer of the half to tie it at 10 early. Ohio State responded with an 11-2 run, with Davenport scoring the final five points. Both of her baskets came off lob passes from Packer, who matched her career high with five assists in the first 20 minutes. She finished with six assists.
"I'd like to see that every game," Foster said of the Buckeyes' workmanlike approach. "I thought we executed well, took care of the ball and went after it on defense. We really played hard on the defensive end."
Davenport became Ohio State's career leader in blocked shots when she got a piece of Shari' Welton's baseline drive at the 4:30 mark of the opening half. The 6-foot-5 junior moved past Mary Sivak with her 242nd block.
"It was not a personal goal, as far as focusing on it. It was not something I was even aware of," she said. "But it's something I've been doing since my freshman year - trying to block shots."
The Badgers' second-leading scorer, Janese Banks, who had missed five games with an injury to her left foot, scored two points in 18 minutes.
The Buckeyes ran off 12 of the first 14 points in the second half and led by as many as 27 near the finish.
"That's a great basketball team," Stone said. "They're spectacular. They're senior-laden, well-coached - a very, very powerful team."

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

From today's Dispatch.....

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1/27/06

NO. 7 OHIO STATE 73 | WISCONSIN 46

Foster’s outburst sets tone for OSU
Coach shows intense side as Buckeyes show theirs on defense

Friday, January 27, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

</IMG>

</IMG> NEAL C . LAURON | DISPATCH Jessica Davenport of Ohio State blocks a shot by Danielle Ward during the first half.



Ohio State coach Jim Foster seldom allows his inner teakettle to rise from low simmer to whistling boil during a basketball game, especially if the officiating crew is involved.

So when Foster spent most of a second-half timeout last night expressing his displeasure at the referees over two quick foul calls on junior center Jessica Davenport, the Buckeyes took a moment off from their 73-46 Big Ten win over Wisconsin to stare in wonder.

"I know, did you see him?" senior guard Ashley Allen said. "I was excited. I had to point at him. I couldn’t believe it. I think that’s good. We can feed off coach, too.

We don’t always have to feed off each other. I just think that was good on his part."

Good or not, Foster didn’t choose to comment on the outburst. He preferred to talk about the workmanlike way the seventh-ranked Buckeyes (16-2, 7-1) overpowered the Badgers (7-13, 1-7).

Davenport led the way with 19 points, 14 rebounds and four blocked shots.

Her second block at the 4:30 mark of the first half was the 242 nd of her career and allowed her to pass Mary Sivak for the program lead. Senior forward Debbie Merrill played despite a bout of bronchitis and added 16 points and five rebounds.
"I’d like to see that just about every game," Foster said. "I thought we executed well, took care of the ball and went after it on defense. We played hard on the defensive end of the floor."

OSU shut down the Wisconsin offense. The Badgers shot 29.2 percent from the field, with leading scorer Jolene Anderson’s 5-of-19 night typical of how relentless the Buckeyes were defensively. Allen, who had a season-high five steals, Kim Wilburn and Tia Battle took turns guarding Anderson.

"We hung around for a bit, but they’re powerful," Wisconsin coach Lisa Stone said. "Ashley Allen did a great job of getting into the passing lanes and really took us out of the flow tonight."

The Buckeyes entered the game second in the nation in scoring defense at 51.2 points per game.

"I think an interesting stat would be that we’re second in fewest points allowed in the country and we’re third in fewest fouls," Foster said. "I think that really speaks to the discipline of the players. I think it’s very difficult to be an aggressive team and not a defensive team that fouls a lot. That speaks volumes for their discipline."

Maybe that led to Foster’s second-half explosion. Three Wisconsin players had just smothered a Davenport shot under the basket. The action moved the other way and Davenport picked up two fouls in nine seconds on block attempts against Danielle Ward and Jordan Wilson.

"He showed a lot of emotion right there and I thought it was right," Davenport said. "I thought it was nice for the players to see coach react that way. It was a bit of motivation. Coach is a great teacher of the game and he tries to get you motivated in different ways."

Davenport followed a free throw by Wilson with a fastbreak basket, and Stephanie Blanton scored six quick points as the Buckeyes steadily pulled away. All 12 OSU players scored. Allen and Marscilla Packer each had six assists. Anderson led Wisconsin with 12 points, five below her average.

[email protected]

Friday, January 27, 2006

Friday, January 27, 2006

 

[coastalbuck]

I see Purdue crushed MSU by 20 last night. Tough compitition in the Big Ten for the women. :osu:

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

link

1/30/60​

OSU rolls past Illinois

Monday, January 30, 2006

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]By RUSTY MILLER AP Sports Writer[/FONT]




COLUMBUS - Illinois needed to either defend center Jessica Davenport or swarm Ohio State’s outside shooters. In the end, neither approach worked.
Marscilla Packer made five 3-pointers to complement Davenport’s 19 points, leading No. 7 Ohio State to a 75-49 victory Sunday.
“You have to make a decision,” Coach Jim Foster said of the dilemma facing the Buckeyes’ opponents. “When you open the inside game, it creates opportunities for quality looks from the perimeter and penetration. It’s all about the inside game establishing itself so you can add those other dimensions.”
It marked the Buckeyes’ eighth consecutive win and kept the defending co-champions a game behind front-running Purdue in the Big Ten. A crowd of 11,622 watched the contest, the second-largest audience for a women’s basketball game at Value City Arena.
Packer’s 15 points all came on 3s. Brandie Hoskins added 13 points for Ohio State (17-2, 8-1).
“I became a little more aggressive. I was looking to shoot the ball,” Packer said. “In the first 10 minutes, I was looking for someone to pass to, but then I started looking for the shots.”
With a double-figure lead for the final 24 minutes, the Buckeyes were able to empty their bench.
Eleven players scored and eleven had at least an assist or a rebound.

Janelle Hughes scored 14 points for Illinois (12-8, 4-5), which lost its fourth game in a row.

“We were doing what we had to do coming out of the blocks,” Illinois coach Theresa Grentz said. “We’re right there, then ’Hey, this is nice. This is great playing before 11,000 people.’ ”
The Illini had 20 turnovers and shot 36 percent from the field. Ohio State came in second in the nation in points allowed at 51.2 per game.
Davenport hit nine of 13 shots from the field to go with six rebounds, one assist and two steals. She sat out most of the second half.
“She’s very, very talented,” Grentz said of Ohio State’s linchpin. “Jim has them work everything around her. On defense, they sort of float, again around her.”
The Illini led early by collapsing inside on the 6-foot-5 Davenport, a first-team All-American a year ago. Then Ohio State’s perimeter shooters and defense began to take over. The Buckeyes shifted to a zone 4 minutes into the game, and Illinois had difficulty penetrating or getting an open shot the rest of the way.
The Buckeyes went on a 13-2 run — Davenport accounting for seven points — to build a 22-12 lead.
“I hit some shots and then the outside game began clicking,” Davenport said. “They really had to respect our outside shooters, and it really opened it up inside for me.”
After the Illini pulled to 22-16 on short jumpers by Hughes and Erin Wigley, Packer started a 9-0 run by hitting consecutive 3-pointers.
“Who hit those first couple of 3s for a six-point swing?” Grentz asked rhetorically. “It was No. 22 (Packer). That was the difference.”
Grentz said her players failed to pay attention to Packer, who leads the Big Ten in 3-point shooting at 46 percent. Ohio State made 5-of-8 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes.
Ahead 34-20 at the break, the Buckeyes scored 13 of the next 17 points to push the lead to 47-24. Packer hit two more 3s and Ashley Allen added another for Ohio State.
The Buckeyes finished 11-of-17 on 3-pointers to the Illini’s 0-for-9.
Foster said he was pleased that his team still has room for improvement and is making progress. “I don’t want to be coaching a team that is as good as it’s going to get this week,” he said. “A small group of teams have the opportunity to improve and I think we’re in that group.” More than 160 former Ohio State female athletes were honored at halftime. Their careers predated the Title IX legislation of 1973, meaning that they did not receive varsity letters for their athletic participation. They were presented with certificates and varsity pins.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

link

2/2/06

WOMEN’S TOP 25

OSU women seventh in RPI

Thursday, February 02, 2006


FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS




The Ohio State women’s basketball team is ranked seventh in the official ratings percentage index released yesterday by the NCAA.

The Buckeyes were behind Tennessee, Connecticut, North Carolina, LSU, Duke and Oklahoma, respectively. OSU defeated the Sooners this season and lost to the Tigers.

"It just reinforces the importance of playing a tough schedule outside the conference," OSU coach Jim Foster said. "But (the ranking) matters at the end of the season."
Three other Big Ten teams — Purdue (11 th), Minnesota (24 th) and Michigan State (29 th) — were in the top 30.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

DISPATCH

2/3/06

OSU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Davenport in running for Wooden Award

Friday, February 03, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




Ohio State junior center Jessica Davenport remained one of 20 players in contention for the Wooden Award yesterday, an announcement coach Jim Foster termed "a no-brainer" from the selection committee.

"Jess Davenport leads the (Big Ten) in field-goal percentage," he said. "She leads this conference in scoring. She leads this conference in rebounding. She leads this conference in blocked shots. She’s having a season that most players would kill for, and that’s bottom-line stuff."

Earlier this season, Foster bristled at media criticism directed toward Davenport’s play.

"The people that need to evaluate what they’re doing are people who say in early December that she’s regressed or that she’s not as good," Foster said.

"Or you watch one game and have no idea what a game plan is or how the game is called or who’s a valuable component to a team and who is not.

And then (you) have an opinion that you’re willing to share your ignorance with thousands. She is having a heck of a season."

Davenport was a concensus All-American last season and a finalist for the Wooden Award. Seimone Augustus of Louisiana State won the award and is on the midseason list again, with Duke’s Monique Currie, who joined Davenport and Augustus on the five-player Wooden All-American team.

Michigan State’s Liz Shimek is the only other Big Ten player still in contention.

Davenport called it and honor to be nominated.

"It’s the second year in a row for that," she said. "Last year when I went (to the dinner), even though I didn’t win, I had a really good time bonding with the girls that were there and just meeting people there."

No. 7 Ohio State (17-2, 8-1) plays at Indiana (11-9, 5-4) at 2 p.m. Sunday.

[email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

2/6/06

NO. 7 OHIO STATE 61 | INDIANA 45

Second time around, OSU fends off IU

Monday, February 06, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

</IMG> DARRON CUMMINGS | ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS Tamarah Riley of Ohio State hits the floor going for a loose ball against Indiana’s Annika Boyd.

</IMG> The Buckeyes’ Brandie Hoskins fires a shot over the Hoosiers’ Jenny DeMuth in the first half.


BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The game was 14 seconds old when Marscilla Packer spotted up beyond the three-point arc and gave Ohio State a 3-0 lead over Indiana in a Big Ten meeting yesterday afternoon in Assembly Hall.

The shot came so easily and the perimeter has been so kind to the seventh-ranked Buckeyes lately that more of the same seemed easily predictable. Strange how second meetings between conference rivals can take sudden and sharp turns in the opposite direction.

The Hoosiers sealed off the perimeter, slowed the pace and pushed OSU to the limit before bowing 61-45 in front of 1,752 fans. The Buckeyes played some of their best and most opportunistic basketball in the half-court because Indiana forced them.

Junior center Jessica Davenport led OSU (18-2, 9-1) to its ninth straight win with 23 points and nine rebounds. Junior guard Brandie Hoskins lifted the midrange offense by adding 17 points, six rebounds and four assists.

The defense, meanwhile, used its size and quickness to hold Indiana to 33.3 percent shooting from the field. The 6-foot-5 Davenport had four blocks, altered several other shots and caused more than one Hoosier to change her mind about even looking at the basket.

"You have to execute your offense," OSU coach Jim Foster said. "When the other team is trying to take some things away from you, you have to find other answers.

It wasn’t the three today, and it has been the last four or five games. So the answers came in different ways. The way you continue to win games is with solid defense, and I think our defense was up to the task today."

The game was closer than the final score might indicate. The Hoosiers (12-10, 6-5) took a serious run at the Buckeyes in the second half, cutting the deficit to 43-40 with 8:25 to play.

"Indiana, ever since I’ve been playing for Ohio State, has always been a real physical and a real scrappy team," Hoskins said. "They never quit. No matter how many points you go up, you’ve got to sustain it because they’re going to make runs on you."

Sophomore Tamarah Riley helped stop the bleeding. Seeing Davenport triple-teamed under the basket, Riley drove in from the high post for a layup.

"I think that stopped their momentum and got us back up to five and gave us some equilibrium," Foster said.

Once steadied, the Buckeyes pushed the lead back to double digits.

Davenport had two quick scores in the pivotal run. The first followed a touch pass from Kim Wilburn after she corralled an offensive rebound. On the next Indiana possession, Wilburn poked the ball away from Leah Enterline and scored at the other end to give OSU a 54-42 lead with 3:43 to play.

"You play as it comes," Wilburn said. "It’s just being at the right spot at the right time. As far as the rebound, I think our guards have been trying to rebound a little more. From the beginning of the season, we’ve been pressuring the other team’s guards."

The Indiana offense bogged down in the final 10 minutes. Leading scorer Cyndi Valentin and center Angela Hawkins both fouled out. In the first meeting between the two teams in Columbus this season, Hawkins repeatedly attacked the basket while scoring 10 points. Davenport didn’t let her this time. Hawkins was 1 of 4 from the field for two points.

"I just made a personal challenge to myself not to let my player get, I think she got 15 shots off last time," Davenport said. "I tried not to let her do that again."

[email protected]

Monday, February 06, 2006

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

2/7/06

Singin’ in the lane

As Ohio State’s Kim Wilburn nears the end of her college basketball career, she mulls a future in music

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Kim Wilburn revels in any opportunity to play the piano, as she does here in OSU’s Fawcett Center for Tomorrow.

A rare commodity, the Buckeyes guard excels on the court, too: She will depart as the program’s career leader in steals.

hat Kim Wilburn could sing came as no surprise to her mother. Music runs marrow deep in the Wilburn family and the youngest of her five children arrived with a sparkle.
‘‘I sing and play the piano," Delores Wilburn said. ‘‘Her father plays the saxophone. He’s a minister. We have a small church. I think she was about 8 years old when she started singing with her sister (Denita) in church. Whenever she comes home to visit now, we have her sing Thank You Lord. She does that one so beautifully."
If he ever forgot (and of course he never did), the Rev. Donald Wilburn could count on weekly reminders at the Mount Gilliard Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit that Kim had inherited the family’s musical genes.
‘‘Her mother plays the piano in the church," he said. ‘‘Whenever she thinks that things are slowing down (at a service), she calls the girls up to sing."
It was the Rev. Wilburn who recognized another talent in Kim at about the same time her mother decided piano lessons would be a good idea.
He took the 8-year-old along to the YMCA and shooed her to a side basketball court with the other youngsters. He looked up from his own game and was amazed by what he saw.
‘‘She was playing with the other little guys and taking the ball away from them and just dribbling right down the court," he said. ‘‘She was really aggressive, and she’s always known how to focus."
A tug of war of sorts started that day. A child possessed of musical and athletic gifts signed up for a basketball league. For a while, the two co-existed.
"I did it for about a year and a half," Kim Wilburn said. "But the piano lessons started conflicting with the basketball. I chose basketball. I didn’t want to go to the piano lessons anymore because they were moving at too slow of a pace. It was boring to me. But I did notice that I picked music up quickly."
From the safe distance of a decade, the decision still looks wise. Wilburn grew into one of the best high-school players in Michigan and earned a scholarship to Ohio State. The senior has played four seasons at point guard for the Buckeyes and will leave the program as its career leader in steals and as one of only three players in team history to have as many as 300 steals and 500 assists.
She is good enough to at least think about playing professionally, but the sound of music is as alluring to her today as the steady bounce of a basketball.
"I never stopped playing the piano," said Wilburn, who also was a percussionist in the highschool band. "Everything that I used to do, I did by ear. I remember in high school going to a dinner at our athletic director’s house. His wife had a piano. I loved the Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven. I said, ‘Listen to what I can play.’ She said, ‘Yeah, but that’s not it. Here’s the sheet music.’ That might be a milestone for me in music. I love that song so much. I still remember it by heart."
Perhaps it would be best to call the moment a first milestone. Since then, Wilburn has continued to work on music with the same passion she would a crossover dribble. She composes. She sings. She plays. She performs with a band and no longer surprises her teammates.
"In the beginning, she was so shy," said Candace Dark, her roommate during their freshman year. "She didn’t sing out in front of people. But she’s grown so much musically. She’s confident and has such a strong, clear voice. And she lets the team hear her now."
By the time Wilburn reached her sophomore year, a hotel lobby with a piano led to an impromptu concert.
"We used to try to find a piano," Dark said. "She would do church music and things like that. She started doing a couple of the songs that she had written herself and I was just blown away."
Wilburn wrote her first song during her senior year in high school even as her basketball career was taking off. The two loves suddenly had to coexist.
"I think there is a connection," Wilburn said. "I kind of connect everything with basketball. I know that I have to practice. I know when I’m about to perform or sing, I have to do certain warm-ups.
"I’m in a band now. You have to find people you have chemistry with. You have your on nights and you have your off nights. There are so many connections between the two."
As her collegiate career winds down, Wilburn is close to earning a bachelor’s degree in economics. The R &B band she sings with — La Quest — is just getting off the ground. The future looms around the corner; she is trying to decide which direction to take.
"I love basketball and I love music," Wilburn said. "I’m not sure if I have a chance in (pro) basketball. . . .
"This year and maybe last year, I’ve come to love music so much. I‘ve just been afraid of failing at it. I don’t know what to do or who to talk to, but I think I want to try it. But I know I don’t want to have regrets."
If basketball ends, music finally could begin in earnest. She is teaching herself to play guitar and saving to buy a piano.
"She is blessed with options," the Rev. Wilburn said. "And she works hard at whatever she does. I’m really happy for her and proud of her. Whatever she puts her mind to, she does."
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Tuesday, February 07, 2006