VESTAL, N.Y. – It’s been nearly six weeks since Mary Grimes was named the women’s basketball coach at Binghamton. Since then, she has worked on getting to know her new team, bringing in some new players and assembling her coaching staff.
Within the past two weeks, Grimes has also gotten to know members of the local media on a personal basis. While nearly all of them were at her introductory press conference on April 26, the media tour gave each media outlet their chance to do their own one-on-one interview. At each stop, Grimes was given a tour of the station and was able to meet other members of each media outlet.
At WBNG, Grimes met with Sports Director Zach Grady and was asked what attracted her to the job at Binghamton University.
“This program is on the rise,” she said. “It’s in a position where it can compete and compete right away for championships. “I know that there’s talent. The cupboards are not bare. You know a few tweaks here and there, add some pieces and I think we can compete.”
When asked what it would take to create a championship culture, Grimes pointed to the little things that add up to success.
“It’s about having that mindset of just how can we win this practice and how can we win this game,” she said. “Once you start stacking those things you’ll be proud of what you have at the finish,”
Click here for the interview with WBNG’s Zach Grady
Over at FOX-40, Grimes met with Sports Director Ian Mills. She was asked what her first month on the job at Binghamton has been like.
“It’s been going good, she said. “It has been a bit of a whirlwind but that was expected. But everything is falling into place. I got to see more of the campus last week and I was like ‘Sign me up’ again!'”
Grimes was asked about what it will be like coaching a team in the Events Center this coming season. Having been on the UAlbany coaching staff from 2010-16, she is very familiar with the facility.
“It’s an unbelievable arena,” she said. “Even my eight-year old daughter saw the place for the first time (recently) and her jaw just dropped. We are going to try to put the best product out on the floor for our fans and be competitive night in and night out.”
Click here for the interview with FOX-40s Ian Mills.
Next, Grimes headed downtown to the WNBF AM-1290 radio station, which has aired Binghamton basketball games for over two decades. She was a guest of Bob Joseph on his long-running mid-day show “Binghamton Now” and was asked how she got into coaching.
“Growing up (in the Detroit area), I played basketball with the boys each day but I always had to wait until one of them went home before I could jump in,” she said. “That gave me a change to watch and observe what was going on and that is a big part of coaching. Even when I was playing, I always tried to have the mentality of a coach.”
Grimes also talked with Joseph about some of the other sports she played growing up.
“I was big into tennis and I even have a runner-up trophy from a tournament I played in. I tell people I lost against (Michigan native) Serena Williams,” she joked.
Click here for Grimes’ interview with Bob Joseph.
Finally, Grimes traveled to the WIVT studio and met with Sports Director Brian Rudman. She was asked what it’s been like getting to know the current players on the squad.
“I’ve been getting to learn who they are as people right now,” she said. “I have gotten to talk with each one of them over the phone. They are great people, great young women and great student-athletes. But I am really looking forward to seeing them out on the court and that is going to happen later this summer.”
Click here for Grimes’ interview with Brian Rudman.
The Binghamton women’s basketball team will be back on campus during the second summer session, which begins the week of July 8.