2003-04 Women's Preview
October 15, 2003 04:07 PM | General
By John Antonik
October 17, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Once again Connecticut is the team to beat in the Big East Conference.
The Huskies have put together an amazing run under Coach Geno Auriemma, winning two straight NCAA titles and three of the last four. Since 1999, Connecticut has posted a 144-5 record and had its NCAA-record 70-game win streak snapped in the Big East championship game against Villanova.
Connecticut was able to rebound and defeat Texas in the Final Four and Tennessee in the NCAA title game to record its fourth NCAA crown in school history.
Connecticut returns all five starters including national player of the year Diana Taurasi
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What’s scary is that all five starters from last year’s title team return for this season.
Senior Diana Taurasi headlines the group. She was the national player of the year last season as a junior after averaging 17.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. The 5-foot-11 guard teams in the backcourt with 5-foot-7 senior Maria Conlon, an unsung player who averaged 6.9 points and 2.5 rebounds per game.
Up front the Huskies return two very talented players in 6-foot-2 Ann Strother and 6-foot-3 Jessica Moore. Both combined to average 20.7 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
Six-foot sophomore forward Barbara Turner (10.0 ppg., 5.8 rpg.) and 5-foot-11 junior Ashley Battle (8.3 ppg., 5.4 rpg.) give the Huskies additional versatility.
UConn also welcomes three more talented recruits headlined by McDonald’s All-American Liz Sherwood of Castle Rock, Colo.
Rutgers made a big turnaround last year, going from 9-20 in 2003 to 21-8 last year and finishing second in the Big East behind UConn.
C. Vivian Stringer has one of the country’s top playmakers in junior point guard Cappie Pondexter. The 5-foot-9 Chicago native averaged 18.3 points and handed out 4.3 assists per game.
Five-eleven junior Chelsea Newton averaged almost 11 points and five rebounds per game as a sophomore and teams with 6-foot-3 forward Shalicia Hurns to give the Lady Knights a formidable presence in the paint.
Cappie Pondexter helped get Rutgers back into the NCAA tournament
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Five-nine senior guard Dawn McCullough proved effective working the perimeter with Pondexter, averaging 9.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
Freshman guard Natisha Johnson of Gibsland, La., could also push for playing time in the backcourt.
Villanova had a fabulous year under veteran coach Harry Peretta last season, upsetting Connecticut in the Big East championship game and advancing to the NCAA Elite Eight where the Wildcats’ amazing run was ended by Tennessee.
Villanova has some significant rebuilding to do this year having to replace three of its top four scorers, but the Wildcats do welcome back 5-foot-10 senior forward Courtney Mix who averaged 9.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Peretta is hoping a pair of recruits in 6-foot-3 Katia Levitsky and 5-foot-11 guard Stacie Whitman will help take up the slack.
Boston College has become a major player on the national scene under veteran coach Cathy Inglese, posting back-to-back 20-win seasons and winning 20 in four of the last five years. BC was one of seven Big East teams to earn NCAA bids last year, but must find replacements for three fifth-year senior starters.
Inglese does have one of the top returning players in the conference in junior guard Jessalyn Deveny, who averaged 16.9 points per game. Five-eight guard Amber Jacobs averaged 12.1 points per game and should help give the Eagles one of the conference’s most explosive backcourts.
Bonnie Hendrickson has made Virginia Tech an annual postseason contender and nothing short of another NCAA tournament appearance is expected this year in Blacksburg.
Tech has three starters back from last year’s team that went 22-10 and advanced to the second round of NCAA play. Six-four senior Ieva Kublina is one of the top centers in the country, averaging 15 points and 7.4 rebounds per game last year. She will have a solid supporting cast consisting of 6-foot-2 forward Erin Gibson and 5-foot-7 guard Carrie Mason.
Tech also welcomes Virginia’s Miss Basketball in 6-foot forward Britney Anderson from right in Blacksburg.
Notre Dame had an off year by Notre Dame standards, finishing sixth in conference play, but the Irish managed to win 21 games and qualify for the NCAA tournament. In tournament play the Fighting Irish upset nationally ranked Arizona and Kansas State to advance to the Sweet 16.
This year Coach Muffet McGraw has four starters back including all-Big East second team pick Jacqueline Batteast, who averaged 13.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Six-three sophomore Courtney LaVere provides a formidable presence inside by averaging 12.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
The Irish have also managed to secure another talented recruiting class headlined by Parade All-American forward Crystal Erwin of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Miami took a big step in 2003 by finishing seventh in the conference and earning an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament. The Hurricanes have one of the nation’s most explosive players in sophomore guard Tamara Jones, who averaged a conference-best 21 points per game last year.
Miami has six of its top seven scorers returning for 2004.
Seton Hall was steady under veteran coach Phyllis Mangina, going 14-14 in regular season play to earn a spot in the WNIT. The Pirates have three of their top four scorers returning led by 6-foot-2 senior forward Charlene Thomas.
Georgetown once again hovered around the .500 mark in 2003 and finished ninth in the Big East. The Hoyas also qualified for the WNIT and have two talented forwards returning in Rebekkah Brunson and Carmen Bruce. The two combined to average nearly 30 points and 15 rebounds per game.
Syracuse regressed in 2003 after finishing 2002 with an 18-13 record and advancing to NCAA tournament play. Syracuse welcomes new coach Keith Cieplicki, who spent six years at Vermont where he compiled a 127-53 record.
Cieplicki has a pretty good group of players to work with, including four double-digit scorers in Shannon Perry, Julie McBride, Rochelle Coleman and April Jean. Backcourt is Syracuse’s strength where Perry and McBride patrol.
West Virginia's Kate Bulger was eighth in the Big East in scoring, second in three-pointers per game and was third in the nation in three-point shooting
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Pittsburgh is another program breaking in a new coach, though Agnus Berenato has had plenty of coaching success during previous stops at Georgia Tech and Rider.
Berenato only has one returning starter (guard Amy Kunich) in a program that has managed to win just 10 Big East games the last three seasons. Berenato will work in a four-player recruiting class comprised of three forwards and a guard.
West Virginia coach Mike Carey made progress last year despite dealing with key injuries and suspensions. WVU recorded a perfect 11-0 record outside of league play and finished the year with its first winning record since 1997.
The Mountaineers have four returning players that averaged double figures in 2003, led by senior guard Kate Bulger’s 15.8 points-per-game average.
But what has Carey so excited about his team is a pair of recruits rated among the best in the country. Kate’s younger sister Meg was a Parade All-American from Pittsburgh’s Central Catholic High School who averaged 19.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game last year.
And 6-foot-5 junior college All-American center Yelena Leuchanka gives West Virginia the size and versatility in the paint Carey desires. She averaged 18.1 points per game last season at Wabash Valley Junior College.
Providence once again has its work cut out for it after failing to make the Big East tournament in 2003. Second-year coach Susan Yow has just two starters returning in 5-foot-11 forward Brooke Freeburg and 5-foot-6 guard Keisha Blackwell. Yow is hoping a four-player recruiting class that includes New Mexico player of the year Shauna Snyder will help.
And like Providence, St. John’s has to get back to the grindstone after failing to make the Big East tournament in 2003. The Red Storm have won just 19 games the past three seasons and last had a winning record in 1995. Second-year coach Kim Barnes Arico has her two top scorers returning in Danielle Rainey (16.4 ppg.) and Shemika Stevens (13.4 ppg.), and also plans on working in five newcomers that includes Long Island transfer Kim Mac Millan.
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