ORONO – Yes, Cindy Blodgett is relieved Joanne Palombo-McCallie will remain the women’s basketball coach at the University of Maine.

Yes, Blodgett is excited the UM administration will double the women’s basketball operating budget to $158,000 next season and reward Palombo with an $11,000 raise and a new five-year contract.

Now for the question everyone still wants answered.

Would Blodgett, Maine’s brilliant freshman point guard, really have transferred out of Maine as she hinted she might if Palombo had accepted a job offer from Long Beach State University?

“There was a 99 percent chance of me leaving if she was to leave,” Blodgett answered soberly, pausing Monday from her daily shooting regimen in the Memorial Gym to answer questions after Palombo announced she was staying.

Blodgett said team members knew of Palombo’s decision early Monday morning.

Blodgett said she was prepared to leave Maine partly out of loyalty to Palombo, the third-year coach who recruited her out of Lawrence High in Fairfield, and partly for the principle.

“It would have sent the message to me that the university doesn’t support women’s athletics or women in general,” said Blodgett, who said she very likely would have followed Palombo to Long Beach. “You don’t want to play for a university or anyone if they’re not committed to you.”

Palombo’s flirtation with Long Beach, said Blodgett, made her aware for the first time of the inequities between the women’s basketball program and the UM men’s program. The women’s operating budget this season was $79,000 compared to $137,000 for the men. Palombo’s salary was $48,500. Men’s coach Rudy Keeling is making $65,000.

“That’s stuff we don’t hear about. I was surprised to see the difference,” Blodgett said.

She also went public with the possibility she would leave as a statement of how strongly the UM players felt about Palombo’s contribution to the program’s success. Maine is 53-33 under the 29-year-old coach from Brunswick, with a North Atlantic Conference title and NCAA tourney appearance. The women attracted 53,970 fans to Alfond Arena last season in 15 home dates.

“I thought it was important to let people know the players were going to be unhappy, not just me. It’s not like you could replace her and get somebody better,” said the Clinton native, who averaged 20.1 points a game for the Bears this season.

Blodgett said she first learned Palombo was staying when the coach informed the team during a 6 a.m. weight-lifting session Monday. But the NAC Rookie of the Year said Palombo sounded like she was staying as early as last Thursday. Palombo met with the team briefly before the coach flew to Long Beach to interview.

“She told us what she was doing would be good for the program and good for everything if she would go take a look at this program and compare,” Blodgett said.

Still, Blodgett said she experienced anxiety during the two days Palombo was in California.

“I went home Friday night and talked it over with my parents,” she said.

Blodgett said she has learned a lot from the whole experience.

“I want to be a college coach myself. I was trying to see both sides. I knew people would start looking at her (to hire).

“You don’t know how much someone means to you until you lose them or even feel the risk of possibly losing them,” said Blodgett, before returning to shooting baskets.