Holding everything together

Adrian Wiggins led the women's basketball team to a strong finish in a season full of controversy

By MAGGIE THACH

When Adrian Wiggins goes to postseason workouts, he goes prepared. He has a list of drills to work on, a whistle around his neck and a book, “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu. The quote he reads to his players:

“Those who are skilled in combat do not become angered, those who are skilled at winning do not become afraid. Thus, the wise win before they fight, while the ignorant fight to win. If opponents want to establish a battle front, appear where they do not expect you.”

The quote applies to him, as well. He appeared in a position where no one, not even he, expected: the interim head women’s basketball coach. When he came to Fresno State as former coach Stacy Johnson-Klein’s assistant, he saw an opportunity to help build a program at the Division I level. He always saw the potential in Fresno, which he calls a “sports-minded” town. And it is this potential that ultimately convinced him to stay and landed him in the position he is in now.

Since Wiggins’ arrival in 2002, he was the coach who ran practice and the coach who was always there, sophomore Jasmine Plummer said.

Wiggins figured that if the team was going to practice, he should be there, too. Even through the most tumultuous season in recent memory, it was Wiggins who ran practice as if nothing had happened.

On Mar. 2, Johnson-Klein was terminated as the head coach after a three-week review into serious allegations of abuse of university policies. The review confirmed that she had engaged in deceptive and improper fiscal actions, obtained pain medications from a student, lied and was insubordinate.

Wiggins was the constant presence throughout the scandal, providing a sense of consistency and stability for a group of young ladies who had no idea what the future held for them.

That sense of consistency and stability ultimately won over the players’ hearts. Here was a man genuinely interested in their well-being, growth as people and improvement as players. There was no need to be afraid or unsure. They knew exactly what Wiggins wanted and they were happy to strive toward his expectations. He was their mentor, their father figure, their coach, and no one can convince them any differently.

“I’ve always considered him our main coach,” said senior Cophie Moore, who has played for Wiggins since his arrival. “He doesn’t talk to you like an object, but as a person, someone who is valuable to the team. When you’re talked to as a nobody, you lose your passion for it.”

The sentiment was felt by the other players, too. Players said that under Johnson-Klein, expectations were there, guidance was not. Several players said at practice, if the offense scored, the defense was doing something wrong. If the defense prevailed, the offense was at fault. Players were left confused and frustrated, and it didn’t take long for them to lose their passion.

“We dreaded going to practice,” Plummer said. “None of us really connected with Coach K.”

The coaching style of Johnson-Klein and Wiggins are as different as the coaches’ game-day attire.

Johnson-Klein had an in-your-face coaching style. She stomped her heels to get her players’ attention, she yelled and she hollered. She broke the players down if she thought it was necessary.

“So much of the game is mental,” said junior Amy Parrish, the team’s leading scorer. “It was nerve-wracking. It made everyone on the team nervous.”

On the other hand, Wiggins is an observer. He watches, and then reacts. He doesn’t jump to conclusions, and he lets the team play.

“He’s not a yeller,” Parrish said. “He doesn’t demeanyou. He’s really laid back, yet he has a way of getting things across to you.”

“He’s a father figure in that we don’t want to disappoint him,” said sophomore Angelica Lopez, the team’s lone walk-on. “We want to make him proud.”

Moore said, everyone on the team considers Wiggins a father figure. When Plummer’s grandmother died, when Chantella Perera got homesick because her parents were halfway around the world, when Parrish needed a positive male influence for her 2-year-old son TJ, Wiggins was there. His door was always open.

“We can always go to him,” freshman Kendra Walker-Roche said. “Even if it’s about boyfriend problems. It doesn’t always have to be about basketball.”

For Wiggins, it has never been all about basketball. The most important thing to Wiggins is that the players become better people and eventually, will want to give back.

“What I hope is that they’ll always give back,” Wiggins said, “that they’ll help future young women get the opportunity that they’ve been given here at Fresno State.”

Throughout the past season, it was clear that Wiggins needed the players as much as the players needed him. They are one another’s foundation. In the face of adversity, Wiggins led the Bulldogs through controversy by holding the team together and focusing solely on basketball. They have a mutual respect and faith in one another. Wiggins said he has faith that the girls will rise to the occasion and the girls said they have faith in Wiggins’ coaching.

“They remind me that I have great company,” Wiggins said. “They teach me something everyday. It’s priceless.”
But the members of the team will be the first ones to say that it is Wiggins who has provided them with priceless knowledge. This is why, when the Fresno State search committee was looking for a new women’s head coach, the team lobbied for him to stay. They said they couldn’t have imagined playing for anybody else. Some players said they would have left if Wiggins didn’t come back.

At first, Wiggins was not interested in the head coaching position. He said he wanted to find his own job somewhere else. But, then he reconsidered. He stayed because he said he has a true belief in the school and his team. Wiggins also said he was touched when three of his players, Perera, Parrish and Moore, went before the search committee on his behalf. They presented interim athletic director Paul Oliaro with a letter endorsed by the team stating how much the hiring of Wiggins as their coach would mean to them.

“He’s changed my life,” Perera said. “That's the reason why I fought for him. We didn’t fight that battle for him to be here just one year.”

But that might be all the time Wiggins has left. The school has made Wiggins a one-year interim head coach, and will conduct a national search, but could opt to keep Wiggins as the coach. Although having a one-year tag on his title doesn’t offer Wiggins much security, he says nothing will change in his coaching style.

“For me, I’ve always had a one-year contract. I really don’t care if my contract was for 30 days,” Wiggins said. “I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing and we’re going to do things right, Winning is a result of that.”

The school, as well as the fans, has already gotten a taste of what Wiggins can do as a head coach.

The team posted a 7-4 record and earned a Women’s National Invitation Tournament berth under Wiggins, who replaced Johnson-Klein on Feb. 9. Wiggins also led the team to a near-win over Louisiana Tech in the Western Athletic Conference tournament. After losing to the Techsters 10 consecutive times, the Bulldogs pushed Louisiana Tech, who went on to play in the NCAA tournament, to double-overtime but eventually lost 92-87. Louisiana Tech coach Kurt Budke said in a news release, “that was one of the greatest college basketball games I’ve ever been a part of in my 20 years (as a coach.)”

Players said the difference between the teams’ meeting during the regular season and meeting in the WAC tournament was confidence.

“He instilled a lot of confidence in us,” Plummer said. “He told us we were just as good as [Louisiana Tech]. We played one of our best games.”

His constant faith in his team leads the players to believe the next year will be the most successful. Every player knows her role and every player knows what is expected. There will be no more uncertainty or frustration, Parrish said. Everyone is on the same page.

“This situation has allowed me to keep doing my job,” Wiggins said. “The school is happy and my team is happy.”

Though Wiggins might have only one year to prove his success as a head coach, the impact he has had on his players will last much longer than that. The players said he is someone they want in their lives after their basketball careers at Fresno State are over.

“I thank my stars everyday that I came here and met this man,” Perera said. “He gives us a sense of stability and confidence. He teaches us about life through philosophical sayings and books. He’s my mentor and probably will be for the rest of my life. He’s definitely someone I want to be in my life forever.”