MADISON, Wis. -- Like so many in the sport, Jane Albright can't imagine women's basketball without Pat Summitt.

	Pat Summitt, right, received a hug from Niya Butts after winning her 700th game on Dec. 5, 1999.

"She's an icon," said Albright, the Wisconsin coach and a former graduate assistant under Summitt at Tennessee. "She's the single biggest ambassador for this game, and if she ever leaves, it will never be the same."

As Summitt's Lady Vols steamrolled through the 1990s, their celebrated coach racked up wins at an unprecedented rate. Summitt captured win No. 700 Sunday as No. 3 Tennessee downed Wisconsin 85-62.

Summitt became just the second women's coach to reach 700 wins, and is rapidly closing on Texas coach Jody Conradt (729) for the career lead.

Only 16 men's coaches have joined the 700 club, and at 47, Summitt is younger than all of them were when they did it. Not only is Dean Smith's leading mark of 879 wins not out of the question, it's quite conceivable Summitt could reach it before the end of the next decade.

She got wins 500 through 600 in three years, two days. With the Lady Vols' win over Wisconsin, wins 600 through 700 came in three years, 12 days.

"It's mind-boggling," said Albright, who has a career .639 winning percentage and yet has still lost more games (164) in 16 years than Summitt (147) has lost in 26. "The only people you can compare her to are John Wooden and Dean Smith. No one else has had her kind of impact on the game."

For her part, Summitt says she still has no trouble finding new challenges in her job, and her legendary work ethic remains strong as ever. For the first time in three seasons, her team, though a definite national title contender, was not a defending national champion or ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll.

	“	(Summitt) is the single biggest ambassador for this game, and if she ever leaves, it will never be the same. ... The only people you can compare her to are John Wooden and Dean Smith. No one else has had her kind of impact on the game. ”
		— Wisconsin coach Jane Albright

"That's an example of the challenge you will always get in this job," Summitt said. "I have no problem finding ways to challenge myself, that's for sure."

In addition to her work on the court, she has become a sought-after motivational speaker. She also wrote two books and was involved in an HBO documentary.

Since she has climbed every possible mountain in the college game -- and even built a few mountains herself -- it's logical for her to think about new challenges. Summitt got a taste of the pros last summer as a television analyst on WNBA games.

Though she had expressed interest in coaching in the WNBA in the past, she came away from the summer more committed to college coaching than ever.

She didn't like the businesslike atmosphere of the WNBA and lack of connection between players and their coaches, many of whom have been fired almost arbitrarily during the league's three-year existence.

"I like the challenges that must be faced in the college game," she said. "I like bonding with the girls and working with young women who are still evolving."

So far this season, Summitt has spent most of her time adjusting to the post-Chamique Holdsclaw era. Preseason All-Americans Tamika Catchings and Semeka Randall have made her job easier, but "there's always more work to do," Summitt said.

Freshmen Gwen Jackson and Kara Lawson have started for Summitt this season, while April McDivitt and Tasheika Morris have played solid minutes.

Her current team was good enough to beat the U.S. Women's National Team 65-64 in a preseason game last month, but a loss to Louisiana Tech has kept Summitt alert. Tennessee beat Stanford, UCLA and defending national champion Purdue in its last three games.

"Although our coaching staff can't do it every game, the keys to our success come from practice and preparation," Summitt said. "We try and treat every opponent in the same way."

Wisconsin freshman center Nina Smith is an example of why Summitt thinks recruiting is still the toughest part of her job. The Lady Vols went hard after Smith, chosen as national high player of the year by several publications, but she opted to stay closer to her Iowa home with the Badgers.

"We won that one. I guess even coach Summitt loses once in a while," Albright said with a grin.