2004-05 William and Mary Women's Basketball Preview

01/01/00

- In previous years, sizing up the William and Mary women’s basketball team was not a difficult task. Stop the go-to player, stop the Tribe.

Not anymore.

With consistent scoring threats up and down a deep and experienced roster, William and Mary head coach Debbie Taylor begins her sixth year at her alma mater with the deepest and most talented team she has assembled in sixth year.

While young on paper (the roster features two seniors, three juniors, five sophomores and five freshmen), the Tribe returns 10 players who have gained significant minutes in the night-in, night-out battles of Colonial Athletic Association.

“This is the most talented team I have had since I have been here,” commented Taylor on her unit for the coming season. “If we have a clear strength, it would be our balance and depth. We have more size and athleticism than we’ve had in the past and more quality talent at every position. In previous years, if you tried to stop one player, we were in trouble. Now, if you try to stop one, another one will step up and take over. It is the balance of this team that has me excited. We are going to be young, but laden with experience and toughness.”

Having such a strong roster with many capable contributors, the team will get back to their favored style of play, which is an up-tempo, high-energy offense mixed with an aggressive, pressure defense.

“We want to be known for playing the fastest 40 minutes in the CAA,” says Taylor.

The roster is highlighted by two standout sophomores who shined brightly during their freshman seasons. Kyle DeHaven and Kyra Kaylor garnered praise and recognition from CAA opponents with their outstanding play.

DeHaven, who scored 20 points against Old Dominion in her first collegiate game, took the CAA by storm last season, leading the league in assists and steals, as well as being a solid scoring threat. She collected 97 steals, breaking a 26-year old school record, while finishing second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game. She was named to the CAA All-Rookie team and was only the second freshman in the history of the league to be named to the All-Defensive team. Her superior ball handling skills and versatile scoring ability coupled with her speed and athleticism, created problems for opposing defenses. Yet Taylor expects much more out of her point guard as a sophomore.

“We can ask more of Kyle this season,” Taylor said about her young talent from Herndon, VA. “Kyle worked hard on her fundamentals, her decision making and her pull-up jumper during the offseason. I know we will see a smarter, more mature Kyle DeHaven this year. She is ready to help take this team to the next level.”

While DeHaven was running the offense and wreaking havoc defensively, Kaylor was dominating the boards, and using her versatility to score in the paint and consistently behind the arc, shooting 42 percent.

A heady player who can play either guard or forward, Kaylor ran, shot, rebounded and posted her way to third-team All-CAA and All-Rookie team selections. Kaylor’s consistent play resulted in a team-best 13.6 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game.
The sophomore from Pittsburgh was an unstoppable force, and her game should continue to improve in her second season in a Tribe uniform.

“Kyra was our most consistent and strongest player last year,” Taylor commented. “She was our best scorer, three-point shooter and rebounder. She created matchup problems for defenses because she can run the floor and shoot like a guard, but can also use her tremendous strength to post up underneath the basket. She worked on her ball handling and footwork over the summer and came back quicker, more fundamentally sound and hungry for success.”

Surrounding DeHaven and Kaylor are 13 athletes who are poised to step up their level of play in the coming season. Seniors Lindsey Brizendine and Kia Butts will don the Tribe uniform for the final time this season after injuries limited Brizendine to just 16 games last season, while Butts did not play at all due to a foot injury.

Juniors Maria Sazonova and Lizzie Schiel both enjoyed breakout sophomore campaigns, having seen considerate playing time in their first two years. Tiara Cruse, a slashing, scoring guard is eligible to play this season after transferring from Southern Methodist University.

Sophomores Sarah Stroh, Katy Neumer and Sarah McNeil all brought smart, steady play in valuable minutes off the bench last season. Stroh will provide the Tribe with solid point guard play and consistent shooting while Neumer, the best long range shooter on the team, improved her quickness and ball handling over the summer.

Also in the mix is Jalen Boone, who did not play as a freshman last year due to injury. She was a highly sought-after post player whose size, strength and athleticism will be welcome additions.

The freshman class Taylor and her staff brought to Williamsburg is one of the best crop of signees in the league.

“The four young women that we brought in are a group that displays tremendous work ethic and that have the ability to play and contribute right away,” Taylor said. “Our freshmen will add not only depth, but size, speed, athleticism, rebounding, scoring ability and competitiveness. These four have come in ready to play, not to sit on the bench and watch and learn. The daily competition for playing time in practice is sure to improve our individual and our team play.”

Taylor has put together a strong schedule, which includes two holiday tournaments: the annual Thanksgiving trip that will take the Tribe to San Francisco, and a pre-Christmas tournament in Tampa. Twelve home games headline the schedule with three non-conference opponents visiting William and Mary Hall including perennial NCAA tournament qualifier Liberty University.

GUARDS

The Tribe backcourt is full of talent and the competition for playing time should be fierce this season.

“We have a variety of options with our guard play; many different strengths,” Taylor said. “We will have to wait and see who steps to the front in practice. For the first time in my tenure, most of our players that come off the bench will have the skill and ability to challenge our starters for playing time. This will make for a much more intense and competitive practice environment. We hope to see more players in the rotation enabling us to play the style we like to play best.”

DeHaven and Stroh will vie for time at the point guard spot. DeHaven, who has already established herself as one of the top young players in the league, excels at running the transition game.

“Her speed and her quickness with the ball make Kyle so difficult to guard,” Taylor said. “She does a great job advancing the ball up the floor and we are looking for her to make better decisions and do an even better job running the team this season.”

DeHaven also emerged as the team’s defensive stopper. She has great feet, deceptive quickness and strong anticipation skills. DeHaven’s stellar defensive season was a bonus for Taylor.

“Kyle emerged as our best defender last season, a pleasant surprise to our staff as she was really still learning our system and defining her defensive fundamentals. We look for her to be the best on ball defender in the league this year and really make things difficult for opposing point guards,” Tayor said.

Stroh, the most fundamental player on the team, saw significant minutes as a freshman and Taylor hopes to see that increase this season.
“Sarah and Kyle compliment each other because they play the game so differently. Sarah is a great floor general and a crafty passer who possesses a tremendous understanding of the game,” Taylor said. “We are really looking for Sarah to have a breakout year. She is our most skilled player, a tireless worker and accurate shooter; also one of the best conditioned players on our team. She made great strides as a freshman, worked very hard this summer and is ready to help us step to the next level this season.”

Schiel, the Tribe’s most experienced player, will sit this season out for medical reasons. Last season, she averaged 8.2 points and was the only Tribe player to start all 29 games. In her absence the staff will look to Cruse, who gives the Tribe another true scorer, as she is quick off the dribble and knows how to get to the basket.

“We are so excited to have Tiara on the court this season,” Taylor said. “She is an athletic, slashing guard with great basketball instinct in addition to being a solid rebounder. T really worked on her three-point shooting last season and has become a proficient scorer from everywhere on the floor. She is so good in our transition game because she gets down the floor quickly and does a great job creating her own shot.”

Butts returns to the lineup after sitting out last season with a foot injury. An All-Rookie team selection as a freshman, and a starter as a sophomore, she is one of the Tribe’s best defenders. She will provide speed and quickness on both ends of the floor in addition to improved scoring ability that she honed during her year on the sideline.

“Kia is tenacious. She is a tireless worker, a great defender, and a strong offensive rebounder,” Taylor said. “She worked hard during her year off to improve her offensive skills. We really missed her last season and are very excited to have her back on the court.”

Neumer saw limited time as a freshman, connecting on 13 field goals, with 12 coming from three-point range, after a heralded high school career in which she was the Florida 6-A Player of the Year. The team’s best three point shooter, a true “zone buster,” she will fight for playing time on the perimeter.

“Katy may be our most improved player from last season,” Taylor said. “She is a competitor and a pure shooter who likes to play a physical game. She has slimmed down, put on muscle and really improved her footwork. Katy is prepared to fight her way into the rotation this year.”

Three freshman guards will round out the backcourt, representing one of the Tribe’s finest recruiting classes in program history. Though limited in experience, they are laden with talent and should make immediate contributions to this year’s success.

“As a class our freshmen are confident, skilled, determined and ready to play,” Taylor said. “Each brings a different strength to our team. During preseason, our staff has been impressed with how quickly the freshmen catch on to new concepts, how hard they work and how competitive they are.”

Mindy Carter will impress Tribe fans with her tenacity and tremendous hustle.

“Mindy is all over the court; she simply just outworks her opponent,” Taylor said. “She brings a tremendous amount of energy to this team. Mindy has an innate ability to find the ball, always deflecting it, stealing it or rebounding it ­­— she loves physical play. She sees the floor extremely well and does a great job in the passing lanes on defense.”

Carter scored over 1,300 points in her high school career and was third in the state in blocked shots as a freshman in high school.

Devin James finished her high school career ranked as one of the top 20 players nationally at her position. In addition, she was named to the all-star team at the prestigious adidas Top 100 Camp.

“Devin had a lot of options coming out of high school and we were thrilled that she chose to be with us,” Taylor said. “She is a great athlete, a strong rebounder and defender who has the ability to score from anywhere on the floor. Devin is so fast and does a great job getting down the floor in transition. She should score a lot of easy baskets for us this year.”

Dani Kell, a six-foot guard, possesses the size and abilty to become a versatile performer for the Tribe.

“Dani is a very mature player and a great fit for our system. In addition to possessing a high basketball I.Q., Dani is a great shooter, ball handler and passer who has the ability to play several positions,” Taylor said.

POST PLAYERS

Previous Tribe teams have relied on the strength of their guards. Yet, this season Taylor has experience, depth and power in the paint that will add a new dimension to the team. Sazonova, Brizendine and Kaylor will be the veterans of the group, and will be joined by redshirt freshman Jalen Boone and freshman Alex Fitz from Clifton Park, NY.

Sazonova made tremendous strides from her freshman year to her sophomore season, blossoming from a 1.7 points per game average to a 5.6 average, doubling her blocked shots total (seven to 14) and pulling down 40 more rebounds (57 as a freshman, 97 as a sophomore). Sazonova finished the year on a high note, as she scored 10 points on 4-5 shooting from the floor in just 17 minutes as the Tribe defeated Drexel in the CAA Tournament. The next night, she tallied eight points on 3-3 shooting from the floor and 2-4 from the free throw line for eight points and four rebounds in just 19 minutes in the season-ending loss to Old Dominion, a game in which the Tribe trailed by just three points at the half on the Lady Monarchs’ home floor.

“Maria has the ability to become a tremendous impact player for us this season,” Taylor said. “She is so athletic on the block and runs the floor extremely well. She put in a lot of time during the off season and is ready to be a consistent and powerful presence in the paint.”

Brizendine has been a solid performer during her career, averaging 7.9 points per game. A back injury limited her to 16 games last season, and she finished the year with 111 points for a 6.9 points per game average. Taylor is anxious to have Brizendine back healthy and in the lineup.

“Lindsey has all of the ability to be a great player in this league,” Taylor said. “She can score, rebound, handle and pass. She is a great shooter who has extended her range behind the three point arc. We are looking for Lindsey to have a great senior year.”

Kaylor is the first player with USA basketball experience to don the Tribe uniform. An All-Rookie and third-team All-CAA selection last season, Kaylor led the team in both rebounding and scoring during her freshman campaign.

“Kyra will play both guard and post positions for us,” Taylor said. “She is deceptively quick, unstoppable on the block and our most accurate shooter behind the three point line — a truly versatile scorer which makes her very hard to guard. Kyra has a great understanding of the game and will anchor our team on the offensive end.”

Two summers ago, Boone was one of the most sought-after post players on the East Coast. After sitting out last season, she will give the Tribe a strong, dynamic presence in the paint.

“Jay is so fundamental and her potential is limitless,” Taylor said. “She is a true power post player who is so hard to stop on the block.”

Fitz rounds out the front court, where she will contribute right away.

“Alex has great size and she worked on her quickness over the summer to complement her inside game. She is a hard worker who gets better everyday,” Taylor said.

SCHEDULE

The Tribe will play the allotted 27 games, with 12 of those coming at home. W&M opens the season by playing its first six games in 13 days, beginning with the season-opener at American on November 21, and will tip off the home schedule two days later against in-state foe Longwood, which is in its first season as a Division I program.

W&M will then spend Thanksgiving across the country in San Francisco to participate in the odwalla Classic, hosted by the University of San Francisco. The Tribe will open the tournament against the hosts before facing either UC Riverside or Oakland (MI).

After a road game on the first of December at Norfolk State, the Tribe hosts James Madison on December 3rd in the CAA opener, before taking a two week break for exams. After the exam break, W&M travels to Tampa to play in the Image Depot Shootout, hosted by the University of South Florida. The Tribe will face Indiana State in the opener and will take on the hosting Bulls the following day before breaking for Christmas.

Three straight home games welcome the Tribe back from Christmas vacation, starting with a matchup against in-state power Liberty on the 28th, followed by a tilt against Hampton two days later in the last game before the new year, in the final non-conference game of the season.

A road game against George Mason (January 9) is sandwiched between home games against UNC Wilmington (January 6) and Hofstra (January 14) before heading on a two-game road trip at Virginia Commonwealth (January 16) and Old Dominion (January 20).

The Tribe ends the month of January by hosting Drexel (January 23), traveling to Delaware (January 27) and hosting Towson (January 30). The first two games in the month of February are on the road, at UNC Wilmington (February 3) and Hofstra (February 6) before returning home to face George Mason (February 11). A road game at James Madison two days later comes before a three-game homestand against Delaware (February 17), Old Dominion (February 20) and Virginia Commonwealth (February 24) in the final home game of the year before the Tribe ends the regular season at Drexel (February 27) and Towson (March 3).

The CAA Tournament moves from Norfolk to Fairfax, VA this year. It runs from March 9-12 at the Patriot Center, on the campus of George Mason University.

“We have good balance in our non-conference schedule which should help get our young team prepared for conference play,” Taylor said. “This team has depth, a strong competitive nature and great chemistry. We are really looking forward to an exciting season, a breakthrough season for Tribe basketball.”