By Anne McLaren
Staff Writer

After completing her first season as a head basketball coach, Kristy Curry has little time to relax and reflect on the past season.

Instead, Curry must look ahead to the next year where she and assistant coaches Kerry Cremeans, Pam Stackhouse, and Kelly Curry will have the task of integrating six recruits into Purdue's system.

"I give my staff an awful lot of credit, and this team for doing a great job on recruiting weekends," said Kristy. "We’ve got an awfully bright future next season."

Bringing in the new players and recruiting for the next season will keep all four coaches busy. But Kristy and her husband Kelly also will be preparing for the birth of their first child, who is due in August.

"We're very excited about it," said Kelly. "We both love kids. I think that's a big reason that we coach. We've always talked about it and wanted to have a family. It's coming at a good time, right before the start of the season and right after recruiting."

While the Currys have little time to reflect on the season, they mentioned several highlights and hardships they and the team experienced along the way.

On April 2, 1999, Kristy was named head coach at Purdue. She and Kelly, who were both assistant coaches at Louisiana Tech during the 1998—99 season, moved to West Lafayette from Ruston, La.

"It was really pretty smooth as far as the move and the adapting and everything," said Kelly. "The winter wasn't too bad. It wasn't as bad as we thought it would be.

"Everyone has gone out of their way to be nice — the fans, the people in town, the administration," he said.

"The only drawback, if there was one, is that this is the farthest that we've ever been from our families," he said. "They've had a chance to come up and visit a few times, though. Overall, it's been a pretty good experience."

The biggest hardship occurred before the season even began, according to Kristy.

Guard Tiffany Young, who would have been a senior this past season, was killed in a car accident on July 29, 1999.

"The biggest challenge was overcoming so much adversity — losing Tiffany — and how do we handle that," she said. "And how to let these kids know that we’re going to be okay — whether it be the Tiffany situation or whatever it might have been."

The team opened the 1999—2000 season on the road, at Dayton. It was a close game, but the Boilers escaped with a 60—58 win to give Kristy a victory in her first game as a collegiate head coach. After the season, she said it was one of the highlights because "as close as that was and as crazy as an environment that was.

"I knew, but I think that the kids realized the target that they had on their backs after that experience," she said. "And how it was going to be all year, that we were the hunted. To be able to come out there and win your first game, especially as close as it was. You’d like for it to not be so close, but just to get a win the first game — it was pretty special."

Senior forward Michelle Duhart, who played for three coaches during her four seasons at Purdue, described Curry as a young but caring coach.

"She's a first year coach; she progressed as the year went along and learned from us and we learned from her," said Duhart.

Husband and wife coaching teams are not too common around the country. However, both the players and the Currys think that it's a positive.

"It was never an issue," said Duhart. "They did well. When they came to work it was a work relationship. We teased Kelly some, but it was all in good fun."

The Currys have the best of both worlds, according to Kelly.

"It allows us to spend time together that otherwise we wouldn't," he said. "It allows me to do something that I love with somebody I love. It's twice as nice."

Off the court, Kelly said, Kristy is caring.

"I think that's part of the reason that she's gotten to where she is," he said.

According to Kelly, she brings a lot of energy when she’s on the court. "She’s very intense and active," he said.

In one of Kristy’s more animated coaching performances, the Boilers defended their back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles with a 71—63 victory over then No. 5 Penn State. Kristy said that winning this year's Big Ten Tournament championship game might have been the biggest highlight of the season.

Though the Boilers lost to Oklahoma 76—74 in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Kristy said she's proud of this season's team and how well they did.

"They exceeded a lot of expectations," she said. "As far as me, I’m always feeling that there were three more points I could have found somewhere (against the Sooners). Believe me, I’ll always take responsibility (for the loss) and give the kids credit."

Kristy said she is probably her own worst critic.

"When I’m coaching for 20 years, I’ll always feel like there are a lot of things that I’ve learned, that I can do better in the future."

Kelly described the coaching staff's two main goals for the off—season.

"Next season, our biggest thing is going to be blending in six new players with the existing seven — making them mesh and become a team," he said. "I think we did a pretty good job with the ones that we have here, but we're going to be a lot deeper and play a lot more people next year. So just getting them to work together. Establishing a work ethic in practice, in the weight room and during the off—season. Trying to stress to them that when you improve as an individual is during the summer and the spring, before the season starts."

The Currys have many plans for the immediate future. In the more distant future, however, Duhart said she believes that Kristy will have an impact on the national scene.

"She's a great recruiter, and I think they're going to bring in a lot of good basketball players," said Duhart. "And I think it's going to take the program in the right direction. I think they'll be competitive from now until whenever. I see Purdue winning some more national championships in the future. Or at least contending every year."