During halftime of No. 20 Oklahoma’s (21-6, 10-5 Big 12) contest with Kansas State (18-9, 9-7) on Saturday, 20 players and coaches from the Sooners’ 2002 Final Four team were honored for the 20th anniversary of their accomplishment.
A tribute video recapping that season was played before former OU coach Sherri Coale led the team onto the court. A separate video was then played honoring Coale before a banner was hung above the Lloyd Noble Center court in her honor.
The 2002 #Sooners and Sherri Coale receive a standing ovation for the 20 year anniversary of the first Final Four appearance in @OU_WBBall history. pic.twitter.com/1ZFl0ZvrdY
— Tyler DeLuca (@TylerDeLucaTV) February 26, 2022
#Sooners unveil a new banner to honor former OU women’s basketball coach Sherri Coale. pic.twitter.com/6X6YhA9edw
— Jesse Crittenden (@JesseCrittenden) February 26, 2022
The 2002 Sooners won a program-record 32 games and 14 conference games, producing four WNBA players including guards Stacey Dales and LaNeisha Caufield. They attained OU’s first-ever Final Four appearance after beating Colorado in the Elite Eight and made the championship game after defeating Duke. OU finished with a program-high No. 2 ranking at season’s end.
OU President Joseph Harroz and athletic director Joe Castiglione spoke during Saturday’s ceremony, with Castiglione calling Coale the “greatest coach in OU women’s basketball history.”
Coale arrived at OU from Norman High School in 1996, coaching the Sooners for 25 seasons until 2021. She led OU to 19 straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2000-2018, including nine Sweet 16s, three Final Fours, and one national championship appearance.
Additionally, she won six Big 12 Conference regular season championships and four conference tournaments. Coale was inducted into the Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame and Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007 and 2016, respectively.
“She inspired her teams year after year,” Castiglione said. “She invested in our community and helped rebuild it in many ways. She’s done things that nobody at our university has ever done before. We can go on and on about her.”
During his speech, Castiglione announced OU will build a bench outside the Griffin Family Performance Center, adjacent to the Lloyd Noble Center, in Coale’s honor. She also received customized shoes painted with several career highlights from Castiglione.
“Everyone on this team and everyone here has had their lives positively impacted by Coach Coale,” Harroz said. “Our purpose is to change lives, and Coach Coale has changed all of our lives. We cannot thank her enough.”
After her banner was hung, Coale spoke, recapping her OU career and the 2002 season.
“I’m eternally in debt,” Coale said. “None of this happens without all of these players. I have such a gratitude for their eye for excellence and their attention to detail, because that’s really how we built this program.
“This 2002 team was incredibly special in how they played, in how they pursued their academics, in how they treat one another, but mostly who they are. They are remarkable human beings who continue to represent this amazing institution in the highest way. I’m forever in debt.”
Forever in @OU_WBBall history. Forever in the rafters. Sherri Coale has her name put into the rafters by President Harroz and Athletic Director Joe Castiglione. #Sooners #OU pic.twitter.com/I35l04SPwE
— Tyler DeLuca (@TylerDeLucaTV) February 26, 2022
