Yvonne Sanchez, ASU Women’s Basketball New Assistant Coach, speaks about her journey to ASU
May 27, 2021
ASU Women’s Basketball has a new assistant coach. Yvonne Sanchez is coming from the University of Michigan where she spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach.
ASU is filling a staff opening created when Angie Nelp became head coach at Tulsa. Others on Turner Thorne’s staff are associate head coach Jackie Moore, assistant Nikki Blue and special assistant Meg Sanders.
Sanchez graduated college with a degree in phycology, she then used to help children, that were ages 8 to 17- years- old, that were put into protective custody. During this time, she worked as a high school basketball coach.
Jose then asked her what brought her back to the West Coast.
“Charlie and I have been friends for a long time and she’s somewhat of a big mentor to me, and I have relied on her and asked for advice throughout the years,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez felt that working alongside this group of coaches is something that she is very happy about.
Jose asked Sanchez if she felt that her experience in the West will help when it comes to recruiting new players.
Sanchez explained that she doesn’t know if her contacts will help, but that Arizona State is such a name brand, that she feels this will help drive in recruits more than her contacts. Sanchez already has several recruits lined up for the coming season.
Jose then asked, how women’s basketball was treated by the NCAA.
Sanchez explained, that being in the Pack-12 is top to bottom the best in the country. The NCAA was a unique experience and that while at the event, you wouldn’t have noticed the disparages until the photos came out. This was when the women realized how they were being treated in comparison to the men’s league.
“We really felt like, dang,” Sanchez said. “If the men have that, then we really should have something a lot better than we did.”