Oklahoma State University Athletics
Voices Of The Program
January 27, 2015 | Cowgirl Basketball
The 2014-15 basketball season is one of significance for the voices of Cowgirl Basketball, Kevin Gum and Casey Kendrick. For Gum, it is his 25th season calling the action, while Kendrick is now in his 20th season sitting courtside. To commemorate the duo's landmark season, Gum and Kendrick counted down their top 25 and top 20 moments, respectively, with the program. This week, we share both lists in their entirety.
Kevin
25) All grouped into one … The countless games over the past years that I've been lucky enough to have my two boys, Landry & Trevor, with me whether in Gallagher or somewhere on the road. They've both grown up living the life of Cowgirl basketball. Thanks to great coaching staffs who have always included the Gum boys we've been to places together such as Vermont, Colorado, North Carolina, Duke, Dallas, Wyoming, Kansas City and many of the Big 12 venues. For 25 years, I've had the best seat in the house and I'm the luckiest guy alive to have had the boys with me for 15 of those. Working with guys like Casey Kendrick, Ryan Cameron, Mike Noteware, Dick Halterman, Julie Goodenough, Kurt Budke, Jim Littell, Bill Annan, Jack Easley … the list goes on and on. What a ride this has been folks!!!
Kevin
24) OSU-73, OU-57—Feb 16, 2014: Three in a row! Jim Littell continues to build a home court that is tough for anyone to win on as the Cowgirls defeated Oklahoma in Stillwater for the third consecutive season.
Kevin
23) Duke-77, OSU-68—Nov 14, 2008: Was I really calling a game in historic Cameron Indoor Arena?!?! The Cowgirls didn't win, but gave the highly-ranked Blue Devils a scare in a venue in which they never lose.
Kevin
22) OSU-69, Texas-66—Feb 25, 1998: After being humiliated by the big-time Longhorns for so many years, the Cowgirls completed the season sweep of Hall of Fame Coach Jody Conradt.
Kevin
21) OSU-82, Texas-61—Jan 3, 1998: For nine years, I literally thought Oklahoma State women's basketball would NEVER beat Texas. With the high flying Jennifer Crow leading the Cowgirls, OSU opened conference play with a stunner.
Kevin
20) Arkansas State-80, OSU-73—Dec 9, 2006: This night was the only one I ever feared for my life while calling a game. Jonesboro is the home of home cooking. We kept it close. Down the stretch, the rabid fans were literally beating broomsticks on the metal railing right behind our bench. The striped shirts got involved down the stretch, the home team got their win and to this day I wonder what would have happened in that arena if the Cowgirls had pulled out the win.
Casey
20) Stephen King: We have celebrities come to games from time to time. During the 1996-97 season, we went to Maine and it was great to see that part of the country and eat fresh lobster. We also saw Stephen King, who sat in his box suite and watched the game. It looked like a shadow box and he was as intense as any other fan. While he was a nice guy you couldn't help but think he was a little creepy and cool at the same time. By the way, the Cowgirls won the game, 75-64, and handed Maine a rare home loss.
Kevin
19) Nebraska-60, OSU-45—March 8, 2005: This would be the final game of Julie Goodenough's time at Oklahoma State. Among the greatest parts of my job are the relationships we develop with the coaching staff. Anytime there is a coaching change, there is disappointment for the families. Julie is one of the nicest family people I have ever known. It has been fun to remain friends with her and watch her successes in West Texas.
Casey
19) Meeting Kenny Sailors: The WNIT is rarely the goal for a team and that is not the goal for OSU. But that was the fate for the 2010-11 season for OSU and the committee sent the Cowgirls to Wyoming. The reason that makes my top 20 besides the beautiful mountain setting is having the privilege of meeting and interviewing the inventor of the jump shot, Kenny Sailors. He was a fan and watched as the two Cowgirl teams battled on the court. I appreciate the history of sports and meeting the man who innovated and impacted the game in such an incredible way was a great honor!
Kevin
18) Oklahoma-87, OSU-56—March 6, 2002: The second most emotional day of my broadcasting career. This would be Dick Halterman's last game as head coach ending a 19-year run and against OU of all teams. We had been told weeks before that Dick's contract would not be renewed. Halterman was the guy that gave me my start with the program. While he was so grateful to get the radio exposure, I was equally grateful to be chosen as the program's first ever play-by-play guy. The friendship that would follow between myself, Halterman and associate head coach Jack Easley is still one that I value to this day. In fact, for years following Dick's departure, I would still call him on mornings of gameday and get his predictions on the Cowgirl game followed by a phone call after those games to discuss how the game had played out. That day when we left Kansas City I felt like someone in my family had died.
Casey
18) Texas Tech turnaround: On January 10th, 2004 Oklahoma St lost on the road at Texas Tech 106-43. That's memorable enough by itself and I remember the emotions of that game very well. Fourteen days later on Jan 24th OSU played host to the third-ranked Lady Raiders following that that 63-point debacle in Lubbock. This time it would be in the friendly confines of GIA. As an optimistic person, I feel OSU has a chance to win virtually every game we play. Honestly, I didn't think we had a chance and yet the Cowgirls unleashed an 88-87 double-overtime win completing the most incredible and improbable two-week turnaround!
Kevin
17) Tennessee-69, OSU-60—December 4, 1992: I had grown up a huge Louisiana Tech fan and attended many rivalry games against Tennessee. To get to call a game against legendary Coach Pat Summit was incredible. In a battle of David and Goliath, the Cowgirls kept the Lady Vols on their heels the entire game before falling by single digits. Oh, and being in Hawaii for the tournament wasn't too bad either.
Casey
17) Playing LSU/Notre Dame in NCAA Sweet 16 games: You might think these games would be higher and I could argue that myself. I ranked the runs to the Sweet 16 higher as you will see later. The two Sweet 16s in and of themselves are great memories and the prep for theses games was different for me than most games. As I prepared and studied the opponent and made up my questions for pre-game interviews I had a sense of pride different than usual. Sweet 16 says your relevant and even as a broadcaster that feeling is palatable.
Kevin
16) OSU-77, Texas A&M-70 —Dec 9, 1995: This one was personal. A friend named Casey Kendrick and I had wanted to do a Cowgirl game together for years but due to his employment circumstances it just wouldn't work out. Finally, after years of talking about it, the stars lined up just right, Casey hopped on the team bus with us for the first time and 20 years later Cowgirl fans still listen to us two knuckleheads. By the way, when you bump into Casey, ask him how that first game of Rummy with Dick Halterman, Jack Easley, and the two of us turned out for him. The game was a battle; back and forth for 40 minutes. At the end of the day, Casey was won over as a women's basketball fan and the chemistry with he and I was great. For two decades together with the program, we've seen milestones, laughs, tears, coaching changes, conference realignment, big wins, stunning upsets, and tremendous growth of the fan base. This has been a blast. I tell him I am only as good as he makes me sound and he just rolls his eyes. Not sure when we'll hang up the headsets for the last time, but this is as fun as it's ever been.
Casey
16) Puerto Rico: Wave Runners—I coaxed Coach Littell into an adventure on the open ocean on a wave runner. As fate would have it, I drove first and we didn't work real well as a team. We didn't account for each other as well as we should and after a hat flew off and we turned back to get it—we ended up in the water … four times. Getting back on the wave runner was beginning to take a toll on one of us and one of us was overheard saying “if you dump me again you're going to have to drag me back in because I can't get back on that thing again!”
Kevin
15) OSU-76, Oklahoma-70—Jan. 19, 1991: My first taste of women's Bedlam. Oklahoma was not good for decades and Cowgirl head coach Dick Halterman owned recruiting in the state because of his dominance over the Sooners.
Casey
15) Mopeds in the Bahamas: Despite our better judgment, Ryan Cameron and I decided to rent mopeds and see the island of Nassau in the Bahamas and take in the local culture. We put our lives in the hands of islanders driving on the left side of the road and they don't care about tourists on the road. They honk and let you know where you stand with them. But, the best part was we had no more than put our ugly yellow helmets on looking like dumb and dumber when Ryan accidentally hit the throttle wide open, jumped a curb, literally did a 180, clipped hedges and flowers and landscape—then looked at me and said “We're good”. That was just the beginning of the tour!
Kevin
14) OSU-59, Texas Tech-54—Dec. 2, 1990: The Cowgirls defeated legendary Hall of Fame coach Marsha Sharp on her own floor in the championship game of the Red Raider Classic. It was my first time to call a game on the road and to top it off, we played in front of a sellout at historic Municipal Coliseum.
Casey
14) OSU-95, West Virginia-62—Dec. 29, 2000: Our first broadcast after the renovation. 6,381-seat Gallagher-Iba Arena was an incredible place and I really loved the old feel of that venue. When OSU made the commitment to make its second major overhaul of GIA and it was done, the intimate feel of the old Gallagher was preserved, making the new Gallagher second to none in the country. There was a great pride factor and it made for a memorable moment.
Kevin
13) OSU-77, North Texas-51—Nov 23,1990: My first game as the play-by-play announcer for OSU women's basketball. I was just happy to be there and never dreamed I was going to last 25 years!
Casey
13) OSU-60, Arkansas-58—Jan. 2, 2003: Wins came at a premium during the 2002-03 season and we all knew you needed to cherish each of them. Arkansas was ranked ninth in the country and coached by Gary Blair, who would later coach Texas A&M to a national championship. The odds were stacked against OSU, but freshman Lori Allen inbounded the ball to freshman Megan Craig and she hit a baseline jumper at the buzzer to seal the win. The broadcast went something like this: Kevin Gum, Freshman Allen inbounds to freshman Megan Craig –the shot, it's good!” and Casey Kendrick added, “AHHH AHHHH AHHH AHHH AHHH!!!” Not one of my finer broadcast moments, but it was certainly one of the more memorable!
Kevin
12) OSU-73, Purdue-66—March 24, 2014: No one wins on the Boilermakers' home floor, but that night the Cowgirls did it and, in doing so, moved on to the program's third Sweet 16 appearance. This was one of Jim Littell's finest coaching jobs.
Casey
12) OSU 67, Iowa State-60—March 2, 1996: In this game, the first round of the final Big Eight tourney the Cowgirls were down by three late. My fear was my first postseason tournament was about to come to an end. While it was Salina, Kansas, it was a great setting for the conference tournament and I wasn't ready to go home. Neither was Gina Shaterkina, who was fouled beyond the 3-point line, stepped to the foul line and hit all three free throws. The Cowgirls went on to get a 67-60 win over the Cyclones in overtime.
Kevin
11) OSU-59, Coppin State-35—Nov. 26, 2011: No team should ever have to go through this. The first game back on the court after a devastating week that saw the OSU family lose two coaches in Kurt Budke and Miranda Serna. The larger then usual crowd turned out and not a soul in the arena cared about the score. This day was more about healing and support of a coaching staff led by Jim Littell and a roster of players that needed to find a way to move forward.
Casey
11) OSU-59, Texas A&M-64—March 15, 2008: It's lonely at the top. OSU's run to the Big 12 Championship in 2008 was the only conference championship we have participated in during my tenure on the mic. It was thrilling, but what I took away from that as much as anything was the attrition of the fans as teams got knocked off. By the time the final two teams are decided, the loss of all the other team's fans by that final day creates a huge void in the dynamics of that championship game. However, I would take that void every year.
Kevin
10) OSU-75, James Madison-68—March 31, 2012: This is the stuff movies are made of. Could the Cowgirls, after all this team has been through, really make a six-game run through the WNIT and put a bow on the nightmare that had been? Yes! In front of more than 6,000 fans on their feet, the Cowgirls would knock off James Madison to claim the WNIT Championship. The tears would again flow, this time with some happiness as Shelley Budke would cut down the net and point to the sky with a lot of emotion to honor her late husband.
Casey
10) Meeting Tony Dorsett—Another personal favorite. As a dyed-in-the-wool Dallas Cowboy fan since I was able to talk, it just makes sense that getting to sit and have a one-on-one conversation with Tony Dorsett was a great deal of fun. His daughter was a member of the Cowgirl program and Tony came to several of the games as well as the banquet and was as pleasant as you would hope as a fan!
Kevin
9) OSU-0, Grambling-0—Cancelled—Nov 18, 2011: The game that never happened. The Grambling team had already arrived in Stillwater when they learned the news of the OSU plane crash. Instead of points, there were flowers, lots of flowers, laid in Gallagher-Iba Arena by the Lady Tigers players and coaches.
Casey
9) OSU-70, Oklahoma-56—March 2, 1999: Megan Gregg guaranteed a win over Oklahoma. Coaches don't like it when you give the other team bulletin board material and Megan did just that, guaranteeing a win in the Big 12 Tournament over OU. If you proclaim it, you better back it up and that's exactly what Megan and her teammates did with a double-digit win over the Sooners.
Kevin
8) OSU-96, Rice-60—Nov. 13, 2011: The final game of head coach Kurt Budke's career. Little did any of us realize it at the time. Kurt had so much enthusiasm and hope for the chemistry and talent of this team. They wouldn't disappoint him as the season played out without him.
Casey
8) OSU-77, Texas A&M-70—Dec. 9, 1995: My first trip. This is truly a personal moment, but one of my favorite moments is the first broadcast for OSU. It came on a road trip to College Station, Texas. While it was my first trip Dick Halterman, Jack Easley and Kevin Gum made me feel like I had been there for 20 years already. And from that first trip I was hooked.
Kevin
7) OSU-70, Nebraska-57—Feb 10, 1995: This one goes down as the funniest moment ever. Casey and I have had our share of 'on-air' laughs over the years, but this one couldn't be topped … no pun intended. In a televised game in Lincoln, during a commercial break a cheerleader's top flew open when she was hoisted high on the court. When we came back from a commercial, Casey said, “Today's game can be seen on the boob tube.” He and I could not regain ourselves the rest of the game. I knew if we didn't get fired that day that we probably never would.
Casey
7) OSU-70, Chattanooga-63—March 20, 2010: The Cowgirls had to take on the Lady Mocs in the first round of NCAA Tournament without the services of Andrea Riley due to an NCAA suspension. Chattanooga had OSU on the ropes, leading by as many as 19, and it looked like the run might be over, but OSU put on a full court press led by Ally Clardy and the comeback was on making it one of the greatest in-game turnarounds ever!
Kevin
6) OSU-66, Bowling Green-70—March 18, 2007: After a 10-year absence, the Cowgirls were back in the Big Dance! The Cowgirls would dance in five of the next eight NCAA Tournaments.
Casey
6) 2014 NCAA Sweet 16 appearance—You can never go to the Sweet 16 enough. Oklahoma State's run last season to the Sweet 16 was extremely special. May we never take these moments for granted! It was the first trip to the Sweet 16 with Coach Littell at the helm. It's hard to rank memories and this one could have easily been Top 5 for me. As I stated earlier in this piece, the ride to the Sweet 16 trumps the actual Sweet 16 games. If you are enjoying the ride these games are incredible experiences. Until I experience an Elite Eight or Final Four this is the top of that ride for me!
Kevin
5) Texas A&M-65, OSU-47—March 1, 2006: The Kurt Budke era at OSU was off to a rocky start. This game would complete an 0-16 run through the Big 12. Aggie head coach Gary Blair came over to our broadcast spot after the game, put on our spare headset and told Cowgirl fans not to worry because next year the Cowgirls would have a point guard named Andrea Riley on the roster that would turn around the program immediately… and he was right.
Casey
5) 2008 NCAA Sweet 16 appearance—Just as with the second Sweet 16, this was about the ride but firsts are usually more memorable. Going to the Sweet 16 is an unbelievable run. In the 2007-08 season the Cowgirls took a huge leap as a program into legitimacy and staying power. It was getting to that point which was even more memorable than the next game vs. LSU.
Kevin
4) OSU-88, Texas Tech-87 (Double Overtime)—Jan 24, 2004: The Julie Goodenough era was underway and off to a tough start. OSU would only win eight games that season and one of the 20 losses was a 63-point setback in Lubbock. Just two weeks later, Goodenough's team would stun the No. 3 team in the nation in the rematch inside Gallagher Iba Arena.
Casey
4) 1996 NCAA Tournament appearance—Twenty years ago and in my first year, we went to Athens, Georgia to play in the NCAA Tournament. We won the first game over Rhode Island and lost to Georgia in the second round. As a new broadcaster to the team I thought that would be the norm. Unfortunately, it would be another 11 years before we went back to the Big Dance. I did not appreciate it as much as I should have, but I learned to enjoy them all after that.
Kevin
3) OSU-89, Missouri-45—Feb 17, 1991: The Cowgirl program was rolling but a regular season conference championship had eluded 1980's Coach of the Year Dick Halterman and associate head coach Jack Easley. On a freezing cold night in February, the two coaches marched into their home state of Missouri and marched out with a dominant 44-point victory to claim the program's first-ever Big Eight regular-season title which was extra special as they claimed it in front of more OSU fans in Columbia than Tiger fans.
Casey
3) OSU-59, Coppin State-35—Nov. 26, 2011: The hardest broadcast I have ever been involved in was the Coppin State game after the tragedy. Besides my own natural emotions, we had the emotions of the team, the fans and of course the families of those lost in the tragedy that were in attendance. After the win the team went into the stands to hug Shelley and her kids and Grandma and Grandpa Budke. They did it as a gesture on their own and not because they were told to do so. It was the point I probably lost it more than ever before in a broadcast, but it spoke volumes about the character of our kids and that set up the run for the rest of a special season.
Kevin
2) OSU-96, Michigan State-94 (Triple Overtime)—March 16, 1991: This was one for the ages and the drama has never been topped in Cowgirls history. OSU hit shots at the buzzer in regulation, the first overtime, and the second overtime to force the deciding third overtime in which they won and advanced to the program's first-ever NCAA Sweet 16. With the NCAA process at the time, this game was supposed to be played on the home floor of the higher seed, which was Michigan State, but its arena was booked and the game had to be moved to Stillwater.
Casey
2) OSU-75, James Madison-68—March 31, 2012: The WNIT isn't the goal every year, but following a tragedy you want the game to help you return to normal. It would have been easy to give up on the season, but our team didn't do that. The way the kids came together through such tremendous adversity and played for those we lost was inspiring to say the least. And when Shelley Budke helped cut down the nets the run was complete! And something just felt right.
Kevin
1) OSU-82, Oklahoma-63—Jan. 12, 2008: The night I couldn't leave Gallagher-Iba Arena. If we thought beating Texas had been a tough task, try losing 17 straight to in-state rival Oklahoma!! Early in the day OU head coach Sherri Coale was quoted during a men's game as saying the Oklahoma fans would outnumber Cowgirl fans in Bedlam later that night. As is always the case, Oklahoma State fans answered the call and lined up at the ticket office. After years of futility, the Cowgirls would own the state on this night. OSU would come out of the locker room in front of the first standing-room-only sellout in the history of Cowgirl basketball. Following the team's entrance to the floor, head coach Kurt Budke would enter the scene wearing his now famous bright orange blazer and the crowd went nuts. Even the flashy Sherri Coale couldn't upstage Budke on this night. The Cowgirls raced out to an early lead and would never look back. Point guard Andrea Riley became a community favorite on this night as she scorched the Sooners for 45 points and was hoisted on the shoulders of the fans, who stormed the historic Gallagher-Iba Arena floor when the final buzzer sounded. Casey & I knew with five minutes to go in the game that the streak against Oklahoma was finally going to end and we could hardly keep from rushing the court with the fans. Following the game, Budke would address the sellout crowd with the PA microphone to a deafening applause. About three hours after the game ended while the arena was still being cleaned up, media relations coordinator Ryan Cameron and myself were still setting courtside in amazement of what we'd just witnessed. I don't know which one of us finally said it's time to leave, but we knew we had just witnessed history on the ole historic maple floor. THE most special night in Cowgirl history.
Casey
1) OSU-82, Oklahoma-63—Jan. 12, 2008: To end on a high note, I will never forget the feeling of coming out of the coaches' locker room onto the floor that day. I finished my interview with Jim Littell and stepped out onto the floor in amazement. I knew we would have a great crowd because of comments made by Sherri Coale that were broadcast earlier in the day at our men's game. I knew those comments would galvanize our fan base. But a great crowd in the past would have meant 6,000. To see a capacity crowd on national television in full throat, going crazy for one of the greatest single performances (45 points, zero turnovers for Andrea Riley) during Bedlam gave me a glimpse of how it can be and a hope it will be someday. That will forever be blazoned in my mind! There will be many new memories to come, but it will be mighty hard to top that in the future. From my perspective it was the greatest hour for OSU Cowgirl Basketball!
