LONG BEACH STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PREVIEW : Patience Is Key to Rebuilding 49ers

Rebuilding a college basketball program usually isn’t quick work. Philosophies are changed, goals established and players recruited.

And Dallas Boychuk knows this. It will take time for Boychuk, in her first year as women’s basketball coach at Long Beach State, to establish herself and her program.

The administration is excited but knows Boychuk needs time. Only one problem: Boychuk constantly has to remind herself.

“There are a lot of things I want to do and I want to do them right now,” she said. “I want to get things done so fast. I have to stop myself and say, ‘Slow down.’ I’m pretty hard on myself, but that helps me a lot.”

This is why Long Beach Athletic Director Dave O’Brien hired Boychuk as the fourth women’s coach in school history. The decision is among the best of his career.

“She is even better than we thought,” O’Brien said. “We got the right person for the job.”

Good for the 49ers, because the task is formidable.

Boychuk, formerly the lead assistant at Big Ten power Purdue, was hired April 28. She replaced Glenn McDonald, who was re-assigned to another position within the athletic department.

McDonald, a Long Beach graduate, is popular with the players and well respected on the campus and in the community. But the once-dominant program fell hard during his watch.

His record was 54-58 over four seasons with only one winning season, and interest in the program waned. Long Beach was 13-14 last season, and tied for fifth in the Big West Conference at 10-8. McDonald was unable to move out of the shadow of his predecessor, Joan Bonvicini, who led Long Beach to two Final Fours.

Boychuk was the recruiting coordinator at Purdue. During her three years in West Lafayette, Ind., the Boilermakers’ recruiting classes ranked among the nation’s best. Boychuk successfully recruited former Brea Olinda point guard Nicole Erickson, considered one of the greatest female basketball players in Orange County history.

The charismatic Boychuk has been busy re-selling the program to the community. The team isn’t the most talented in the conference, but Boychuk has expectations.

“We’re not going to just write off the year,” she said. “I know a lot of people in the conference wonder where our scoring is going to come from, but we have people who can score.”

Last season’s team revolved around senior power forward Melissa Gower, who averaged 23.6 points and 13 rebounds. Now that the first-team all-conference selection is gone, forward Kim Barfield, center Ja’net Davis and point guard Akia Hardy are being counted on.

Barfield averaged 13.4 points and 8.4 rebounds last season. She might be the 49ers’ best player.

“Kim is playing very well,” Boychuk said. “It’s good to have someone who can be an inside-outside player.”

Davis confounded her previous Long Beach coaches, occasionally showing flashes of dominance then disappearing for long stretches. She was a consistent standout at Inglewood Morningside High, and Boychuk is committed to helping her regain that form.

“Ja’net is stronger now,” Boychuk said. “When she’s posting up it’s hard to guard her. She has a great hook shot and great moves. She just has to keep it up.”

Hardy committed 18 turnovers in an exhibition game, but Boychuk isn’t worried. Hardy has done a solid job running the team during practice.

Boychuk expects this year’s recruiting class to be good. She loves the Pyramid and wants to produce a product to fill the place. She believes she is laying the groundwork for something special, and no one at Long Beach can prove otherwise.