Katie Gearlds Leaning on Kristy Curry, Matt Painter as Purdue WBB Rebuilds
Progress doesn't always show up on the scoreboard or in the stat sheet. While a 7-8 record isn't exactly where the Purdue women's basketball program wants to be right now, coach Katie Gearlds is confident that her team is taking the steps necessary to build a winner.
The Boilermakers suffered an 83-49 loss to No. 1 UCLA on Tuesday, dropping their third consecutive game and falling to 0-4 in Big Ten play. Each of Purdue's first four conference opponents — Maryland, Iowa, Michigan State and UCLA — have all been ranked in the Associated Press' top-25.
Life doesn't get any easier this weekend, hosting No. 25 Michigan at Mackey Arena.
Considering the recent struggles, it would be easy for Gearlds to start questioning everything. What's kept her on the current path, though, has been the advice from some of her greatest mentors — Kristy Curry and Matt Painter.
Curry was Gearlds' coach at Purdue from 2003-06, leaving for a job at Texas Tech following the 2005-06 campaign. Now, she's at Alabama, a place she's called home since 2013. It was Curry's struggles early on in Tuscaloosa that has helped Gearlds understand that progress doesn't happen in the blink of an eye.
"I know we want immediate success here as a program, but I do think we're taking the steps that we've needed to take to get us back," Gearlds said following Tuesday's game. "I talk to Coach (Kristy) Curry all the time and she's like, 'Kate ... it took me nine years to get it turned around (at Alabama), you've got to stay with it. You've got to trust your process.'"
Curry —who posted a 179-51 record in seven seasons at Purdue — struggled to get the Crimson Tide turned around. Alabama didn't make a single NCAA Tournament appearance in her first seven seasons and reached the WNIT just three times.
The Crimson Tide have earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament three times in the last four years and are currently ranked No. 18 nationally, owning a 15-1 record.
Gearlds also has a colleague in Painter who knows a few things about building a sustainable program in West Lafayette. Sometimes, she gets advice from the 20-year coaching veteran.
"I've talked to Coach (Matt) Painter a lot and he's like, 'You keep doing what you think is best for Purdue, and you do exactly that and it'll find its way to where it's supposed to go," she said.
Painter has built and established one of the most prominent programs in college basketball in recent years, guiding Purdue to four Big Ten regular season titles in the last eight seasons. The Boilers are regular visitors to the NCAA Tournament and reached the National Championship Game a season ago.
That success didn't come without hardship, though. In the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons, the Boilermakers lost their way a little bit, finishing with losing records in both years. In 2014, Purdue finished last in the Big Ten with a 5-13 record.
Things have turned around quite nicely for Painter's program over the last 10 years.
Gearlds has admitted numerous times that she's not the most patient person in the world. She wants Purdue to resume its place at the top of the Big Ten — a spot the program had enjoyed for years.
But that success doesn't come without some growing pains. While it's not always pleasant, Gearlds is confident that signs of progress exist within the program, even if its not showing up on the scoreboard or in the stat sheet just yet.
Related stories on Purdue women's basketball
REYNOLDS POSTS QUINTUPLE-DOUBLE: South Bend Washington's Kira Reynolds, a Purdue women's basketball commit, put up a ridiculous stat line in Saturday's IHSAA game against New Prairie. CLICK HERE
REYNOLDS MAKES IHSAA HISTORY: Purdue women's basketball commit and South Bend Washington star Kira Reynolds made Indiana high school basketball history in her senior season. CLICK HERE