My oh my how perspectives can shift.
Lance Armstrong is revered and after he finally — and mercifully — admitted to the house of lies his life was built on to Oprah (of all places), the public disowned him, seeing him for what he truly was.
Joe Flacco is an average quarterback this time one year ago. But 11 postseason touchdowns and a Super Bowl win later, he’s handed the richest contract in NFL history and labeled as a “winner” by any talking TV head given a microphone.
Twelve months ago, the Idaho State women’s basketball team stood as conference champions. The present was pretty good then — it was an all out party in Pocatello after the regular season and postseason titles — and with nearly the entire crew back to ride again the next year the future held limitless possibilities.
But that didn’t happen. For whatever reason, the 2012-13 Bengals could never find the magic they held before. The elixir that came together on the way to rollicking through the conference with a 14-2 record was too complicated to duplicate.
This column, however, isn’t about what Idaho State didn’t do in 2012. It’s about a time when we won’t see Kaela Oakes stepping over a ball screen, fighting for all she’s worth to stop penetration or Ashleigh Vella calmly stepping into a dagger 3-pointer to seal a win.
Because despite the end to this past season — a 13-point defeat to Sacramento State in the first round of the Big Sky tournament — there was still plenty of victories (18), sweet memories (Vella and Oakes break the 1,000-point barriers in their careers) and magical moments (Abyee Maracigan scores a career-high 21 points on her 23rd birthday).
And, yes, I imagine anytime a preseason favorite doesn’t live up to expectations (or their own high standards) it’s a disappointment. But once any season is over, whether it ends in Missoula, Mont., or before the postseason tournament even arrives, it feels abrupt, crushing and feelings of remorse are all that’s left behind (what could have been!).
Now five seniors are gone to graduation and junior forward Cydney Horton’s status is up in the air after she did not travel or play with ISU over the season’s final three games.
Replacing the seniors is no small task. They accounted for 57.5 percent of the points Idaho State scored and nearly half of its rebounds.
Of course, while production is one thing, it’s the leadership from a large senior class that’s priceless and immeasurable in terms of value.
This is the evolution of a program, though. Vella and Oakes arrive as freshmen, both play right away while taking their bumps during a 15-15 campaign. Then, with help along the way, they win 60 games over the next three years.
Head coach Seton Sobolewski isn’t back to square one. Kara Jenkins and Lindsey Reed have boatloads of experience and are a solid base to next year’s starting five. And there’s players like Alissa Willard, Jessica Jensen, Anna Lee Policicchio, Sheryl Bitter and Justine Joudrey that have been putting work in away from the games, biding their time and awaiting their opportunity.
Plus, six incoming freshmen that represent the future of Idaho State women’s basketball arrive in the fall.
Remember, it’s a shift of perspective. There’s a theme to every season and next year, at least to start, it’s about learning new personalities and watching some players learn their way as they finally get their chance to compete in meaningful games.
“We’re going to see some different faces,” Sobolewski said a couple weeks back. “I think it’s exciting to see what we’ll look like next year.”
The buildup for 2013-14 will not have the pomp and circumstance this season had, and Idaho State won’t be ranked anywhere near the No. 1 spot in silly preseason polls that are only fun for the media and fans to argue over.
No, instead D’shara Strange at Northern Colorado and the bevy of shooters at Eastern Washington will hog the headlines along with Montana (the Lady Griz have now claimed 20 Big Sky championships after knocking off Northern Colorado 56-43 Saturday afternoon).
Meanwhile, Sobolewski, his staff and the players will get down to work.
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