By Mark Simon
D3hoops.com
Last season, we were tipped off very early in the season by one Top 25 voter who suggested that the Randolph-Macon women’s team was one worth watching very closely. That proved prophetic when the Yellow Jackets advanced to the NCAA title game.
This season, there was a lone voice among the voters who found another team in Virginia whose capabilities were up to a championship level. This time we were pointed in the direction of the Mary Washington Eagles, who at present are 15-0 and ranked No. 5 nationally.
Deena Applebury is in just her third season coaching at Mary Washington. Last year the team improved 8½ games from her first season. |
What was most striking to this voter was the Eagles versatility and depth Mary Washington has had six players lead the team in scoring and eight players lead the team in rebounding. They are a young team as head coach Deena Applebury brought in a recruiting class that added the depth that Mary Washington didn’t have when it lost at Randolph-Macon in second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Six freshmen play regularly in this rotation, in which no one averages more than 25 minutes per game.
“We are an extremely balanced and unselfish team,” said Applebury. “They understand that it takes us all to win and it takes us all to lose. We’re a pretty grounded group. This year I’m much calmer because of their youth. It’s important to let these players play through their mistakes and in a relaxed environment. It’s natural to feel pressure, but I tell the kids that basketball is not pressure.”
What experience the Eagles did return is significant, notably forward Debbie Bruen, a preseason All-American who leads or is second on the team in six statistical categories (including scoring at 13.9 points per game), and 6-4 center Liz Hickey, who is one of the best shot blockers in the country. Hickey has overcome off-court injuries to become a major success story. Before entering college she needed surgery to stop her chest bone from putting too much pressure on her heart, and had a metal bar inserted into her chest.
“Debbie is a true team player,” Applebury said. “She has been consistent for all three years. She plays hard even every minute of practice. Her work ethic is above and beyond. Liz is someone with a nose for the ball. She can block shots with either hand and doesn’t just rely on her height. She’s active in the paint and she’ll adjust to hwo the game is being called. Her confidence level has risen a lot and her retention rate is amazing. She catches on to things very quickly.”
Mary Washington can beat you in any number of ways, whether it be pushing the ball up the floor, moving the ball in halfcourt. The Eagles are sharp offensively and defensively, though Applebury admits she’d like to see the team be a little less “spurty” and cut down on its turnovers.
“On almost every possession every player on the floor touches the ball,” Bruen said. “We work for the best shot. You won’t see one player make a play. We look to try to get every player on the team to score. “
The Eagles' success might have caught some national followers by surprise, as most probably figured that Randolph-Macon would be more likely to garner attention from that part of the country. Bruen said that it’s starting to creep into everyone’s mind that this could be an extraordinarily successful season, and not just within the Capital Athletic Conference
“At the end of last year, I wouldn’t have imagined this,” Applebury said. “As the kids have meshed and bought into the team concept, it doesn’t surprise me. It’s pretty exciting. It’s nice to see our hard work pay off and for us to get respect.”
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Our latest installment of “Around the World” checks in with former Washington U. men’s basketball All-American Chris Jeffries, who previously played in Ireland, recently concluded a stint in Uruguay and signed on to play in Luxembourg. He chronicled his experiences for us earlier this week.
Here, the Luxembourgish players are content with me doing everything, but in other places the players wanted to be equally part of the game. Off of the court I have found it more difficult. The Irish speak English, so it was fairly easy to get around. Thanks to my very expensive education at Wash U., I am also able to handle myself when it comes to Spanish, so Uruguay was not a rough adjustment. Here the people speak Luxembourgish, French, German, and then a little English. I can get around enough to survive, but as far as being able to take advantage of everything Luxembourg has to offer, I will need to master another language. Ultimately, not having that language makes life here dull and makes the people here seem less friendly to foreigners. Playing in Uruguay for me was almost an ideal situation. I played for a small team in a small town where everyone poured their resources into the basketball club. Whether I scored three points or 30 points, everyone showed me love because they felt I put forth the best effort I could every time i stepped on the floor. At times it was very easy for me to forget I was there to play basketball, as everyone treated me like family. In a town of 20,000, everyone knew me, and I knew them as well. The basketball overall in Uruguay was "different." In any place just as in the college game, you must get accustomed to different styles of the game. All of the players there were good, and would let you know it. I found myself playing against and alongside players that had Olympic experience, played on various national teams. While I was in Uruguay and a little bit here, i had been working on the Terrance Stansbury Statue of Liberty dunk (Indiana Pacers, '85, I believe). And lo and behold he is coaching a team over here in Luxembourg at the moment. I met him while I was out with a few teammates, and told him how I have his basketball card from 20 years ago, and how I will master his signature dunk. I'm supposed to have dinner with him this week. That’s cool. After games I often talk with the other Americans from other teams. There is always more love than usual shown when you find another D-III guy playing. We always say we're from some small college the other has never heard of, but D-III guys know every D-III college, and somehow have some connection to that college. I played against Pat Fitzimmons (of Amherst) while I was in Ireland. One of my teammates in Uruguay was Jabari Mathews who spent a year at La Roche. Another teammate/roommate was Brendan Twomey from Mount St. Mary in N.Y., and most recently Travis DePree who went to Albion and plays on a team Steisel here in Luxembourg. And the conversation many times has had us talking bad about the Division I players that aren’t doing as well as us, but are still given more credit because the went to school on scholarship. The level of play is night and day between Lux and Uruguay. Uruguay was tough, there were no easy games. Here in Luxembourg, the game is more dependent on the Lux'ish players. If it were a matchup between Uruguayan players vs Lux'ish, Uruguay would win easily. But there is one thing that remains consistent in these leagues: the American is expected to be a superstar. In Uruguay the expectation was not nearly as high as it is for me here, but regardless, superstar I must be. The fan following is the most reminiscent thing of my D-III experience. If you're a good team, you may pack the gym, but if you are bad, you'd be lucky to get friends and family. In my first game here in Luxembourg, there were maybe 20 people. In Uruguay, for our games we packed the gym and then some, and for the road games we brought our own section. It reminded me of some of my games against Illinois Wesleyan. If there is anyone reading that wanted to play pro basketball, just know that it is an uphill battle if you are from a D-III. the perception of a D-III player is that you are bad, because you didnt go to a Division I school, even if you were good enough to go to that level. There may be a point where you have to take a step backwards to take two steps forward. But if it's something you want to do, go for it. |
So far my experience in Luxembourg has had me more isolated than in my previous experiences in Ireland and Uruguay. On the court, here I am looked to as the only player, where it is my job to take 30-40 shots a game, and literally carry the team, whereas in Ireland and Uruguay, there were others that were wanting to share the load.NOT TO BE UNNOTICED: When McMurry women’s coach Sam Nichols saw his team stay very competitive in a pair of preseason scrimmages against Division II foes, he realized he had something special on his hands, even if his players perhaps did not.
“I told the team (afterwards) that they messed up,” Nichols said, and that was meant with both a touch of humor and respect. “They raised the expectations by showing how good they could be. I told them that the only thing that could keep us from being in position to win a game is softness and selfishness. That wasn’t meant as arrogant, but I let them know that I didn’t see anyone on our regular-season schedule, with more talent.”
McMurry last made the NCAA's in 2000 when it lost to Hardin-Simmons in the Sweet 16 after beating both Hendrix and Simpson, and this year’s Indians seem poised to return, as they are one of only two unbeatens remaining on the women’s side, at 14-0 heading into a two-game weekend homestand and 15-0 following a win Thursday night against Concordia-Austin.
“This season has been everything a player could wish for,” said point guard Symbri Tuttle.
McMurry is among the top-scoring teams in the country at better than 78 points per game. The Indians have three players averaging double figures, paced by sophomore center Tarra Richardson’s 19.7 points per game.
“Tarra Richardson is a big-time player,” Nichols said. “She has the three H’s: head, hands and heart. She understands the game and is really good about keeping her composure. She’s added 30 pounds of muscle. Last year, she was rather willowy, but she’s dedicated herself to getting stronger.”
While Richardson is McMurry’s best player, most folks who follow the American Southwest Conference will tell you that Tuttle is the most valuable. Not only does the 5-2 Tuttle average better than eight assists per game (best in Division III), her assist/turnover ratio is better than five-to-one.
“Symbri reminds me of Kim Mulkey (now Mulkey-Robertson, head coach at Baylor) or Steve Nash,” Nichols said, and Tuttle noted that her sister nicknamed her ‘Nash.’ “What separates her from the other point guards I’ve coached is her competitiveness and her basketball IQ. She may only be 5-foot-2, but she’s a great defender. People have tried to post her up, heck I would do that too, but it’s not something that they’ve been successful at doing.”
In describing her impact beyond numbers, Tuttle, a dean's list student, chose the words “passionate” and “energetic.”
“I try to help my teammates get fired up,” Tuttle said, noting team chemistry as a reason for the squad’s success “We’re a team that really tries to do the little things right, like closing out traps on defense, being really precise with our play, and making the easy shots. All of us try to play our part.”
Even with the impressive numbers, McMurry has yet to gain as much attention from the D3hoops.com pollsters, the Indians rank 14th, behind a number of teams that have already lost twice. Nichols did note his team rates first in the computer ranking Massey Ratings (fifth when you include margin of victory, as Massey did when ranking eventual champ Millikin at the top for a good part of last season) and he doesn’t feel the squad has played its best basketball yet.
“We’re talking about improving, not maintaining,” said Nichols, whose team already has quality league wins over Hardin-Simmons, Mississippi College, and defending champ Howard Payne.
The ranking also leaves the players with something to shoot for and gives them a little bit of an extra edge. They know that they’re a team to be reckoned with on the national scene and hope to have a chance to show that to the rest of the country.
“How can you not be happy when you’re 14-0?” Tuttle said.
A VOTE FOR THREE: Last week we wondered which was more impressive, putting together a long streak of consecutive free throws made or shooting the ball well from three-point range (Suzy Carlson of Rose-Hulman indicated a preference for free throws, though her streak ended at 57 last week). This week we made another inquiry. Is the three-point line too close to the basket? To find out, we asked the nation’s leading three-point shooter: SUNY-Farmingdale sophomore Peter Lipka, who entered the weekend 44-for-80 (55%) from three-point range. He’s one of a dozen men’s players among NCAA qualifiers who are draining better than 50% of their three-pointers.
“I think it’s fine right where it is,” said Lipka, who averages 12 points per game, with almost all of his opportunities coming from trifecta range.
Lipka has improved his shooting percentage significantly from last season, when he hit at 39%. The Rams recently ran off a stretch of eight consecutive wins and figure to contend for the Skyline Conference crown this season with Lipka making a significant contribution in doubling last year’s scoring average. He went 6-for-8 in his first game and hasn’t looked back since.
“It’s due to time in a gym, repetition, hard work and having teammates who can find me when I’m open,” Lipka said. “We have an all-conference point guard (Dashawn Warren) and an all-region big man (Kenny McMillan). That opens up spots for shooters and allows someone like me to do what they do best.”
COOKIN' IN THE PAINT: Johnson and Wales center Samantha Cowens has aspirations of making a career in pro sports, only her ambitions are focused on becoming a team chef, instead of a player. If the last name sounds familiar, it should, as Cowens is the daughter of Basketball Hall of Famer Dave Cowens, the former Boston Celtics star center and current head coach of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky. With Cowens leading the team in both scoring and rebounding, the Wildcats, under first-year coach Bethany Ellis, are 8-7, 2-0 in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference after finishing 1-23 a season ago.
Cowens does have some of her dad's skills in the paint, as we saw her drain a nifty tip-in during one game last week. She transferred to the school from Arizona, after coming to the realization that she had a potential future career in culinary arts (Johnson & Wales' specialty) and decided to return to playing basketball after not having previously played at the collegiate level. Her dad has been a fixture at games, as Dave was frequently busy in past years with his coaching career and didn’t get to see Samantha play much.
“He likes me to ‘play big,’ ’’ Cowens said, then added with a laugh. “I never liked to play against him because he always blocks my shots. I was born in 1983, the year he retired. I have a box set of great Celtics games that has him playing in the 1974 and 1976 NBA Finals. I get real proud watching him play.”
PONDERINGS: The Muhlenberg women’s team has successfully made the transition back to quasi-normalcy after utilizing the Grinnell system for nearly two seasons. The Mules beat McDaniel and Johns Hopkins twice in a three-day span last week and currently stands 13-1, riding a nine-game win streak. The primary key to success has been defense, as the Mules entered Thursday holding opponents to 19% shooting from 3-point range, holding Johns Hopkins to just 36 points, it’s lowest total since 1984 and have forced tough shots, limiting opponents to assists on less than 50% of their baskets.
One of the things that may have made the Jan. 14 “Game of the Year between Emerson and Rivier so interesting: Emerson played the majority of the second half and all four of the extra periods with a five-player lineup in which the tallest barely exceeded six feet, and Rivier had five players foul out. In case you missed it, those two dueled through four extra periods and could have gone five had Rivier been able to knock down a three-free throw chance at the end of the last period, when a foul was called on a shot from midcourt. The Raiders, who got mention in Sports Illustrated last week after edging Caltech, had already tied the game in the final seconds of each of the three previous overtime periods. “It was really crazy” said Emerson head coach Hank Smith. “I’m just happy that we were able to win.”
UW-Platteville defeated UW-Stevens Point on the men's side on Wednesday night, snapping the Pointers 28-game home win streak. That's worth noting since it was UW-Stevens Point which was a streak buster a few years back, as it snapped UW-Platteville's 96-game regular-season home win streak in January 2000. The wacky WIAC, as we like to call it, is a tight race as per usual with UW-Stevens Point, UW-Whitewater and UW-Oshkosh knotted for the top spot as 6-2 with UW-Stout and UW-La Crosse just a game back at 5-3. This figures to be one of the best league races in the country, though that's nothing new, and it will be interesting to see if more than one team can crack the expanded NCAA field.
