Austin, Texas ? Texas got what it paid for when it hired coach Gail Goestenkors: a return to the NCAA Tournament and new life injected into a stagnant program.
Coach G got a $1 million contract to leave Duke after 15 seasons, and the Longhorns she inherited might as well have been a million miles from the perch her Blue Devils enjoyed as one of the top teams in the country.
Texas was a dispirited bunch lacking chemistry and confidence when she arrived last April, and their one-year turnaround was better than most would have expected. After missing the NCAA Tournament the past two seasons, Texas went 22-13 and made it to the second round.
The highlights included an early 10-game winning streak and a late-season rally from the brink of elimination from tournament contention. Texas won six games against ranked opponents, upsetting Big 12 heavyweights Oklahoma and Baylor three times.
Most important was the win over Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA tournament. It was a huge step for a program that had been gradually sliding backward after a Final Four appearance in 2003.
