UMassHoops.com

Transfer announced just now:
http://umassathletics.com/news/2021/5/2 ... smith.aspx

And another
http://umassathletics.com/news/2021/5/2 ... tball.aspx

If the other 4 freshmen get here, Verdi will have the deepest team he has ever had. We have 7 returning players, 2 transfers and the 4 newbies for a total of 13. He has never had that many players as far as I can recall.

The "Savage Seven" of yesteryear is no more as the new roster is up with a full compliment of 13 scholarship players!

https://umassathletics.com/sports/women ... all/roster

WBB is in a pretty strong tournament in November. If we win our first game, we probably play UCLA in game 2.

https://kentstatesports.com/images/2021 ... t_2021.jpg

Had some spare time so I checked out South Dakota State. This won't be an easy first game. They play in the Summit League, which is OK, not great. But they were 21-4 overall and 14-0 in conference. They return their top 4 scorers and top 4 rebounders.

Ladies were picked 6th in the pre-season poll.
Sam Breen - First Team
Destiney Philoxy - Second Team, Defensive Team
https://umassathletics.com/news/2021/10 ... teams.aspx

The women beat UConn tonight 95-54. OOPS - it was St. Rose, a cupcake from I don't know where (I think Albany). Verdi played 12 people and 6 were in double figures. Probably doesn't mean much, but it's better than a close game against someone you should crush.

https://umassathletics.com/sidearmstats ... ;team=home

Haven't posted in a while. Hopefully, they use that 6th place as some motivation. Last year, I think they finished 7th but made it to the A-10 Championship game.

I was at the Mullins Center for the exhibition. It was actually close at halftime, there is a lot to fix defensively. Here are some observations.

1. Philoxy looks rusty/unpolished. I am still a huge fan of hers, but I saw a regression to the tendency for her thinking that she has to do it all. Lots of "hero ball" in the first half. She did have a lot of assists when it was all said and done, but in closer games in the A-10, that needs to get fixed.

2. I think that Sidney Taylor is actually a step up from Hailey. Yes, Hailey could shoot from the outside, but Taylor has so much more athleticism that she really is starting to use.

3. Shavonne Smith seems to be the real deal.

I wonder what the season will look like. Verdi usually only plays 7, so there will likely be athletes wanting more minutes than they are getting. Also, I already wonder what next year would look like with returning people since last year didn't count for eligibility. I wonder if Sam Breen will come back. She's in a Master's program which are generally two years, so she might have another year at the University anyways. She was strong last week.

I'm looking forward to this year's team and I'm going to try to stop by and catch some of their game on Tuesday. Verdi spoke at last week's sports luncheon and talked a little about playing time. He really likes the newcomers but he said that the returning players are so good that the newcomers might not see a lot of PT.

Smith looked very good in the exhibition and she'll probably be the one that gets the most time. I've heard that Dabo is the most talented freshman but she is hurt and may not play until conference games. If anyone has heard more, feel free to elaborate.

As for Sam, I thought that this was her last year. After looking at her Penn State stats, she only played 4 games as a soph. So this would be her 4th full year and she gets an extra year for the Covid deal. I don't know the rule as it applies to leaving a team before 30% of the games vs. missing games due to an injury. Would love to have her back again next year but I'm not sure.

^ It was already confirmed by Verdi and Sam herself on twitter she's coming back. Didn't know about Dabo injury or how good she was, but I agree that Coach V likes a short bench which sometimes drives players away. It will be interesting.

We play Central CT at 5 this afternoon. For those who want to watch it will be on ESPN +. I will be watching.

For those in New England who can't get to Amherst, both games are on NESN+.

We lead after 1 period 23 - 18. Wearing black uniforms.

^ Walt Bell fans