McCallie Eager to Keep Duke on Its Perch

Joanne P. McCallie speaks after being introduced as Duke's new women's basketball coach in Durham, N.C., Friday, April 20, 2007. The former Michigan State coach succeeds Gail Goestenkors, who left for Texas after a 15-year run at Duke. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) (Gerry Broome - AP)

DURHAM, N.C. -- Joanne P. McCallie first fell in love with Duke when she arrived on campus for a recruiting visit, even though her mother ultimately persuaded her to play for Northwestern.

Still, she couldn't help but dream about one day coaching the Blue Devils. And now, 25 years later, "Coach P" finally has made it to Durham.

"I wanted that job," the former Michigan State coach said Friday at her introductory news conference in Cameron Indoor Stadium. "Duke did not have to come searching for me and asking too many questions. I believe I made it very clear that I wanted the job."

The Blue Devils hired McCallie away from the Spartans this week, charging the 41-year-old coach with maintaining the tradition built by Gail Goestenkors before she left for Texas earlier this month. McCallie _ who was named The Associated Press national coach of the year in 2005 after leading the Spartans to the national championship game _ inherits a program that has won 30 games for an NCAA-record seven straight seasons, with three Final Four trips in that span.

Goestenkors accomplished just about everything she could at Duke except win a national championship. That burden now falls on McCallie.

"She is a coach with tremendous enthusiasm, tremendous passion for basketball and she's going to lead this program to new heights," athletic director Joe Alleva said. "And we're going to hang a lot more banners in this gymnasium in the future."

McCallie _ known as "Coach P" because of her maiden name, Palombo _ has a career record of 316-148 in 15 seasons at Maine and Michigan State. She leaves Michigan State after going 149-75 in seven seasons there. Her teams reached the past five NCAA tournaments, losing in the second round this season to eventual national finalist Rutgers.

She also will coach the U.S. under-21 team at the world championships in Moscow in June and July.

McCallie left the Spartans less than a month after signing a new contract that boosted her base salary by about $100,000. She said the Duke job was the only one that would have been enough to pry her away from East Lansing, Mich.

That didn't seem a likely scenario when Duke first focused on California's Joanne Boyle, a former assistant to Goestenkors from 1993-2002. But Boyle turned down the job last week, and it wasn't long before Duke and McCallie were talking. That included McCallie spending about 45 minutes meeting with Hall of Fame men's coach Mike Krzyzewski earlier this week.

"The reality was there was an opening I never thought would occur," she said. "It's taken 15 years for the job to open. It was something I had to seize as somebody with an appreciation and an excitement for Duke University."

The hiring ended a difficult month for the players. The Blue Devils (32-2) won a school-record 30 straight games, ended the regular season ranked No. 1 and held the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament. But they were upset in the regional semifinals by Rutgers when All-American Lindsey Harding missed a pair of free throws with 0.1 seconds left in a 53-52 loss.

Then came Goestenkors' abrupt departure, followed by nearly three weeks of uncertainty.

"When we found out that she was going to be our coach, it was just the fact that this is now over and we can move forward," guard Abby Waner said. "But as we got to talk with her and know her and her family, it's not only the fact that we have a coach, but also that it's her."

McCallie will have plenty to work with at Duke. Though Harding and senior Alison Bales are graduating, Duke returns Waner (team-high 14.1 points) and Wanisha Smith (9.4 points), while forward Chante Black will return after missing last season with a knee injury. Duke also has a recruiting class that includes McDonald's All-Americans Krystal Thomas (Orlando, Fla.) and Jasmine Thomas (Fairfax, Va.).

And McCallie won't worry about the pressure of following Goestenkors.

"You have to enjoy that process," she said. "I really want this team to have fun, to recognize that we know what we're pursuing and we're going to pursue it every year. The goal's never going to change: championships every year, no matter if we're picked to or not picked to."