News Articles – March 31, 2001
The night the lights went out on Jackie
After traveling thousands of miles, giving a million interviews, taking a billion shots, scoring 3,393 points and getting discovered by America, it was finally time for Jackie Stiles to rest. This is the only way she could escape the black-and-gold swarm of a black-and-blue Purdue defense that gave her tired legs, crooked shots, and tear-stained eyes. And when the end came, with 1 minute 5 seconds remaining on the clock, Stiles walked off the court, sat on the Southwest Missouri State bench, put her head in a towel, and sobbed. She was Jackie Blue now, and all of cheers and ovations and tributes could not harden her heart, make those missed shots go in or erase an 81-64 loss to the bruising Boilermakers. Her career was over. “You can never prepare yourself for this moment,” Stiles said. One of the hottest stories in sports was iced by Purdue on the hardwood at the Savvis Center. In Friday’s first Final Four semifinal, Stiles made only seven of 21 shots, or 33 percent. It was her worst shooting night since she made 33 percent in a game at Evansville as a sophomore on Dec. 29, 1998. Imagine Tiger Woods three-putting. Imagine a humble, likable Billy Packer. Imagine the XFL getting huge TV ratings. Well, Stiles going 7 for 21 is just as shocking. She scored 22 points; that’s usually a decent half for Stiles. And while Purdue deserves the rave reviews for its smothering defense, Stiles missed a lot of open shots, the kind of attempts that she’s been throwing down since picking up a small, foam basketball in her crib. She missed the kind of shots that she’d made after breaking her wrist (true story). But the shots ran out. The lights went out. She was human. Jackie and her story went cold. And as if to make this official, the ESPN crew that all but performed an MRI exam on the Stiles family in the stands through much of Friday’s game — the family physician probably doesn’t probe this much — suddenly backed away with a couple of minutes left, relegating Stiles to yesterday’s Sportscenter. In the last month, Stiles was a secret and then a sensation. She was plucked out of Springfield and given a twirl by the star-making machine. They don’t have a rollercoaster like this in her hometown of Claflin, Kan. They don’t even have tornadoes like this. It was exhilarating. It was exhausting. This magnificent shooting star burned across the sky . . . fizzling out on Friday night. Perhaps she was defeated on Wednesday and Thursday, the days before the game. Southwest Missouri State arrived in St. Louis and Stiles walked into Kurt Warner’s life, Mark McGwire’s routine, Marshall Faulk’s tracks. She couldn’t move without being stopped for an autograph or a photo or a 30-second sound bite. Jackie, can you please sign this, smile for the Instamatic, talk to the radio guy, accept the award. And while you’re at it, please score about 100 more points so SMS can win the national championship. “It’s been a whirlwind,” Stiles said. “(Thursday) I did not have a moment to myself all day, until about 10:30 (p.m.) “It was just here and there. Interviews, banquets, fans. Hey, that’s no excuse. That’s what the Final Four is all about.” The publicity wore her down, the distractions made her weary, and the Purdue ballhawks finished her off. Hype wins. Stiles loses. And we have seen it all before. It didn’t help that Southwest Missouri State had an NCAA Tournament itinerary that took the Lady Bears from Springfield to the Atlantic Seaboard (New Jersey), back to Springfield, out to the Pacific Northwest (Spokane, Wash). back to Springfield and up to St. Louis. From the oceans, to the mountains, to the prairies. It was The God Bless America and Jackie Stiles Tour. And there was a toll to be paid for all of these Stiles miles. And that was before Purdue made her run a marathon to find a comfortable spot in the defense. “I think I really hit the wall,” she said. “It’s been a long ride to get to this point. A lot of travel. I was really tired. I could tell by my jumpshot that my legs just weren’t there. Purdue made me work so hard just to catch the ball.” She wasn’t in Springfield anymore. This was the Final Four. The big stage. Her last dance. She’s plenty tough, but every athlete has a limit. And her knees wobbled just a bit. “It’s hard not to feel the pressure,” Stiles said. “It was the biggest game of my life.” As she talked in the SMS locker room after the game, her tear-stained eyes began to dry, and the Stiles smile came back, and she started chirping about playing pro ball in the WNBA. “It’s definitely one of my biggest dreams,” she said. “I can’t imagine playing basketball and getting paid for it. Please, somebody in the WNBA take me, so this isn’t my last game.” Just like that, she was ready to run, ready to shoot. Give her the ball. The great ones always come back strong.