Belle of the ball

Talking Sports columnist John Shivers catches up with new UW women's basketball coach Mary Ellen Murphy in the midst of her first preseason signing campaign, which has taken her as far afield as California in pursuit of talent. 'It can't end soon enough,' says the former Notre Dame assistant coach. With no recruits of her own until next year, she'll have to rely on current team members and walk-ons for the coming season. 'I've been pleased with every one of my players so far,' she says, adding that she intends to mold them into an aggressive team and double or triple the team's fan base. Murphy goes on to coach the Badgers for eight years, taking the UW women's basketball team to its first NCAA tournament berth in the 1991-92 season and compiling an 86-135 overall record. She later coaches the Sacramento Monarchs during the team's inaugural WNBA season, and has more recently served as a women's basketball analyst for ESPN2 and Fox Sports Net and as a color commentator for New York Liberty games.