WBB: Shocker for the Huskers" Connie Yori Out as Head Coach

Ignatius L Hoops

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http://journalstar.com/sports/huske...cle_3266e814-fb41-11e5-a21f-affa8006eb5c.html

There had been rumors on the Husker board; but still:

Nebraska women’s basketball coach Connie Yori has resigned after a two-month long investigation by the Nebraska athletic department into allegations Yori mistreated players and fostered a negative, dysfunctional culture, multiple sources confirmed to the Journal Star.

Nebraska athletic director Shawn Eichorst, in a statement to the Journal Star on Tuesday, confirmed Yori is no longer Nebraska’s coach, ending her 14-year tenure as the most successful coach in program history.

A source with knowledge of the situation, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Journal Star more than 10 players from the 2015-16 team, along with some support staff members, approached Nebraska athletic department administrators in early February with concerns about Yori’s treatment of players


And:

Two sources also said a former director of basketball operations has come forward with a complaint against Yori for discrimination, and that Yori forced staff members to lie in vouching for her whereabouts as it relates to Yori's custody battle for their 11-year-old son. Yori and her husband, Kirk Helms, are in divorce proceedings.

The NCAA is not investigating Yori or the Nebraska program, a source said, and there is no evidence of NCAA rules violations.

As for the player mistreatment allegations, they included Yori bullying, intimidating and overtraining players while showing a general disregard for players’ well-being, sources said. As part of a review of the women’s basketball program, players met individually with Nebraska’s compliance department, which isn’t normal procedure, one source said.

Yori, reached by phone Tuesday, denied all allegations and said she was unaware of any complaints against her.

"I vehemently deny any wrongdoing in our program," Yori told the Journal Star. "I'm going to deny any wrongdoing in our program."
 

Obviously, former Husker Amy Williams at South Dakota is getting mentioned a lot. Unlike Yori, Williams did defeat the Gophers this year.
 


Interesting that the newspaper account says "more than 10" players complained, given that the roster had only a total of 13. So either one or two didn't complain.
 

http://journalstar.com/sports/huske...al&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share



A source close to the situation confirmed Wednesday there’s been dialogue between Nebraska and Williams, a former Nebraska player who just completed her fourth season as head coach at South Dakota.

No offer had been made to Williams, the source said.

Williams didn’t return a voice mail seeking comment. Nebraska athletic director Shawn Eichorst said he won’t comment or speculate on the search or candidates until a coach hiring announcement has been made.
 


Though it would likely be a tough get., Their first choice is rumored to be Louisville head coach Jeff Walz who was an assistant at Nebraska many years ago.
 

http://journalstar.com/sports/huske...cle_256e341c-a9b0-5dcd-9c14-624902862dc7.html

Jan Bethea confirms complaint:

A former Nebraska women’s basketball staff member confirmed to the Journal Star on Wednesday that she had filed a complaint against the University of Nebraska alleging discrimination.

Jan Bethea, who was the program’s director of basketball operations for five seasons before leaving in 2015, said she filed the complaint this year. At NU, she coordinated the Huskers' scheduling and team travel, among other duties, and also was on the bench during games.

After leaving Lincoln, she returned to school in Florida to complete her doctorate...




...Bethea would not answer questions about how she was mistreated.

“That will come out in the case,” she said.

Bethea said that while she was still employed at Nebraska she went to an administrator with claims of mistreatment against her, but would not say who the administrator was.
 


A shocker in WBB is an oxymoron.
Very few in the known universe care.
 




A shocker in WBB is an oxymoron.

Actually...it's pretty common:

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http://www.omaha.com/huskers/blogs/...cle_120e7182-fdcf-11e5-8884-bb581687a7f2.html

Natalie Romeo's perspective-issue was with team not coaches:

Romeo said the last several days have been difficult. She said the university’s investigation — which included a lengthy interrogation session with compliance and administrators watching practice — played a factor in the team’s struggles at the end of the season, as players knew some supported Yori and some didn’t.

“It kind of tore us apart,” Romeo said.

The 5-foot-7 point guard averaged 16 points, 3.0 assists, 2.9 rebounds and a team-high 35.1 minutes, while making a school record 104 3-pointers. Romeo said she never witnessed players being treated poorly by Yori or her staff.

Practices this season, Romeo said, were “extremely, ridiculously easy” — far easier than they had been in a previous year. Frustrations over small, inconsequential things — such as being disciplined for not hustling in practice — bloomed into full-blown complaints.

“It just started as small talk, and it grew and grew from there,” Romeo said. “It was an issue of immaturity on the team. It wasn’t an issue with the coaches.”


Jasmine Cincore's AAU coach speaks for Cincore:

Jackson said Cincore told him her interest in transferring was unrelated to player abuse, but related more to the “interpersonal skills of the head coach,” who paid “lip service” to Cincore on playing time and her role on the team.


“It was just a difference of opinion,” said Jackson, who added that the assistant coach who originally recruited Cincore, Shimmy Gray-Miller, took a job at Florida after her freshman year.


Practice player weighs in:

Romeo’s comments, the first from a current member of the team, were similar to those made by Nathan Schlautman, who practiced with the Huskers the last four seasons and went to more than 300 practices. Schlautman said practices were easiest this year out of the four seasons, and players were unwilling to be coached. Schlautman said players were “soft,” “entitled” and “uncoachable.”

Basketball trainer does not:

The World-Herald has made calls to other players, but none have commented. The World-Herald on Thursday called NU women’s basketball trainer Julie Tuttle, who said “can’t talk, won’t talk” and hung up.
 

http://www.ketv.com/sports/huskers-...d-as-new-unl-womens-basketball-coach/38970242

It was a short search ending with the expected hire: Amy Williams is the new Husker head coach.


Williams, a Spearfish, South Dakota, native, played for the Cornhuskers from 1994 to 1998 and graduated with degrees in biology and mathematics. She will be the 10th head coach in program history.

"What an honor to return home as the head women’s basketball coach at the University of Nebraska," Williams said in a statement. "My family and I are thrilled to be joining this outstanding university and the Lincoln community. I am grateful to President Hank Bounds, Chancellor Harvey Perlman and Shawn Eichorst for their confidence in me and I am eager to continue to build on the rich tradition of my alma mater."
 




http://www.omaha.com/huskers/jessic...cle_b57541d4-9635-5139-80cd-87598c718d0a.html



Schism in Lincoln: Don't let the bus hit you in the ass on your way out of town.

“The last couple weeks has been crazy,” [Jessica] Shepard said. “You definitely have mixed emotions when Coach Yori announced that she was resigning, but to see the new coaches they’re bringing in, it’s really refreshing. It kind of lifted a weight on her shoulders.”

Shepard was peeved at her teammate, guard Natalie Romeo, for telling the media that all player abuse allegations against Yori were false and mostly the result of player “immaturity.” Romeo said NU’s practices throughout the season were easy.

“If you’re going to transfer, maybe leave a little more quietly,” Shepard said when asked about Romeo’s comments, made late last week. “You don’t need to say anything and kind of throw your teammates under the bus. It’s hard when a teammate throws you under the bus — whether they’re moving on or not — because you went through everything with that person a couple months ago.”
 




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