Women’s basketball alumna on winning: ‘We were creative and unorthodox’

“We were competitive, we wanted to win.”

Seven simple words and when used in the context of sport can come across as just another phrase taken from the great book of sports clichés — sandwiched somewhere between “he always gives 110 per cent” and “there’s no ‘I’ in TEAM.”

But it was these seven words that sparked an unbelievable winning streak, a streak that is still mentioned today when talking about Dinos women’s basketball.

69 – 0. Undefeated from 1988 to 1990. Jodi Evans was on that record-setting Dinos women’s basketball squad.

“I am feeling old … that was a long time ago,” Evans laughs as she starts to recycle the memories of her time patrolling the floor of the Jack Simpson Gymnasium at the University of Calgary.

During her five years with the Dinos, the team had an overall record of 154 wins and 22 losses and won the 1989 CIS National Championship. In 1991, Evans led the Canada West Conference in points, assists, and rebounds and was the CIS Player of the Year.

Evans is one of the many alumni who will be celebrated on Nov. 5, as part of the University of Calgary’s 50th anniversary festivities. The women’s team plays against University of Manitoba on Nov. 5 at 5 p.m. and the men face University of Manitoba Nov. 4 at 7 p.m.

Laundry list of outstanding achievements

Evans’ accomplishments read like a laundry list of outstanding achievements. But that record-setting run, and that team in particular, is something she still holds very close to her heart.

“What an amazing group of women,” Evans says. “Not only were we a group of very talented basketball players and athletes, we had a ton of fun playing the game.”

It was during the first few months of year one that Evans started to realize she was part of something that had the potential to be very special in women’s university basketball. An up-tempo speed game comparable to the run and gun style is something Evans thinks contributed to the team’s record-setting run.

Creativity is the winning formula

“We were creative and unorthodox at times, which caught the opposition off guard and played a running game that was hard for other teams to keep up.”

A close-knit group focused on a common goal, the team was truly that in every sense of the word.

“We gelled so well. Everything clicked. Most importantly we really liked each other and had fun on and off the court. Sure there were times in practice when we were competitive with each other but overall we were incredibly connected,” says Evans.

Another contributing factor to the success of the Dinos women’s basketball teams from 1988 to 1990 was that it was not just the starting five that led the way.

“We were incredibly deep, our starting five was great but the next five was equally as good,” says Evans. “If one of our top players had a bad game, our bench was also incredibly strong and someone could come off the bench and turn things around.”

Lesson learned from basketball

These days Evans is part of a different team as she is now market leader for Deloitte Consulting in B.C., but it was lessons that she learned during her time as a Dino that still resonate with her today.

“We all have our roles and we all need to support each other. If someone is having a bad day, it doesn’t matter as long as your team can pick you up,” says Evans.

This story would not be complete without a good old fashioned sports cliché, but it is a phrase that Evans still uses when talking about that special time in her collegiate basketball career: “Winning is contagious.”

Details of womens’ basketball Dinos vs University of Manitoba Game

• Date: Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, UCalgary vs UManitoba
• Location: Jack Simpson Gymnasium, University of Calgary
• Time: 5 p.m. game

The archival photos in this slideshow are just a few of the hundreds of images that make up the 50th Anniversary digital collection.