Nov. 10, 2008
Washington, D.C. - The Georgetown women's basketball team has a nice mixture of "old and new" coming into the 2008-09 season. Fifth-year head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy and her staff welcome a freshman class that was ranked sixth nationally by Mike Flynn's Blue Star Report and 18th nationally by hoopgurlz.com. This is Coach Flournoy's first top-10 recruiting class.
The seven freshmen, in addition to eight returning letterwinners, give Coach Flournoy the deepest team she has had since she took over prior to the 2004-05 season.
Georgetown does lose three of its top four scorers to graduation so the team's roster will see a major facelift. Despite the lack of a true center, the roster boasts eight players who stand at six-foot or better, compared to just two players last season.
Coach Flournoy has seven guards at her disposal. Four of them have a great deal of experience.
Senior Karee Houlette led the team, shooting 42.9 percent from three (18-42), averaging 10 minutes per outing in 23 games. She hit three field goals in the final 12 minutes to help the Hoyas come from behind in the win over St. John's. The junior college transfer averaged 6.1 points on 41 percent shooting, including 44 percent three-point shooting (11-25) in the final eight games of the season and matched her career-high with 12 points at Syracuse.
Senior Beata Widding should be back to full strength after missing almost all of last season with a right ankle injury. She had a bone extracted from her foot last November and only played in two games. Widding is more of a point guard with consistent long-range accuracy but may see some action at the two-guard spot.
Juniors Meredith Cox, Shanice Fuller and Kenya Kirkland have all seen time in the starting lineup through their first two seasons on the Hilltop.
Cox earned the team's Coaches Award for dedication both on and off the floor and led the team with 41 made three-pointers, shooting 34 percent from long range (41-121). The Hanover, Pa., native averaged 5.6 points and 2.9 rebounds per game and is considered the team's vocal leader. Cox tallied in double figures seven times last season but will look to be consistent on a nightly basis as a junior.
After starting every game as a freshman in 2006-07, Fuller played in every game as a sophomore starting 14 times, 13 of which came against BIG EAST opponents. Fuller, who is the team's second highest returning scorer (5.9 ppg), ranked fifth in the BIG EAST averaging more than four assists per game and ranked seventh in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (4.2 assts/g vs. 1.5 TO/g). Fuller scored in double figures seven times and was tremendous in the home win over No. 22 Syracuse posting a season-high 16 points to go along with seven assists, six rebounds and three steals.
Kirkland started in 14 of the team's 29 games, averaging 15 minutes per game. She averaged 2.8 points and shot 40 percent from the floor and is considered the team's defensive stopper.
Sophomore Monica McNutt played in every game as a rookie and earned a spot in the starting lineup in nine of the team's last 10 games. McNutt averaged 5.4 points on 39 percent shooting and was named to BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll in late January after averaging a team-best 17.0 points on 12-24 shooting from the floor (9-19 3FG) and 3.5 rebounds. She scored in double figures in three straight games during two different stretches and showed a nice long range shooting touch with the ability to run the floor extremely well.
Senior Krystle Hatton played in 28 games, averaging 13 minutes per contest. She ranked second on the team with 25 blocked shots in her first season on the Hilltop after transferring from Saint Louis University. Hatton connected on better than 54 percent of her field goals attempts (32-59) last season and averaged 2.5 points and 2.8 rebounds per game and posted career-highs with 11 points and five field goals in 18 minutes at Syracuse.
Junior Jaleesa Butler is the team's leading returning scorer (7.6 ppg) and shot blocker (29 blks). Butler played in every game, averaging 22 minutes and was in the starting lineup 16 times. She ranked second on the team in rebounds (5.4 rpg) and scored in double figures 10 times. Butler was one of 13 BIG EAST players to average one blocked shot per game. She has the athleticism to run the floor and the aggressiveness to play in the post.
Seven freshmen will get the opportunity to prove themselves right away.
The coaching staff will have two freshmen point guards working for minutes. Houston, Texas area standout Morgan Williams is a penetrating guard who is the Texas 4A District 23 all-time assists leader. She is a great leader and an aggressive defender with a strong mid-range game.
Ruby Lee Wright is a scoring point guard who was named South Carolina's Miss Basketball following her senior season. Wright was ranked No. 87 in Rise Magazine's Top 100 high school players. She loves to make the flashy pass with the ability to create shots for herself.
Forward Latia Magee was the No. 24 ranked forward in the nation by hoopgurlz.com. Magee earned Sporting News All-America Honorable Mention honors in 2008 and will face up opponents both inside and outside. She can defend and should create match-up problems for opposing squads.
Cincinnati native Tia McBride stands at 6-1 and was ranked No. 36 forward in the nation by hoopgurlz.com. McBride also garnered Sporting News Honorable Mention All-America honors in 2008. McBride is more of a back to the basket threat who will hit the boards hard. Offensively, McBride can hit the 12 to 15-foot jumper.
Adria Crawford was ranked as the No. 32 guard in the nation by hoopgurlz. com. A Sporting News Honorable Mention All-America selection in 2008, she is a big guard that will most likely move to a forward for the Hoyas. She has an effective inside and outside game and will be counted on to be a workhorse on the boards.
Houston native Amanda Reese is a 6-2 forward who has the game of a center. She averaged a double-double over the course of her final two seasons in high school. Reese has the wide array of combo moves in the post and will put it on the floor aggressively.
Alexa Roche suffered a knee injury and missed the majority of her senior year at St. Michael's Academy in New York City. The six-foot forward was tabbed as the No. 13 ranked forward in the nation by hoopgurlz.com. Roche, who was named Sporting News All-America fourth team in 2008, averaged better than 13 points and more than 11 rebounds while leading St. Michael's to a 25-6 record as a junior. She is a tough rebounder who can score from just about anywhere on the court.
Coach Flournoy recently signed a contract extension through the 2011-12 season. If the returners continue to improve and if the highly-touted rookies make the type of impression the Hoya coaching staff thinks they can, the immediate future could be bright on the Hilltop.
