McCallie Could Face Former Team In Tournament

Photo by Ian Soileau/The Chronicle

If top-seeded Duke gets past No. 16 Austin Peay Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the NCAA Tournament, head coach Joanne P. McCallie might put her team up against a familiar foe in a more familiar setting. Lurking in the second round for the Blue Devils in East Lansing, Mich., might be No. 8 Michigan State, a program McCallie led to the national title game in 2005. The Duke head coach spent seven seasons with the Spartans before leaving for Duke in 2007.

But the attraction of that potential matchup didn't factor into the selection committee's decision to put the two teams in the same pod, said Jacki Silar, the committe's chair and senior women's administrator at Duke.

"I think it's a great storyline," said Silar, who added that she hadn't had time to talk to McCallie immediately after the bracket came out. "And to answer your question, no, [the matchup] wasn't talked about in the selection room."

The coaches could become the storyline later in the Tournament, too, if No. 6 Texas makes it through to the Elite Eight. Duke and the Longhorns could meet for the first time since former head coach Gail Goestenkors bolted for Austin two years ago and made way for McCallie's arrival.