Basketball has always been a major part of the Epps family.

Now the Epps family is a major part of Butler girls basketball.

Dorothea Epps is in her first year as the Golden Tornado's varsity coach. Her son, Aaron, is one of her varsity assistants.

Her husband, Paul, just completed his third year as Butler's freshman girls basketball coach.

"What do we talk about at this time of year?" Dorothea Epps pondered. "There's basketball, there's basketball and then there's basketball."

That's a popular subject for this family. Paul Epps played for Uniontown High School in Fayette County from 1975-77 - his team lost twice in the playoffs twice to eventual state - and went on to play at Waynesburg College.

Dorothea Epps scored 1,300 points for neighboring Fairchance Georges High School, which has since become part of the Albert Gallatin consolidation, and graduated as the school's all-time leading scorer.

Dorothea Epps considered playing at West Virginia University, "but they said I was too short."

Raised by her grandmother, Epps said she couldn't go to college because of financial reasons.

Paul and Dorothea Epps met through the latter's sister and spent a lot of time playing basketball on playground courts.

"We were always getting into games," she said. "He'd play with the guys and if I couldn't find a game with other girls, I'd play in a game with smaller guys."

Aaron Epps was a standout player at Butler and went on to play at Clarion and Slippery Rock University. The couple's daughter, Krystal, played basketball at Butler and wound up accepting a track and field scholarship from the University of Pittsburgh.

"As parents, we taught our kids that sports can be a great avenue to a lot of things," Dorothea Epps said. "But you still have to have family time."

The family time increased when she tapped Aaron as one of her assistants.

"She asked me about a week after she was hired," Aaron Epps said. "It took me no time at all to accept.

"I have a lot of respect for my mother's basketball knowledge. She helped teach me how to play the game. I wanted to get into coaching and this was the perfect opportunity."

Aaron Epps graduated from SRU with a degree in public relations. He is considering a return to school to get his teaching certificate.

"My mother doesn't have any type of ego as a coach, and it's fun working with her," he said. "She's open to suggestions and all three of us (including assistant Julie Baccanti) go over the game plan."

The younger Epps has dabbled in coaching before. He coached a ninth-grade AAU boys basketball team and has worked at camps.

Switching to coaching girls has required only minor adjustments, he said.

"You have to be more patient with girls, but they absorb everything you tell them," he said.

His father coached Butler's freshman girls to a 17-0 record this season. The squad averaged about 40 points per game and surrendered fewer than 25.

Point guard Janet Lesniewski, guards Maria Baroffio and Rachel Barry, forward Emily Miller and center Elizabeth Schultz comprised Paul Epps' starting five.

"These girls had a great attitude and they worked hard," he said. "That's all you can ask as a coach. And every one of the girls on the team played in every game."

Other players on the squad were Eliza Hartung, Tess Crispin, Justine Thiebaud, Jessica McWilliams, Erin Kelly, Angie Byrnes and Trisha Johnson.

"It's nice seeing the kids go on to become bigger and better players," Paul Epps said. "I enjoy coaching at this level.

"Dorothea and I don't talk about X's and O's when we're at home. We talk about the players, about who's handling the ball well, who's a good shooter or a good rebounder," he added.

Dorothea Epps is encouraged about the future of her coaching family.

"Paul is a great teacher and he loves the game," she said. "With the knowledge he has, once the girls reach the junior varsity level, they're ahead of the game in fundamentals.

"Aaron's a couple of years away from being a head coach, but I think he'll get there. It's all fun to him. He's quite a character and the girls like working with him.

"I know I'm fortunate to have Paul and Aaron helping me out. We're all benefiting from it, and I think the program is, too," Epps added.