Women’s basketball starts with high hopes

With Lisa Stockton, the winningest coach in Conference USA history, once again at the helm, the Green Wave women’s basketball team returns most of its top contributors from the 2008-2009 season and is looking to build on the sixth-place finish in C-USA that the young squad posted last year. The team brings back seven players including its two top rebounders and four of its top five scorers from last season.

Junior forward Brittany Lindsey looks to anchor Wave frontcourt

Replacing Tulane’s all-time assists leader Ashley Langford, however, may not prove to be as simple as penciling another name into the starting lineup. Langford, who graduated last May, not only owns all four of the Green Wave’s single-season assists records, she also played more minutes (4162) and started more games (121) in her career than any other player in Tulane history. Junior point guard Roshaunda Barnes will be slotted to play the lead role in a group of guards set on accomplishing this s daunting task.

“Ashley played so many minutes for us, and I think it’s hard to get one person to play as many minutes as she did for us,” Stockton said. “Roshaunda played a lot of time last year, sometimes with [Langford], sometimes without. But I think she’s ready. She’s improved her game and adds a different dimension for us. She has great court vision, and her speed can really impact our transition game.”

The 5-foot-5-inch Barnes is the returning co-leader in assists (62) and in her sophomore season, contributed 3.9 points and 36 steals in just under 15 minutes per game. She will be joined in handling point guard duties by much-
heralded freshman guard Olivia Grayson. Grayson, a local signee, was an All-State selection at Chapelle High School in Metairie, La. and averaged 16.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists throughout her high school career.

“I think that [Grayson] was a great catch for us,” Stockton said. “You’ve got a player who is very competitive. She really turned the program around at Chapelle when she went there. She is a Tulane kid. She’s one that really wanted the academics and but also really wanted to play at a high level. I think she will really help us get there.”

Handling the other starting backcourt spots for the Green Wave are seniors Indira Kaljo and Chassity Brown. Kaljo, a constant perimeter threat, maintained a .420 three-point shooting percentage last year, a school record, and was named Newcomer of the Year in the C-USA.

“Indira Kaljo really came around toward the end of last season,” Stockton said. “Being one of the top three-point shooters in the nation, I think she is someone defenses are going to have to respect.”

Brown, an impressive player in her own right, was the fourth-leading scorer for Tulane last year, averaging 8.6 points per game. She consistently provided a high level of energy for Green Wave defense, averaging 1.84 steals per game and 59 for the season, tied for the team lead.

“Chassity’s defense really anchors our defense, and that’s really key,” Stockton said.

In the four and five spots, Tulane features an impressive frontcourt duo of junior forward Brittany Lindsey and sophomore center Brett Benzio. Lindsey scored a team-leading 11.8 points per game last season and tallied 4.6 rebounds per game, second only to Benzio on the Green Wave. The 6-foot-1 Lindsey was able to reach double-figures in 23-of-32 games, while maintaining a .483 field goal percentage. She is already on track to reach 1,000 career points by the end of this year.

Benzio, a member of the 2008-2009 C-USA All-Rookie Team, led the team in rebounds (9.3) and blocks (47) while averaging 8.6 points per game. Among freshmen, she was second in the nation in rebounding, recording more than any other first-year player in Green Wave history.

“They complement each other very, very well,” Stockton said. “[Lindsey] is so athletic and can score and block shots. [Benzio] had a tremendous freshman season where she was the leading freshman rebounder in the nation for most of the season. I expect her to build on that this year.”

The frontcourt duo will be important cogs in a team defense that proved to be the class of the conference last year. The Green Wave led C-USA in scoring defense, allowing just 59.9 points per game within their conference and holding those teams to 7.5 points below their season-long scoring average.

Stockton roped in a promising freshman class during the offseason. The potential impact of freshmen Chantel McDonald and Tyria Snow, however, has been brought into question due to season-ending ACL injuries both suffered during their senior year of high school.

“Right now, we’re not sure of their status for the season,” Stockton said. “They’re back and they’re in practice, but as far as leaving high school, going through an ACL recovery and starting college, that’s a big jump. I think not having those two is an uncertainty.”

Other new faces to the squad include junior guard Danielle Nunn, who sat out last year after transferring from Texas Christian University, and freshman guard Janique Kautksky, previously a member of the Western Australia under-20 team.

Despite last year’s second-round exit from the C-USA tournament, Stockton has high hopes for the 2009-2010 season and does not rule out the possibility of winning the conference championship.

“There’s not a dominant team in [Conference USA]. I think it’s anybody’s conference every year,” Stockton said. “You’ve got a team like Central Florida, who because they won the tournament last year is probably the team to beat. I think one of the exciting things about this league is we don’t have a Connecticut in it. We don’t have a team that is the team to beat. I think we can make a run for the championship.”