As the 2022-23 women’s college basketball season approaches, some teams and players will maintain last year’s momentum, others will improve significantly, and others will have to start over.
With the return of star player Aaliyah Boston, South Carolina is almost certain to be strong again. However, there are areas Gamecock could improve on to become even more dominant than last year. UCLA had plenty of what-ifs left last season, but the Bruins have a chance to comeback this year. Michigan, meanwhile, is poised to have a great 2021-22 season, but may not be able to continue that success without Naz, who is currently playing for Atlanta in the WNBA, her Dream. .
The season starts on November 7th. Here are the predictions:
South Carolina cracks the top 25 aggressively.
The Gamecocks were a defensive powerhouse last season, but their offense left much to be desired. There were 11 games with 65 points or less, three of which were below 60 points. Their season low was an ugly 49-33 victory over Miami in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Last season, South Carolina averaged his 70.9 points per game, shooting 42.6 percent from the field and 30.6 percent from his range on 3-pointers.
A new point guard could set the Gamecocks in the right direction this year. With Destani Henderson moving to his WNBA, Dawn his Staley will need to find someone to fill his role at that point. When Henderson was injured last season, Laetitia Amichele was listed as a forward. There’s also redshirt freshman Raven Johnson. South Carolina has added Georgia Tech’s Keira Fletcher to its roster. This is a solid graduate who missed last season with a foot injury. He has one option as a point guard and played a key role for the team in the 2021-22 season. Staley told her late September that Zia Cooke wanted more responsibility at that point. The 5-foot-9-inch senior was the fourth recruit and top point guard in his class in 2019. Cook averaged 10.7 points per game last season, his third on the team. 34.2% field goal percentage. It was the worst year of shooting of her college career, but her previous years have shown she can contribute more: in her sophomore year she scored 39.0%, in her freshman year She shot 38.6%. Her total assists have remained steady at around 60 for almost the entire season, but could increase if she plays points her guard. Cook’s experience and some other healthy options allow Staley to make Gamecock even stronger than he was last year.
UCLA Ranked, Becomes Sweet 16
Last year, UCLA women’s basketball finished 20th in preseason AP voting, and the Bruins finished in the top 25 for the third year in a row. Bruins failed to reach their true potential in 2021-22 campaign Because they dealt with a lot of injuries. Luckily for them, key players who have missed a significant amount of time should be able to contribute this season. Among those players included Wake Forest graduate student and former starter Gina Conti, who recorded 494 career assists for him. He missed the entire season last season with a foot injury. Emily Bessoir also couldn’t play all year due to a torn ACL. Bessoir averaged 7.5 points and 5.2 rebounds in 22 games last season, including seven in double figures.
Charismatic Osborne, the leading scorer who averaged 16.4 points per game in the 2021-22 season, is back and will get more help than ever with healthy teammates and one of the country’s top freshmen. Headlining the Bruins’ upcoming class is Kikirais, his second overall recruit. The last time UCLA held her No. 1 recruiting class was in 2014, when Monique Billings and Jordin Canada ranked Sweet 16 where she reached three times and was part of a roster that also qualified for Elite Eight. did.
Clayton will prove last year was no fluke
The Blue Jays will bring back all but three players from last year’s roster, which beat Colorado, Iowa and Iowa State to reach the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. The only team that could stop them was eventual champion South Carolina, who finished last season with his 23-10 record, a huge leap from his 10-12 record in 2020-21. Did. With another 20+ win season, the Bluejays have what it takes to advance to the Round of Sweet 16 for the second time in program history.
Clayton relied heavily on sophomores, including three double-digit scorers in Emma Roncic, Lauren Jensen, and Morgan Murray. Rongshiek led the team in his 2021-22 season, averaging 13.9 points and 5.0 rebounds. With the team he scored 12.5 points per game and his second highest scorer on the team, Jensen was the most improved player in the Big East. Murray, who made just one start in 32 appearances, was named the conference’s Sixth Woman of the Year after scoring 12.3 points per game off the bench. Jim Flannery’s team will have a chance to prove themselves early in the season with a non-conference schedule that includes games against South Dakota, South Dakota State, Nebraska and Stanford.
Michigan finishes outside Big Ten top 5
The Wolverines had a great 2021-22 season, finishing in an all-time high of 4th in the December AP polls. They also earned their first win over a top five team after beating his No. 5 Baylor 74-68 in extra time on 19 December. Naz Hillmon is a senior forward currently playing for the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA. She left the team as the leading scorer and rebounder, scoring 21 points and she tallied 9.6 rebounds per game before her season.
The team’s other top scorers, Reiga Brown and Emily Kaiser, chose to use their fifth-year qualifications for the following season. A scorer in the digits. She also led the team with 8.1 assists per game. Kaiser was a close averaging double-double with 9.3 points per game and 8.1 rebounds per game. Brown and Kaiser’s veteran talent is undeniable, but Hillmon’s productivity will be hard to replace. Michigan was predicted to finish fifth in the Big Ten in coaches’ polls, but that seems unlikely based on the competition the Wolverines have to face.Iowa, Ohio, Indiana, Nebraska , Maryland is likely to be in the top five.
Serena Sandel joins Kansas State University
Kansas State star Ayoka Lee will not play in the 2022-23 season after undergoing knee surgery during the offseason and will not return until the 2023-24 season. She led the team in points, shooting percentage, rebounds and blocks before the season, so this will have a big impact on the Wildcats. will see
As a 2021-22 freshman, the 6-foot-1 guard averaged 10.6 points per game and led the team with 5.3 assists per game. She recorded her double figures in her 19 scoring runs, including her four games over 20 points. Sandel is beginning to put her name on the Kansas state record books as the first freshman in program history to score her 350 or higher. She also impressed at the conference, earning an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention and unanimous selection to the All-Freshman Team. Given the amount of valuable experience Sandel gained last season, it’s not unreasonable to think she could progress from an honorable mention to a first-team selection, with Sandel starting all 33 of her games and averaging scored her 32.3 minutes, a team-best in the . It only took her one season to become second in show history for her assist turnover rate (1.85).
