ChipperF1
10-13-2002, 04:05 PM
It seemed you couldn't read about Nebraska womens basketball without the following themes
"Nebraska Loses...Again."
"Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Another Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Yet Another Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Coach: Players Losses Won't Effect Nebraska."
"Coach Leaves Nebraska."
"New Coach Dismisses Player."
It's good just to have practice start again. Perhaps a new beginning is the mouthwash that could cleanse the bitter palette that many a Nebraska fans has from last season..
Last season was the worst Nebraska team ever in terms of attitude and committment. This years team is one the thinnest in school history. Eight players opened practice yesterday (a ninth scheduled to join later in the season.). A new head coach comes into the Big 12's poker game, and is dealt a 7-high hand.
Last year team had potential, but lacked cohension, lacked heart and lacked coaching.
This year team has all the deficiencies of last years in terms of ability on the court (poor shooting, poor defense, turnovers), added to a lack of athleticism and a lot of fundamental skills.
Head Coach Connie Yori is used to teams with a lack of athleticism. Creighton rarely has better athletes than most of teams they play against. But one thing Yori's team have is smarts, fundamentals, and they play with a lot of courage. The same thing goes for assistant Amy Stephen's teams at Nebraska-Kearney. Jim Filar brought a winning spirit to a losing program at Davidson. Angela Timmons is a textbook example of Creighton Pride in the Yori era. I'll never forget Timmons' freshman year. That team should have lost 20, they ended up winning 16, because some new faces stepped up and were counted.
The challenge that this staff faces is extensive.
First, coach has to figure out how to make up for the massive losses in the program. Looking strictly at number the departure of Katie Robinette, Stephanie Jones, K.C. Cowgill, Shannon Howell, and Paige Sutton pound strategic and logistic dents into this team.
Nebraska lost 35.5 points per game. The returning players average 33.4.
Nebraska lost 16.1 rebounds per game. The returning players average 13.3
Nebraska lost 95 three-point field goals. The returning players had 37.
Also consider losing three players who have at 20 starts, plus losing more than 50% of production from virtually every offensive category.
Nebraska loses two guards who could start, one being a semi-regular point guard. The team also last four players who stand over six feet, and three of them are post/forwards.
Nebraska doesn't lose Keasha Cannon. The Big 12's Newcomer of the Year comes off a season where she lead the team in scoring (12.9 points per game), rebounds (8.4 per game), assists (108), and steals (56). Her aggresive play offensively will be a key part of Yori's "swingwing" three guard offense. Cannon will possibly take the swingman spot, with spot duty at point this season.
She'll have to be a greater scoring threat that she was last season, meaning Cannon has to become a better outside shooter (30% from three point range..32% from beyond 15 feet) and a better finisher (she was 45% from the field last season). Those were both sore points last season. She must also cut down on her turnovers. She avergage nearly 4 turnover a game last season, and was exposed as a unsure ballhandler against man pressure.
Sophomore Jina Johansen will step into the main point guard role. She earned 5 late season starts and did well. Her 9-assist effort against Kansas State was one of the few bright spots from last season. She fits into some of the parts Yori likes in a point guard. Johansen seems to have a handle on whose on the floor and how to get them in positions to make plays. Johansen and Cannon late in the season seemed to have the beginning of a solid two-man game, and hopefully this can develop.
Johansen's downside is in game experience and overall ability right now. She'll get more live fire and seasoning. Defensively, she's a major sore point right now. Her level of athleticism last season wasn't up to the challenge defensively and she needed to be shielded in zone more. Yori's system calls for more man-to-man challenge, which means Johansen really has to show improvement and soon.
Off-guard is one of many major weakness this team has heading into next year. Last season, this spot was more of Shannon Howell's domain, but her dismissal now opens the job to seniors Shah Roberts and Margaret Richards. Both have yet to show that they can consistently play at a passible level.
Roberts looked solid early in the season. In 12 appearances, she averaged 6.1 point per game, playing solid defense and was contributing to a lot of early success. An ankle injury last year forced her out for the season. What condition she comes back into is the question mark, because every year Roberts has entered the season trying to play herself back into shape. If she finally comes into the start of the season in playing condition, she could pick up where she left off last year.
Athletically, Roberts is solid, but desire is the big sticking point. That and her lack of shooting touch.
Margaret Richards is the other candidate for the job. Last season she averaged 5 points per game and 12 minutes per game. When she was recruited she was seen as a player who would be an athletic force for the team.
Margaret Richards has the athleticism, but I question if she has the desire.
She came in as a freshman with a lot of physical gifts, but an erractic offensive game.
Three years later, she's still erractic offensively and last season it was coupled with a complete lack of desire defensively.
If Yori can figure out how to spark some life into this kid, she deserves to be named coach of the year.
Interior play took a big hit with the departures. Keasha Cannon at 5'9" was the teams leading rebounder, while also moonlighting as a point guard.
The center spot is as bad as the off-guard situation. Junior Katie Morse started fast last season, but then lost favor with Paul Sanderford, lost confidence and was never heard from after the first four games.
She has the body at 6'4" to do something. But Morse is too perimeter. She played unaggressive and unfocused. Even during the opening five games of the season, she was averaging around 6 points and 3 rebounds a game. That isn't good enough, especially when some are calling you "The Next Karen Jennings"
Morse is a player I think can thrive under Connie Yori. One thing the new coach does is utilize a post when she gets one, and Morse can be a big help. That is IF, Morse can get her confidence back.
Amanda Cleveland will be the backup center. Surprisingly she was granted one more year of eligibility. One can't short her courage. Coming back from serious illness just to get in good enough shape to be a reserve shows a love to play, even if its only for 7 minutes a game. I think her minutes will increase some under Yori. The only knock on Cleveland is production. She has to give the team more than 2.5 points and 2 rebounds a game when she's in the game.
At the forward spot, it Alexa Johnson's world, because she's last player on it. And even if all the departures hadn't happened, the junior would draw the start. Last season, she got an extended chance to show her ability and she did play well in spots. In 15 minutes per game, she averaged 6 points and 3 rebounds. Those are servicable numbers, and she showed a lot of fight and spirit on the floor.
What she'll need this season is a lot of weight room time. Alexa's got pushed around too much and too easily last year. Also, she need to start going to basket stronger. It was painful to watch her fire up fadeaway jump shots in the paint instead of drawing foul and attacking the basket.
Among the "bench" true freshman Jamie Wendelin and junior/volleyplayer Griechaly Cepero.
Wendelin will have to play this year, and could float between the guard and forward spots. She stands 5'11" comes from a solid all-state pedigree from Gretna High School. She was a solid high-school player, but whether she's of Big-12 caliber remains to be seen. She's a solid outside shooter however, and that is something the team really could use and that could be her role in her freshman campaign.
Griechaly Cepero won't be joining in until the end of Volleyball season, which means we'll see her when Big 12 play opens. In 16 appearances last season, Cepero showed a lot of athleticism, unfortunately in too many instances she showed why she's of limited use to the team. Offensively, Cepero is a poor shooter (45%), a poor free throw shooter (53%), and her dribbling is an adventure (29 turnovers). Defensively, she could be good with a lot of work, and some focus on her part.
Cepero is a very good athlete, and one of the nation's best in volleyball. However her basketball skills are not up to Big 12 standard.
Overall. This team will not better than .500. I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up with 13 wins or less. The schedule is a very solid one, and more often than night we're playing teams that are better organized that the Huskers are.
The true gage of this team this year will be in how they play, and not necessarily results. Does this team fight 40 minutes every game and improve with each game? Well a leader among players emerge? Can Connie Yori infuse a spirit a acheivement in this team and can the player run with it and make it grow?
Last year's Nebraska Cornhuskers were a losing team full of losers, period. If this years team can answer "yes" to those questions above they will be winners, regardless of what the final win-loss record is.
That's all this fan expects.
[This message has been edited by ChipperF1 (edited 10-13-2002).]
"Nebraska Loses...Again."
"Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Another Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Yet Another Player Leaves Nebraska."
"Coach: Players Losses Won't Effect Nebraska."
"Coach Leaves Nebraska."
"New Coach Dismisses Player."
It's good just to have practice start again. Perhaps a new beginning is the mouthwash that could cleanse the bitter palette that many a Nebraska fans has from last season..
Last season was the worst Nebraska team ever in terms of attitude and committment. This years team is one the thinnest in school history. Eight players opened practice yesterday (a ninth scheduled to join later in the season.). A new head coach comes into the Big 12's poker game, and is dealt a 7-high hand.
Last year team had potential, but lacked cohension, lacked heart and lacked coaching.
This year team has all the deficiencies of last years in terms of ability on the court (poor shooting, poor defense, turnovers), added to a lack of athleticism and a lot of fundamental skills.
Head Coach Connie Yori is used to teams with a lack of athleticism. Creighton rarely has better athletes than most of teams they play against. But one thing Yori's team have is smarts, fundamentals, and they play with a lot of courage. The same thing goes for assistant Amy Stephen's teams at Nebraska-Kearney. Jim Filar brought a winning spirit to a losing program at Davidson. Angela Timmons is a textbook example of Creighton Pride in the Yori era. I'll never forget Timmons' freshman year. That team should have lost 20, they ended up winning 16, because some new faces stepped up and were counted.
The challenge that this staff faces is extensive.
First, coach has to figure out how to make up for the massive losses in the program. Looking strictly at number the departure of Katie Robinette, Stephanie Jones, K.C. Cowgill, Shannon Howell, and Paige Sutton pound strategic and logistic dents into this team.
Nebraska lost 35.5 points per game. The returning players average 33.4.
Nebraska lost 16.1 rebounds per game. The returning players average 13.3
Nebraska lost 95 three-point field goals. The returning players had 37.
Also consider losing three players who have at 20 starts, plus losing more than 50% of production from virtually every offensive category.
Nebraska loses two guards who could start, one being a semi-regular point guard. The team also last four players who stand over six feet, and three of them are post/forwards.
Nebraska doesn't lose Keasha Cannon. The Big 12's Newcomer of the Year comes off a season where she lead the team in scoring (12.9 points per game), rebounds (8.4 per game), assists (108), and steals (56). Her aggresive play offensively will be a key part of Yori's "swingwing" three guard offense. Cannon will possibly take the swingman spot, with spot duty at point this season.
She'll have to be a greater scoring threat that she was last season, meaning Cannon has to become a better outside shooter (30% from three point range..32% from beyond 15 feet) and a better finisher (she was 45% from the field last season). Those were both sore points last season. She must also cut down on her turnovers. She avergage nearly 4 turnover a game last season, and was exposed as a unsure ballhandler against man pressure.
Sophomore Jina Johansen will step into the main point guard role. She earned 5 late season starts and did well. Her 9-assist effort against Kansas State was one of the few bright spots from last season. She fits into some of the parts Yori likes in a point guard. Johansen seems to have a handle on whose on the floor and how to get them in positions to make plays. Johansen and Cannon late in the season seemed to have the beginning of a solid two-man game, and hopefully this can develop.
Johansen's downside is in game experience and overall ability right now. She'll get more live fire and seasoning. Defensively, she's a major sore point right now. Her level of athleticism last season wasn't up to the challenge defensively and she needed to be shielded in zone more. Yori's system calls for more man-to-man challenge, which means Johansen really has to show improvement and soon.
Off-guard is one of many major weakness this team has heading into next year. Last season, this spot was more of Shannon Howell's domain, but her dismissal now opens the job to seniors Shah Roberts and Margaret Richards. Both have yet to show that they can consistently play at a passible level.
Roberts looked solid early in the season. In 12 appearances, she averaged 6.1 point per game, playing solid defense and was contributing to a lot of early success. An ankle injury last year forced her out for the season. What condition she comes back into is the question mark, because every year Roberts has entered the season trying to play herself back into shape. If she finally comes into the start of the season in playing condition, she could pick up where she left off last year.
Athletically, Roberts is solid, but desire is the big sticking point. That and her lack of shooting touch.
Margaret Richards is the other candidate for the job. Last season she averaged 5 points per game and 12 minutes per game. When she was recruited she was seen as a player who would be an athletic force for the team.
Margaret Richards has the athleticism, but I question if she has the desire.
She came in as a freshman with a lot of physical gifts, but an erractic offensive game.
Three years later, she's still erractic offensively and last season it was coupled with a complete lack of desire defensively.
If Yori can figure out how to spark some life into this kid, she deserves to be named coach of the year.
Interior play took a big hit with the departures. Keasha Cannon at 5'9" was the teams leading rebounder, while also moonlighting as a point guard.
The center spot is as bad as the off-guard situation. Junior Katie Morse started fast last season, but then lost favor with Paul Sanderford, lost confidence and was never heard from after the first four games.
She has the body at 6'4" to do something. But Morse is too perimeter. She played unaggressive and unfocused. Even during the opening five games of the season, she was averaging around 6 points and 3 rebounds a game. That isn't good enough, especially when some are calling you "The Next Karen Jennings"
Morse is a player I think can thrive under Connie Yori. One thing the new coach does is utilize a post when she gets one, and Morse can be a big help. That is IF, Morse can get her confidence back.
Amanda Cleveland will be the backup center. Surprisingly she was granted one more year of eligibility. One can't short her courage. Coming back from serious illness just to get in good enough shape to be a reserve shows a love to play, even if its only for 7 minutes a game. I think her minutes will increase some under Yori. The only knock on Cleveland is production. She has to give the team more than 2.5 points and 2 rebounds a game when she's in the game.
At the forward spot, it Alexa Johnson's world, because she's last player on it. And even if all the departures hadn't happened, the junior would draw the start. Last season, she got an extended chance to show her ability and she did play well in spots. In 15 minutes per game, she averaged 6 points and 3 rebounds. Those are servicable numbers, and she showed a lot of fight and spirit on the floor.
What she'll need this season is a lot of weight room time. Alexa's got pushed around too much and too easily last year. Also, she need to start going to basket stronger. It was painful to watch her fire up fadeaway jump shots in the paint instead of drawing foul and attacking the basket.
Among the "bench" true freshman Jamie Wendelin and junior/volleyplayer Griechaly Cepero.
Wendelin will have to play this year, and could float between the guard and forward spots. She stands 5'11" comes from a solid all-state pedigree from Gretna High School. She was a solid high-school player, but whether she's of Big-12 caliber remains to be seen. She's a solid outside shooter however, and that is something the team really could use and that could be her role in her freshman campaign.
Griechaly Cepero won't be joining in until the end of Volleyball season, which means we'll see her when Big 12 play opens. In 16 appearances last season, Cepero showed a lot of athleticism, unfortunately in too many instances she showed why she's of limited use to the team. Offensively, Cepero is a poor shooter (45%), a poor free throw shooter (53%), and her dribbling is an adventure (29 turnovers). Defensively, she could be good with a lot of work, and some focus on her part.
Cepero is a very good athlete, and one of the nation's best in volleyball. However her basketball skills are not up to Big 12 standard.
Overall. This team will not better than .500. I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up with 13 wins or less. The schedule is a very solid one, and more often than night we're playing teams that are better organized that the Huskers are.
The true gage of this team this year will be in how they play, and not necessarily results. Does this team fight 40 minutes every game and improve with each game? Well a leader among players emerge? Can Connie Yori infuse a spirit a acheivement in this team and can the player run with it and make it grow?
Last year's Nebraska Cornhuskers were a losing team full of losers, period. If this years team can answer "yes" to those questions above they will be winners, regardless of what the final win-loss record is.
That's all this fan expects.
[This message has been edited by ChipperF1 (edited 10-13-2002).]