2008-09 Florida Basketball: Bigger & Better
Sunday, November 9, 2008 | Women's Basketball
If the University of Florida women's basketball team had finished the 2007-08 season with a sub-.500 record, no one would have thought twice about it. The Gators were coming off a 9-22 season, a new coaching staff was in place and the roster sported just one senior. Not much was expected of Florida.
That sentiment, however, was not shared by new head coach Amanda Butler, a former Gator letterwinner and assistant coach who was named the program's ninth head coach on April 13, 2007.
Widely considered one of the toughest players who ever wore a uniform for the Orange & Blue, Butler's expectations of her inaugural team were very different from those outside the Florida locker room.
What evolved was one of the greatest one-year turnarounds in the country and in program history, as the 2007-08 Gators posted a 19-14 overall record, winning 10 more games than they had the previous year.
Florida earned a berth into the WNIT, the first time in program history the Gators had made a postseason appearance under a new coach. All of this was accomplished with nearly the same roster from the nine-win season.
Those players also exhibited the toughness their first-year head coach was known for, compiling a 10-3 record in games decided by six points or less.
"Last year, we wanted to have a season of firsts, where we accomplished things that hadn't been done by these players, and we did that," said Butler, who was a starting guard on the Florida's first-ever NCAA Tournament team in 1993. "Now, our focus is to trump last season.
"We exceeded expectations last year and it was a great start, but it's not where we want to end," Butler continued. "Our expectations are BIGGER and we have to be BETTER to achieve our ultimate goals. We will work harder and we will invest more of ourselves. We've experienced a taste of success and we will remain hungry and not be satisfied with anything less than being the best.
"We are not trying to finish in the top half of the Southeastern Conference, we want to be the top of the league and everyone knows that if you are on top of the SEC, then you're on top of the country.
"We will be BIGGER and BETTER. We've made great strides, but we're certainly not satisfied.”
The 2008-09 Gators will in fact be 'bigger' - literally and figuratively.
The roster features 14 eligible players, all of whom have either experienced the demands and challenges of a full collegiate season, have competed for a championship or both.
The Gators also welcome some taller players to the court.
"This year's team will be deeper than last year's team," Butler shared. "Our depth was a limiting factor last season, especially in the post."
The only senior on the 2007-08 squad was Depree Bowden, who rose to the challenges of leading the team on and off the court, as she had the best season of her four-year career by averaging a team-best 13.4 points per game in addition to contributing 5.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game.
THE SENIOR CLASS
The 2008-09 club consists of four seniors who aim to make up for the loss of Bowden to graduation.
Guard Sha Brooks and forward Marshae Dotson are the most experienced of the senior class, which also features center Aneika Henry and guard Kim Critton.
Brooks, who at 5-foot-7 has played every perimeter position during her Gator tenure, has never missed a game during her career, starting 93 of a possible 94 contests. She has scored 1,295 points in her three seasons and logged almost 3,000 minutes, while earning recognition as a Second-Team All-SEC performer in 2005-06.
"Sha is a deceptive scorer because of her size, but she has the ability to score in so many different ways. She's a big playmaker," Butler praised. "Offensively, Sha really started to hit her stride last year at the most important time of the season. She played her best offensive ball in the SEC season, which is probably the toughest time of the year to do that. She really built momentum and steam and peaked at the right time, which will hopefully carry over into this year."
Dotson flourished under the guidance of Butler and assistant coach Susie Gardner, who oversees the post players, as she developed into a First-Team All-SEC performer in 2007-08. Dotson is UF's leading returning scorer (13.1 ppg) and rebounder (7.9 rpg) and ranks among the top-4 returning SEC players in both categories.
“I feel that Marshae is going to have a great senior year. It's going to be very challenging for her, though, since there will be a lot more focus and attention paid to her because she steadily dominated in so many ballgames last year," Butler said of the 5-foot-11 forward. "It's tough when you're under 6-feet to be winning rebounding battles in the low block, but she did. She's so powerful and strong. Marshae worked a lot in the off-season improving her range and her game facing the basket.”
Henry, who never played basketball until the ninth grade, didn't join the Gators until the 2007 fall semester and missed valuable strength and conditioning training time during the summer prior to her inaugural Division I season. The 6-foot-3 center made great strides throughout 2007-08 and was presented the team's "Most Improved" award at the end-of-the-year banquet, as she capped the season averaging 4.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and a team-best 63 blocked shots, the fourth-highest total among all SEC players.
“Aneika started playing basketball much later than most collegiate players do and it's almost like she's been in a catch-up mode, but she's very bright and has been a sponge in practice," Butler noted. "Now, she has a full year of SEC experience and a full year of training under her belt, plus she has the best post coach in the business with Susie Gardner. I really expect Aneika to have a breakout year.”
Critton was a valuable contributor off the bench last season, playing the post position on occasion - despite her 5-foot-7 frame - due to foul trouble of her taller teammates. She didn't, however, back down in the paint, corralling 72 rebounds, with more than half of those (39) coming on the offensive end.
“Kim's athleticism is undeniable. She's quick, can jump through the roof and should be our best perimeter offensive rebounder this year," Butler said. "She does an excellent job of coming into a game and immediately crashing the boards physically and getting a rebound. We'll see more of that this season from Kim, in addition to her impact on the defensive end.”
THE JUNIOR RETURNERS
Jennifer Mossor, Sharielle Smith and Lonnika Thompson enter their junior seasons with each having at least one year of Gator experience under their respective belts, while two additional players with junior eligibility also suit up in 2008-09, making their debuts wearing the Orange & Blue.
Every time it appeared that Mossor, a 5-foot-9 guard, would make advances in her game, an injury seemed to strike. She did play in 26 of UF's 32 games last year, tallying 8.3 points, while sinking a team-high 34.5 percent (29-of-84) from the 3-point arc.
"Jenn proved to be a consistent and versatile scoring threat and not just as a shooter or a penetrator. Her biggest challenge last year was staying healthy," Butler said. "If we were able to have her on the court from the beginning to the end of the season, I think we would have seen even more impressive numbers from her. I feel she's going to have a special year."
Smith provided the Gators with an inside-outside threat, as she contributed 8.4 points per game that ranked fourth and collected 6.0 rebounds, trailing only Dotson in that category last year. In addition to holding her own in the paint, the 5-foot-10 forward also developed a 3-point shot, connecting on 25-of-81 from long range.
"Sharielle began to explore her outside shooting range last season and had some breakout games from behind the 3-point line. I expect to see her offensive confidence continue to grow this year," Butler said. "Sharielle's a worker on the floor and can be that irritating presence for the other team because she's always going to get a hand on the ball and try to disrupt things."
Thompson's collegiate career began under unusual circumstances, as she spent her freshman year at Trinity Valley Community College in Texas, after her family dealt with the aftermath of being displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The 5-foot-4 guard from New Orleans, La., however, eventually found her way to Gainesville, where she faced the on-court challenges presented in the nightly battles waged in the SEC. Thompson's game developed throughout 2007-08 and she became a capable play director, earning 21 starting assignments, while totaling 50 assists and 41 steals.
"It was great watching Lonnika develop over the course of last season because she progressed into the type of defensive player and floor leader that I really wanted to see," said Butler, who was a former Gator point guard herself. "As Lonnika's confidence grew, so did her impact on the floor. She took the initiative to spend a week in August (2008) at a point-guard camp to make herself and our team even better."
THE UNDERCLASSMEN & NEWCOMERS
Ebonie Crawford is the only other player on the 2008-09 roster who has earned a varsity letter suiting up for the Gators. Ndidi Madu could have joined her, but a season-ending knee injury one game into her freshman campaign abruptly halted her year. Susan Yenser will don the Gator Orange & Blue for the first time, having practiced with UF last season but was unable to play.
Crawford, a 6-foot-3 sophomore center, saw action in 26 games her rookie season, averaging 5.8 points off the bench.
"Ebonie works hard every day, on and off the court, to make our program successful," Butler said. "She does it very unselfishly and with a lot of pride and I really respect her for it. She is crucial to our success. She's very bright, she always knows what's supposed to happen, is a great communicator and is very encouraging as a teammate."
Madu, a 6-foot-3 forward, showed signs during 2007-08 preseason practices that she would be able to contribute to the Gators' frontcourt until she tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee during practice on Nov. 11, 2007. She had played a solid 20 minutes in UF's season-opening win against post-heavy Xavier two nights earlier, but her injury resulted in a medical redshirt season that left the Gators lean in the paint.
"Ndidi is our most athletic post player. Her challenge will be getting her timing and confidence back, and trusting all the hard work that she put in last year rehabilitating her knee," Butler said. "She's very anxious to return to the floor, too. We don't have another post player like her which is why I can't wait for her return to the court. She gets very excited when she's playing and brings a lot of enthusiasm which is infectious. The intangible side of Ndidi is her energy.”
Yenser returns to collegiate basketball after sitting out the 2007-08 season per NCAA rules for transfers. She spent her first two seasons at Clemson University before making the decision to continue her college experience at UF during the summer of 2007. Despite not being able to play last year, Yenser's new Gator teammates thought so much of her leadership abilities that they voted her as one of the 2007-08 tri-captains. On the court, the 5-foot-10 junior guard sports an accurate 3-point shot, fielding a 35.6-career percentage from behind the arc.
“Susan has been a tremendous addition to our team as an individual and as a teammate," Butler praised. "For someone to be named captain by their teammates in a year when they were ineligible to compete, speaks for itself. The way she carries herself off the court has the type of impact on our program that we want. As a basketball player, Susan's ability to shoot the ball with a high level of consistency will open up so many things for us on the court."
TRUE GATOR NEWCOMERS
The common thread among the five true first-year Gators is their championship experience and association with elite programs.
Steffi Sorensen, Tailor Jones, Trumae Lucas, Azania Stewart and Jordan Jones all boast those credentials.
"Anytime you can bring a player into your program with championship experience, you do it," Butler stated. "It doesn't matter if it's high school championship experience, junior college championship experience or Division II national championship experience. There is a special mentality in players of that caliber who have tasted a championship, and you can't coach that into a person.”
Somewhat similar to Yenser's path to Gainesville, was the one taken by Sorensen, a 5-foot-10 junior guard from Jacksonville, Fla.
Sorensen, the 2006 Miss Florida Basketball, began her collegiate career at Florida Gulf Coast University, which was completing its final year as a NCAA Division II program. The Eagles were the No. 1-ranked team throughout the 2006-07 season, advancing to the national championship game after Sorensen hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in the waning moments of the semifinal contest. The sharp-shooting rookie canned 105 treys, hitting 39.8 percent of her tries, while ranking second on the team in scoring (14.5 ppg), rebounding (5.2 rpg) and minutes played (24.8 pg). Sorensen then transferred to Santa Fe College in Gainesville to be closer to her family and found similar on-court success with the Saints, contributing 14.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 3.0 steals while hitting 40.2 percent from long range.
"Steffi is so much more than just a shooter. She works hard on her game," Butler said. "She's a smart basketball player and smart players aren't always appreciated on the front end. It's after you've seen them play when you realize their value. You have to have leaders with a championship mentality and Steffi has it. On the court, I love the type of competitor that she is, she plays fearlessly."
Tailor Jones, a 5-foot-11 freshman guard from Altamonte Springs, Fla., was a key member of Lake Mary High School's 2006 FHSAA 6A State Championship team, which had finished runner-up the previous year. Following the 2006 campaign, Jones' family moved to Chicago, where she attended Whitney Young High her junior year, before the family returned to the Sunshine State and Jones completed her prep schooling at Lake Mary.
“Tailor is a very smart player. She has incredible vision and great timing, especially in the open court. She's the type of player who makes others around her better because of the way she passes the ball,” Butler said. “Tailor can take a smaller defender out down in the low block and score with her back to the basket or she can step out and hit a three. She's very versatile with good size and has a great head on her shoulders.”
Lucas is a freshman from Greensboro, N.C., where she guided Grimsley High School to the 2007 North Carolina 4-A state championship game. The 5-foot-8 guard was spectacular in that final, scoring a game-high 33 points in a tough five-point loss, but was recognized as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. A two-time first-team all-state performer, Lucas participated in the North Carolina East-West All-Star game on July 21, 2008, earning MVP honors after scoring a game-high 21 points and leading the West to the four-point win.
“Trumae is at her best when she's rebounding from the perimeter and she's in the open court. She is going to thrive in our defensive system,” Butler predicted. “She can wreak havoc in the full-court and can create offense from her defense. Trumae is also very bright and she's going to catch on to things and adjust to the college game quickly. When there's a play to be made, Trumae is very confident with having the ball in her hands and being the one to make the play.”
Stewart, the first Gator women's basketball player ever from Europe, didn't begin playing organized basketball until the age of 15. She left her hometown of Wood Green, England, to attend Notre Dame Academy in Middleburg, Va., for her last three years of prep schooling. While at Notre Dame, the 6-foot-4 center refined her game under the watch of Mike Teasley and helped lead the Dragons into the national spotlight, entering the 2007-08 season as the No. 1-ranked team in the country. Stewart led Notre Dame with 13.8 points per game her senior year, in addition to contributing 9.5 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and hitting 73 percent from the floor, as the Dragons finished 2008 ranked No. 4 nationally with a 28-2 record.
“Azania is consistent, she's a fantastic teammate, she's a great defender, she runs the floor, she plays with a lot of pride and a lot of passion and she's also very skilled. Azania knew very early that she wanted to be a Gator, too,” Butler said. “When you combine all of those elements, you have the makings of an exciting player who can change a program.”
Florida's perimeter game received even greater potency when 5-foot-9 Jordan Jones elected to transfer from the University of South Carolina at the end of last season. She is required to sitout the 2008-09 season per NCAA transfer rules, but will have three years of eligibility remaining when she takes the court in 2009-10. Jones, who was USC's leading scorer with 13.1 points per game, set the Gamecock freshman record with 97 3-pointers. She shot 39.9 percent from behind the arc to rank third in the SEC and 31st in the country, while establishing a WNIT postseason-record with her nine treys in the first round en route to 31 points. Jones played her final two prep seasons at Collins Hill (Ga.) High School, where she teamed with current Connecticut sophomore Maya Moore and helped the team during her tenure compile a 62-1 record, win a pair of Georgia Class 5A State titles and finish the 2006-07 season atop USA Today's final national rankings.
“Jordan loves a challenge. She proved herself last year in the toughest conference in the country by leading her team in scoring and setting records in the postseason,” Butler said. “She was able to do those things by outworking people. She did it by shooting more shots before and after practice than anyone else. Every day she thinks about being great. That's the way Jordan behaves on a daily basis. Her desire and drive don't go away.”
BIGGER AND BETTER
With nine players, including four primary starters, returning from last season, the Gators have every reason to expect more in 2008-09.
“We saw last year's team really emerge from the beginning of the season, when they were a little surprised after winning a big game, to the end of the year, when they were expecting to win big games,” Butler observed. “That was a tremendous stride in the right direction and it was a very positive evolution that I believe will continue. Those expectations will continue to blossom as our confidence grows.
“There are two things that always give you a chance to succeed every single night: it's how confident you are and how aggressive you are. They work hand-in-hand. My coaching philosophy is that you should always do the most aggressive thing that makes sense,” Butler shared.
“I believe we will be a more consistent team because we will be a more confident team. We are building momentum within our program as a result.
“We are on the right path. Bigger and better is where we want to go.”
-UF-
