1/28/25: Mo Egger with Katrina Merriweather

The Head Coach of the UC Women's Basketball program joined us on ESPN1530.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Got Katrina Meriweather's team is fun to watch now. They're
fun to watch in large part because they do dig
themselves holes, but they often come back from them, including
the eleven point hole they dug out up to come
back and beat Arizona State. That's four double digit deficits
this year. You see his home for four of their
next five games, including a game tomorrow night against Houston

(00:21):
at six thirty. Bearcats won five games in the Big
Twelve last year. They've already won four so far this season.
The head coach of the Bearcats, Katrina Meriweather, is with us.
I said a mouthful there. It's good to have you, coach,
how are you?

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Thank you so much for having me. I just want
to make it clear that getting down double digits is
not the same.

Speaker 1 (00:40):
No, but as a fan, it makes the comeback exhilarating.

Speaker 2 (00:45):
And I agree. And every time someone says, great job,
and how do you feel about having a team that
can fight back, I tell them I love it. And
it says a lot about them and their character, but
it also says a little bit about us not being
able to follow directions in the.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
First had all right, very good, Well appreciate that that said,
from what you and I were talking about roughly a
year ago, at this time, you're one of the Big twelve.
To now there's been a lot of growth, and we
can talk about that from a recruiting standpoint, but it
does feel like your team is it fits in more
in the Big twelve than maybe a year ago.

Speaker 2 (01:18):
No, absolutely, and I think sometimes more than even conference changes.
It's just when you change coaches. We all have different philosophies,
we all have different beliefs, we all buy into different things,
and so sometimes it's being able to get kids in
that fit into the system that you're implementing that helps.
But the kids that transferred out they're doing great where
they are too, So it's worked out for everybody.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Your team has a heartbeat and an engine and Jillian. Hey,
you and I talked about Jillian before the season and like,
all right, what's what's the next step for her? And
it feels like we're seeing that her take that next
step this season.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
Yeah, I think so. I think sometimes when you add
some things to your offensive bag, as we call it,
it can be a little tougher. Jill gets torn between
you know, shooting these jump shots that she is now
making and being the interior threat that she is. And
what makes it good for us is that she's able
to do both. And I think what makes it hard
for opponents is you don't know what you're gonna get

(02:15):
because some days she's just a tear in the paint
and other times she's able to be an exterior threat.
So we're really happy that her development has come along
the way. It hasn't last year.

Speaker 1 (02:26):
Let's talk about d Alexander and you and I went
through your recruiting class back in November when you joined me,
and you know, d being a local kid as somebody
whose career we have followed, and obviously really excited for
her to make the decision to attend the University of Cincinnati.
What does it mean for your program to have now
a McDonald's all American coming in?

Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah, I mean it's hard to put into words. I mean,
obviously she's going to come in here and expectations are
going to continue to rise regardless, but to add her
to the equation and it gets a little more serious,
a lot quicker, and you know, and we're excited about
that that challenge and we think that she's coming in.
We have a class that they compliment each other. They

(03:07):
are we have five on five kids that are in
different positions and we think that they are going to
fit together really well. But ultimately, whenever you get a
kid of that caliber, it's going to elevate your program.
On my staff did a phenomenal job, and particularly average Jump,
who is leave recruiter would be, got us in a
position early going to where we felt like we could

(03:30):
have a chance to get her, and we're really happy
it turned out that way.

Speaker 1 (03:32):
What's the first time you ever watched her play?

Speaker 2 (03:36):
Oh, I would have to say it would be on
a film. As soon as we got the job I got,
I got all these conversations about do you know who
the Alexandria? If you know she is, And of course
you knew who she was, but the last time that
we were in Ohio she was a baby, so I
hadn't seen her playing in a really long time. And

(03:56):
she actually came on campus the first time that I
was with USA Basketball and Abby got her own campus
and the stats they hosted her. Oh I wasn't here
and I usually talked to her on the phone, So
her very first store on campus, I wasn't present because
I was in Colorado. So it was just it's a
really cool recruiting story, you know, just because she wasn't
guaranteed to come here. But I do think that there

(04:19):
were a lot of things that were lined up, and
we're happy that she saw the vision of the Sisterhood
and what she could do to elevate our program.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
You have, you have so many responsibilities specifically during the season,
from getting ready for specific opponents to working with the
players you have on your team right now. You're obviously
still recruiting players who may one day come to UC,
and yet you've got a class full of kids who
are wrapping up their high school careers, including obviously and
getting set to arrive on campus next year. How often

(04:50):
and with the it's a little bit easier because she's
in your backyard, But how often do you get a
chance to watch live players who have committed to come
play for you.

Speaker 2 (05:00):
As often as we would like. I think the NCAA
has this rule with these sixty five recruiting days, and
I think that hurts when you have a big class,
because you still are having to spend time in the
fall in these evalves, and those count towards your days,
and when more than one coach comes out to recruit
a kid, than it counts as multiple days. So I

(05:20):
make it a point that I, as the head coach,
get to see each of our signees at least one
time and then the assistance will go out. But we still,
like you said, have to recruit twenty six, twenty seven,
twenty eight, so we can't even utilize all our days,
you know, on this twenty five class. But thankfully technology
allows us to be on Facebook Live. These signees have

(05:41):
phenomenal families and support systems, so they are constantly streaming
their games, their highlights, So even if we can't be
there in person, we are one hundred percent supporting on
watching in door, checking in with them all the time.

Speaker 1 (05:53):
So you know, we've we've talked a lot about d
and tremendous accolades, and she's a local kid, but I
know the excitement for the class your bringing in next
year isn't limited to her. We obviously don't have a
ton of time, but run through the class you're going
to be bringing in next year.

Speaker 2 (06:07):
Yeah. Sure. Khalia de Vilisi, who is better known as
a little Bit, is a relative of Muggsy, which everyone knows.
He has some parts of her game that are reminiscent
of his is So that's pretty cool for her. With
the consummate point guard and who we really need, Julia Crawford.
We think she's arguably the best offensive player to state

(06:28):
to Tennessee. She's a steal under the radar. Some people
saw her in eybl this past summer and asked what
she was, but it was too late. We already had
her wrapped up. And then Callie Barrett from Florida was
ranked top three players in the state of Florida. She
just scored her fifteen hundred points a game ago for

(06:49):
stressforward for us, gonna shoot a lot of shots and
wide open ones because these kids can really get downhill.
The last and not least, Page witt It out of Memphis.
She's struggling with some injuries here lately, so she hasn't
played as many games, but we're excited about her ability
to shoot the ball, to stress the floor too. So
we think we put together a class that's definitely going

(07:11):
to help us compete.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
I want to bring it back to your team on
the floor this year because you're kind of you're kind
of in the dog days of it right like you've
been at this now for a few months. The light
might be at the end of the tunnel, but it's
still in the distance. The end of the season is
still so far away this time of year. Is it
more difficult because of that to have the sort of

(07:34):
practices you want? What is it like being around your
kids and coaching and trying to get better when practice
time is limited, There's always another game and you're kind
of in that stretch of the season, which I got
to think I hated this time of year as a
college student. I got to think it can be a
little bit of a challenge as a college basketball player.

Speaker 2 (07:50):
Yeah, I think it is. You know, they started their
second semester spring semester already and after having been off
for a few weeks, and I think that's the hardest
adjustment for them is just getting back in the rooms,
them to school when they've just literally been living in
the life of a professional athlete where they go to
practice and play games and travel. But for us as coaches,
you know, we just try to remember how it was

(08:12):
for us, you know, we try to remember the challenges
and the distractions and try to be really sensitive to
all the things that go on in their world. And
they live in a different time than I did, for sure,
and I'm fortunate to have young coaches around me, so
they can remind me, you know, about all the technology
and stuff. But I think all in all, we have

(08:32):
a team that's still bought in, a team that's still
committed to getting better. So we're practicing really hard to feel,
you know, for about two hours a day, and I
think we have to have that if we're going to
play eleven DP, we have to continue making sure everybody
feels comfortable and confident in the game plan, in our execution.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
Got a fun team to watch for the next five
at home, including a tilt tomorrow night against Houston. That
game will tip off at six point thirty at fifth third.
Go see and play coach. It's good to have you,
Good luck the rest of the season. Hopefully we'll chat
again soon. Do appreciate the time.

Speaker 2 (09:03):
I appreciate it. Thanks for having me, and hopefully we'll
see you soon.