We are writing in response to Bill Gouin's March 8 Reader's Forum letter to the editor about the women's basketball team.
During the women's basketball team's successful season, support and coverage of this talented team has been lacking. It is neither presumptuous nor ungrateful for the team to ask for more student support; all Carolina athletic teams -- men's and women's -- deserve support.
Mr. Gouin's suggestion that the women's team schedule games against men's teams does nothing more than reveal his narrow-mindedness.
Women do not have to compete against men in any arena, including basketball, in order to prove themselves.
The primary difference between men's and women's basketball is above-the-rim play.
We do not think that the ability to jump high constitutes a "higher level of collegiate basketball."
Basketball requires skill and finesse -- key components of the women's game -- not just raw physical presence.
John Wooden, the legendary UCLA men's basketball coach, said: "The best pure basketball -- is among the better women's teams. It's the game as I like to see it played, without so much showmanship."
As to his implication that the Carolina women showed no effort or skill when playing Duke simply because they lost, Mr. Gouin should be reminded that Duke remained undefeated in the ACC, and in the ACC championship game, Carolina lost to Duke by a mere seven points.
