Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Terrapin transplant

Disgruntled transfer Wiley-Gatewood will help Terps

Is Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood a good fit for coach Brenda Frese's Maryland team?

I don't know all the reasons Wiley-Gatewood decided, at midseason, to leave the number No. 1 team in the country, a team for which she was arguably the most important cog. Coach Pat Summitt said Wiley-Gatewood felt she couldn't play "her game" at Tennessee, and the player's stepfather, Jerry Gatewood, said, "she doesn't want to be a role player." Given options, Wiley-Gatewood probably wasn't going to sign with another program that had anything like Tennessee's structure. My guess is that Brenda Frese will give her free reign on the court, which will suit Wiley-Gatewood perfectly. Her talent is such that she will be a huge boost to an already vastly talented Maryland squad. As to what her arrival might do to team chemistry, who knows? From everything I know, Wiley-Gatewood is an engaging, likeable person, but she certainly isn't coming off as much of a team player.

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