Owls Open Basketball Campaign With Exhibition Game Saturday
11/4/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 4, 2005
Houston -
Rice fans will get their first chance to see the women's basketball team in action under new head coach Greg Williams Saturday as they host Everyones Internet in an exhibition game at Autry Court at 3:00.
The Owls won the WAC title and tournament last year in their final year in the league, advancing to the NCAA tournament for only the second time in school history. This year, Rice is in Conference USA and faces a whole new set of challenges as the team is a preseason pick to win the championship.
"This exhibition game will give us a first chance to really see all our players in a game setting," said Williams. "We will play everyone who is healthy because we want to get them all in the action where we can better evaluate their progress."
Everyones Internet, a team made up of WNBA hopefuls and other top post-collegians, has already played three games, defeating number-13 Texas 68-60 Thursday night. The team downed Louisiana-Lafayette 82-54 on Tuesday, followed by an 84-66 loss at second-ranked LSU on Wednesday. They play at Houston tonight.
Rice will be led by C-USA preseason player of the year pick Lauren Neaves and all-WAC tournament guard Krystal Frazier. The Owls have played two scrimmages, and Williams hopes that will help in this first exhibition tilt.
"Everyones Internet is a very veteran squad," Williams said. "Our younger players will be nervous, since it is all so new to them, and even our returnees are kind of like freshmen since we are a whole new coaching staff. It will be a great way to evaluate our kids."
Williams says the biggest positive in practice thus far has been the play of Catherine DuPont and Tiffany Loggins. The 6-4 DuPont is in her first full season with the basketball team after four years on the Rice volleyball squad, and Williams has seen a marked improvement. Loggins, a 6-0 sophomore forward, saw action in 24 games last year and has been solid in early workouts.
Williams said, "We know we have a good nucleus of returnees with Lauren and Krystal, as well as Maudess Fulton, so it is a pleasure to see such improvement from some of the other players. It is going to be vital for us to be able to have a big group of players who can step in and play right away with our up-tempo attack and pressure defense."
Fulton has moved to the one-guard position, and Williams has been impressed with the transition. "Maudess is in a new spot," Williams said. "She will need to be steady and ready to lead from the one-guard position. In our scrimmages, she has shown a real ability to make plays and she is working on her shooting."
Shooting has been a particular concern for the first-year coach. "We had a very poor showing in the first scrimmage," Williams said. "We just couldn't hit from the three-point line, and that's something we definitely need to do in this offense. We did show a big improvement in the second scrimmage, though, so the potential is there."
Sophomore center Valeriya Berezhynska is another vital part of the team's campaign for a third NCAA berth, and the 6-4 Ukrainian has caught Williams' eye from the first practice. "Val has stood out since day one," said Williams. "She is big and can move very well, and she has a very good shooting touch. We need for her to be cognizant of her importance to the team and stay out of foul trouble. If she can do that she will be a huge force inside for us."
Guard Whitney McCauley has also been a bright spot, as the sophomore has improved her defense and worked on creating her own shots. Freshmen Emery Carter and Catherine Flores played well in the two scrimmages, and sophomore guard Kadie Riverin showed some great decision-making skills as she dished out 11 assists with only one turnover in the two games.
Rice will play one more exhibition game against the Houston Jaguars on Nov. 11 before opening the regular season on Nov. 18 at Mississippi.
