INDIANAPOLIS — Three quick dribbles. The left arm swings back. Pause. Follow through.
Shyra Ely goes through that simple routine every time she steps to the free throw line. And with that, Al Brown's influence on Tennessee women's basketball still shows up — every time Ely steps to the free throw line.
Ely, now a senior, got only one year of Brown's tutelage at Tennessee, but the impact he had on her freshman year — and her free throw shooting — still runs deep.
''He's a smart coach, really cerebral,'' Ely said. ''He knows how to break down a team, break down players. Longwinded, but he's a great coach.''
Brown spent two years as an assistant in UT's men's program, and he worked on Pat Summitt's staff from 1995 to 2002. The Lady Vols won three national championships during that stretch.
Now, Brown is on the other sideline, as an assistant coach for Michigan State. The Spartans (32-3) play the Lady Vols (30-4) in the Final Four tonight at 8:30 at the RCA Dome.
''The mistake that you could make as a coach is to assume, 'Well, I was at Tennessee, and we did all this, and I know this,''' Brown said. ''And you overlook exactly what they're doing now. I certainly avoid that.''
Brown, in his first year at Michigan State, won't be the only coach with orange ties. Former Lady Vol Semeka Randall is also in her first year on Joanne P. McCallie's staff.
Brown and Randall have more experience with the Final Four than anybody associated with the Spartans, who are making their first Final Four appearance. McCallie was an assistant coach on the Auburn teams that went to the title game in 1988 and 1989.
But Brown went to five Final Fours as an assistant at Tennessee, and Randall was a freshman when the Lady Vols went undefeated in 1998. She has tried to make it clear to her players exactly what happens to Tennessee this time of year.
''You go through the season and you get all the tweaks out,'' Randall said. ''March Madness hits, and the whole team just transforms. The focus gets real intense. Details become very important.''
Randall's group in 1998 was the last Lady Vol team to win a national title.
''Let's keep it that way,'' she said.
The seven-year drought is referred to as unacceptable by several of the current Tennessee players.
''I think the problem with a Connecticut or a Tennessee is you create such a monster as a coach,'' Brown said. ''Anything short of winning a national championship is somewhat disappointing. That shouldn't be that way.''
That is not the case at Michigan State, Brown said.
''It's a great difference because of the enjoyment of the community, the excitement, the thrill the players have,'' Brown said.
That's not to say that Brown is down on Tennessee. In fact, he walked right up to Ely at a banquet on Friday night and greeted her with a cheery ''Hey Lefty'' and a big hug.
Brown is still the same X's and O's coach that he was at Tennessee, and his post players are putting up numbers that look pretty similar to the Lady Vols of the late '90s. Junior forward Liz Shimek and senior center Kelli Roehrig are combining for 28.5 points and 16.5 rebounds a game.
The biggest difference in Brown is wardrobe. Always known for his suits while in Knoxville, he has taken a different route this season.
''Somehow I got started in sweaters this year, and it's become something that's just kind of turned into a runaway animal,'' he said. ''I told my wife I've got to go out and buy some new sweaters. Being around women, you can't wear the same sweater twice.''
Despite her move to the sidelines, Randall hasn't changed much since leaving Tennessee either.
''I was curious to see how she was going to be as a coach,'' Summitt said. ''She was always a real competitive player and tough, and I was anxious to see if she could put those tennis shoes aside and really think about being a coach. And she said she really likes it.''
Randall is catching just as much flak for her change in dress code as Brown. She has friends and family ask her constantly about her new partiality to the color green.
''They say the orange looks better,'' Randall said. ''But this is my suit for now.''
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