In the last two games of the 2020-21 season, Adia Barnes coached against two legends of the game — UConn’s Geno Auriemma and Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer.
Barnes beat Auriemma in the Final Four and lost to VanDerveer by one point for the title.
Up next for Barnes — and her Arizona Wildcats: C. Vivian Stringer.
Arizona will take on Stringer’s Rutgers squad Nov. 27 at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Hall of Fame coach is the first coach to take three different teams to the Final Four — Cheyney State College (1982), Iowa (1993) and Rutgers (2000, 2007). Stringer is the first Black college coach to win 1,000 games, and the first Black woman to coach in the Final Four.
“These are people that I respect so much,” Barnes said. “It’s an honor and always a challenge to coach against them. They are legends. It keeps me on my game. You can’t get better unless you coach against good coaches. That’s what is fun.”
During the NCAA Tournament, Stringer sent both Barnes and South Carolina’s Dawn Staley notes and packages to commemorate the first time two Black women coached in the Final Four in the same year. T-shirts have been printed up listing the first names of four Black women coaches who took their teams that far — Vivian, Carolyn (Peck), Dawn and Adia.
Barnes admitted to being a little uneasy with the comparison.
“I don’t feel like I should be in that category — they’ve all won national championships and I haven’t. I haven’t done anything yet,” Barnes said.
Arizona will also play Vanderbilt and DePaul at the Jam. Arizona has two connections to Vanderbilt: New Wildcat Koi Love played her first two seasons in Nashville, and the Commodores’ new head coach, Shea Ralph, is a longtime friend of Barnes’. Ralph was matched against Barnes in the 1998 Sweet 16 matchup between UConn and UA when they both played.
Filling spots
Barnes is working to add two or three more games to the Wildcats’ schedule, which may lead her to enter her team in another multi-team event. Barnes said it’s been “almost impossible” to find games.
“I am very happy the Pac-12 is going to 20 games — no one wants to come to Tucson to play us,” Barnes said. “We are playing a lot of hard games on the road. We should have three nonconference games (televised) on ESPN. It’s tough competition — tougher than we had before.”
All the smarts
UA senior Sam Thomas collected nearly every academic honor this season — Pac-12 Scholar of the Year, CoSIDA Academic All-District and the national Elite90 Award. On Wednesday, she was named to the Pac-12’s fall and winter academic honor roll. These may mean more to Barnes than Thomas making the Pac-12’s All-Defense team.
“It’s who she is, how she represents the program. I am so happy for her,” Barnes said. “She’s our team captain, our leader and she is a special young woman. She holds a special place in my heart. She chose me and Arizona when others wouldn’t. I absolutely love her.”
Thomas will return for one more year, taking advantage of an NCAA rule that grants all student-athletes who played during the pandemic an extra year of eligibility.
Joining Thomas on the Pac-12’s fall and winter academic honor roll were Cate Reese, Helena Pueyo, Mara Mote and Tara Manumaleuga.
No days off
Barnes hasn’t had a day off since returning from NCAA Tournament.
Friday night, she’ll be honored by the Phoenix Mercury during the team’s 7 p.m. home opener against the Connecticut Sun.
Barnes will also be featured in a new Nike ad campaign about Black moms.
The Wildcats’ coach says she’s been humbled by all the attention. She found herself talking to Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll on a podcast, and was in awe.
“All of these amazing people I look up to and Pete Carroll is asking me questions,” Barnes said. “I was thinking ‘Is he really asking me questions? He’s a legend. I should be asking him questions.’ It’s such an honor. I am so flattered. People are excited about us and it’s really cool.”
Barnes has been especially touched by the notes she’s received.
New York Yankees hitting coach Rachel Balkovec shared that she was inspired by Barnes, who coached the 2020-21 season shortly after giving birth. Balkovec is first woman in Major League Baseball history to serve as a hitting coach.
“Oh my gosh, this is so awesome,” Barnes said. “I am a fan of hers — I didn’t know that women were hitting coaches in Major League Baseball. I think it’s so cool that I am inspiring women. Usually, you put your head down and GSD — ‘get stuff done’ — and you forget that along the way you are inspiring people. This is so meaningful.”
