Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • Page 64

LASTING LEGACIES A LOOK AT ILLINOIS' FINEST ATHLETES on talent A short history, but long magine having to pick the all-time NBA team in 1972, the all-NFL team of the 1900s in 1944 or an All-Century baseball team just 24 years after the sport's modern era started. That's a little bit what it was like choosing Illinois' best five skilled now. But there's no denying how talented some of the individuals were then. The top players in Illinois were selected by Tribune staff writers Marlen Garcia, Alan Sutton and Barry Temkin, who consulted with coaches and others from around the state. High school performance was the main criteria.

Success in college and beyond, inevitably worked its way into the discussion too. Current players, like Marshall's Cappie Pondexter who will graduate in 2001, will have to wait until 2099 when the next "Team of the Century" is chosen. That was 1976 and Marshall coach Dorothy Gaters was just beginning to put together the framework of her Public League dynasty that has won seven state titles. There were plenty of schools ready to take the court for that 1976-77 season-478. But that date was too late for some, like Charlotte Lewis of Peoria Woodruff, who was a member of the U.S.

women's team in the 1976 Olympics at Montreal. Officially, this is the 24th season of girls basketball in Illinois. Coaches have said that the high school girls game is faster and more girls high school basketball players of the last century If you remember when Gerald Ford was president, when this country was just getting over the euphoria of celebrating its 200th birthday and when Michael Jordan was in junior high, you might remember when girls basketball became an IHSA-sanctioned sport forwards First team: Tamika Catchings (6-0) Stevenson 1995 Catchings is the only sophomore to have been chosen Ms. Basketball of Illinois. That happened after the 1994-95 season, when she and sister Tauja led Frank Mattucci's team to its first Class AA title.

The daughter of former NBA player and Bulls announcer Harvey Catchings moved to Duncanville, Texas, for her junior and senior seasons with her mother, Wanda. As a sophomore, she averaged 17 points a game while leading Stevenson to a 33-2 7Ar i i record. The former Parade All-American, now a junior at Tennessee, leads the Vols in scoring. -Catchings left Stevenson after her sophomore year, 1995. She graduated from Duncanville (Texas) High School in 1997.

4lV Tamika Catchings Janet Harris 'St I i Nora Lewis -T'' Janet Harris (6-3) Marshall 1981 In a way, Marshall's history of outstanding players begins with this powerful front-court player. Marshall reached the Elite Eight those four years and played for the title once, a 64-47 loss to East St. Louis Lincoln in 1981. Oddly, she is one of the few who have played for Dorothy Gaters without a state championship. But her 97 rebounds in state-tournament finals play will stand as an all-class record forever.

Harris was so dominant, she not only played in the boys Public League All-Star centers First team: i Nora Lewis (6-0) Peoria Richwoods 1985 Lewis, named national prep player of the. year by USA Today and Parade Magazine, led Richwoods to a 95-2 i' record in her last three seasons. She scored 28 points in the '83 final against Maria to give Richwoods a state title. Her success continued in college; She helped Louisiana Tech win the 1988 NCAA championship, and in 1989 Louisiana Tech coach Leon Barmore called her the "heart and soul" of his team after she helped Tecfi reach the Final Four for the third straight year. Second team: Yolanda Griffith, Carver 1988 Third team: Michele Savage, IHM 1988 Game (there was no gins game) put went on to become a four-time All-American at Georgia.

Second team: Tauja Catchings, Stevenson 1996 Tina Hutchinson, East St. Louis Lincoln 1983 Third team: Jackie Joyner, East St. Louis Lincoln 1980 Allison Curtin, Taylorville 1998 1 coach guards Dorothy Gaters, Marshall 1975-present With 663 career victories, Gaters is an easy pick as hi Illinois' greatest girls basketball coach. She has led Marshall to seven state championships and was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in November. l'' Assistants: Derr7 Kipp, Maine West; Dennis Koester, )fT-Teutopolis u- ysJ- i cathyBoswe" I 4 I I "A f'tY I Natasha Pointer I Dorothy Gaters in 1980 I Tl.

First team: Cathy Boswefl (5-9) Joliet West 1979 As a freshman, Boswell helped Joliet West reach the first state finals in 1977 and a year later scored 26 points in a title-game victory over Lincoln. As a junior in 1979, she graduated a year early from Joliet West with a scoring average of 22.3 points. Boswell became an All-American at Illinois State, scoring more than 2,000 points. She led the United States women's team to its first Olympic gold medal in 1984. Natasha Pointer (5-6) Young 1997 She's called Tasha Pointer at Rutgers now, but back in high school she was Natasha and helping coach Arthur Penny challenge Marshall for city supremacy.

Pointer was a Nike All-American, a time Tribune first-team All-State selection and had a high game of 56 points against Maria on Jan. 20, 1996. As a senior, she averaged 25.4 points a game and, maybe impressively, 6.3 rebounds. Now a junior for Rutgers, a Top 20 team, Pointer is a candidate for the Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year award. Second team: Connie Erickson, Niles West 1979 PantGant, Joliet East 1981 Third team: Kim Williams, Marshall 1993 Nancy Kennetty, Maine West 1988 Tribune file photos Honorable mention: Dominique Canty, Young, '95 Marie Christian, Marshall, '83 Lisa Foss, Lake Zurich, '86 Olga Gvozdenovic, Loyola, '99 Middle Hasheider, Okawville, '95 E.C.

Hill, Young, '90 id'i I Carta McGhee, Peoria Manual, '86 Molly McDowell, Nokomis, '99 1 ic Alicia Ratay, Lake Zurich, 99 Tangela Smith, Washington, '94 HIM SCHOOL mi mm mm mm 4 j0m i mmm jf i fru irornu rniffln nun ru III its ililnlllllL iflliiyia SPORTS WET I tin wvwv i 0 UiUV Lia Lis i Ha Viy lia Viy tT IT 6 DON'T MISS PREPS PLUS SUNDAY AT 11AM, REPLAY MONDAY AT.