Oregon women’s basketball head coach Kelly Graves has added Mark Campbell, Jodie Berry and Nicole Powell to his first coaching staff with the Ducks.
“I am thrilled with this staff,” Graves said. “They’re experienced, they know the West Coast and the Pac-12, and they’re all really good coaches and people. They share my vision of what Oregon women’s basketball can be.”
Oregon fans may remember Powell as a standout with Stanford from 2000-01 through 2003-04 while Campbell makes the move to Eugene from Corvallis.
The trio of highly regarded assistant coaches joins the Oregon program after successful stints with their previous teams.
Campbell joins the Ducks after spending four seasons at Oregon State, including last season as the Beavers’ associate head coach.
“I think Mark is one of the best coaches on the West Coast,” Graves said. “He’s great at working with people and developing players. He has a wealth of basketball knowledge, and I’m excited to work with him. He’s the whole package.”
Campbell was instrumental in signing the Beavers’ recent highly ranked recruiting classes and coaching four straight Pac-12 all-freshman team guards – Alyssa Martin (2011), Ali Gibson (2012), Jamie Weisner (2013) and Sydney Weise (2014).
Before heading to Oregon State, Campbell spent two seasons on Randy Bennett’s men’s basketball staff at Saint Mary’s. Working with the Gaels’ guards, Campbell helped develop all-Americans Patty Mills, Mickey McConnell and Matthew Dellavedova.
Campbell played at Cal Poly for one season before transferring to Clackamas Community College. He played his final two seasons at Hawai’i, earning WAC all-defensive and all-academic honors as a senior.
Berry comes to Oregon after coaching with Graves for 11 seasons at Gonzaga, where she worked with the offense and post players.
“Jodie has been my right-hand person for the last 11 years,” Graves said. “We know each other so well. She’s a great offensive mind and I trust her completely. She’s energetic and has an incredible personality. Everyone that knows Jodie loves Jodie.”
Berry served as the director of women’s basketball operations at Gonzaga for two seasons before being promoted to assistant coach for the 2005-06 campaign. She served as Graves’ top assistant for her final six seasons with the Bulldogs, starting in 2008.
Working with the offense at GU, Berry and the Bulldogs finished in the nation’s top-15 in scoring five times and top-five three times. Gonzaga led the nation in scoring during the 2010-11 season, averaging 85.3 points per game. The Bulldogs also shot 49.4 percent from the floor that season, good for second-best in the NCAA.
Berry played collegiately at Western Washington, helping her team to four straight NCAA Div. II Tournament appearances and a Final Four trip in 1999-2000.
Powell also joins the Ducks after working with Graves at Gonzaga last season, her first in coaching.
“Nicole is a rising star in our business,” Graves said. “She has the credibility of being an All-American and having a long career in the WNBA. That is critical. She’s great one-on-one with players and building relationships.”
Powell was a three-time All-American at Stanford before graduating in 2004. She was named Pac-10 Player of the Year in both 2002 and 2004 and was the league’s freshman of the year in 2001.
After her standout collegiate career, Powell was taken third overall in the WNBA draft by the Charlotte Sting in 2004. She has averaged 10.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in her career, starting 277 of the 334 games she has appeared in.
She is starting her 11th season in the WNBA this year and second with the Tulsa Shock. The Shock open their 2014 season on May 17 against San Antonio.
Powell won a WNBA championship with the Sacramento Monarchs in 2005, when she was named the league’s most improved player. She led the WNBA in made three-pointers that season, with 66, and led the league in free-throw percentage in 2007 (96.4 percent) and 2009 (97.9 percent).
In two of Powell’s four seasons at Stanford, the Ducks defeated the Cardinal at McArthur Court – 72-54 in 2001 and 67-66 in 2004 when the Cardinal were ranked No. 10 in the nation.
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