Liberty University Lady Flames Women's Basketball 2012-13 Season Guide
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TR AINING CHAMPIONS FOR CHRIST SINCE 1971 athletics administration 2012-13 Outlook 64 When the opening tip goes up in the air for Liberty's 2012-13 women's basketball season opener at Duquesne on Nov. 9, Lady Flames Head Coach Carey Green will not only be thinking about his team's formidable opponent in that night's game, but also looking four months ahead and four states to the south. The 2013 Big South Women's Basketball Championship title game will be played almost exactly four months after the Duquesne tilt, on March 10 in Conway, S.C., and Green hopes his team will be playing for its 15th championship in the last 17 years that day. "We're going to begin the season with the end in mind, understanding that there will be some huge challenges as we develop individual skills, team concepts, and chemistry," explained Green, who is entering his 14th season as Liberty's head coach. Green knows that his team will be challenged to remain atop the Big South Conference and fashioned a daunting early-season schedule accordingly. The Lady Flames will only play one home game during an imposing opening five weeks, which feature contests at the last two NCAA Division I national champions (Texas A&M and Baylor), an appearance in the Preseason WNIT, a game at 2012 Postseason WNIT runner-up James Madison and the start of Big South Conference play at Radford. "With some early on-the-road competition such as the Preseason WNIT, Texas A&M and Baylor, we will have the opportunity to develop and grow," Green noted. Although Liberty boasts some experience on its 201213 team, with three returning starters and five total seniors, half of the players on its 16-person roster did not see the court for the Lady Flames a year ago. Four players received redshirts, while four new freshmen have been added to the mix. Devon Brown, a 5-10 redshirt senior wing player, highlights Liberty's returners. She is a three-time first team All-Big South honoree and already ranks sixth in program history with 1,441 career points. The Lady Flames' other two returning starters include the Big South Conference's 10th-leading rebounder in 2011-12 (6-3 redshirt senior post Tolu Omotola) and the 2012 VaSID State Rookie of the Year (5-7 sophomore point guard Reagan Miller). Omotola is one of five Lady Flames who stand 6-2 or taller, while Brown has corralled 596 career rebounds. As a result, rebounding is expected to be a team strength once again in 2012-13, despite the graduation of the program's all-time leading rebounder, Avery Warley. A year ago, Liberty topped the nation in rebound margin at +15.6. The Lady Flames should also benefit from significantly more depth in the backcourt this season than the squad enjoyed in 2011-12. Veteran sharpshooter Brittany Campbell and 2010-11 starting point guard Emily Frazier both return from redshirt seasons, while all four incoming freshmen are perimeter players. As always, one of the team's greatest challenges will be meshing the veteran players with the newcomers and developing strong team chemistry along the way. "We want to see solid character developed as we go through this process," stated Green. "Unfortunately, this does not happen overnight. It takes experience and a process to achieve success." A position-by-position preview of the 2012-13 Lady Flames follows. Point Guards Incumbent point guard Emily Frazier suffered a seasonending injury less than two weeks before the 2011-12 season opener, leaving then-freshman Reagan Miller as Liberty's only true point guard on the roster. Thus, Miller was forced to carry a heavy work load, playing a school-record 1,086 minutes (average of 32.9/game) on the season. Miller responded to the unexpected challenge admirably, as Green observed, "Reagan experienced testing by fire last season and showed the heart of a champion." This time around, Miller should have considerably more company at the floor general spot, in the form of fellow Texans Frazier and Sadalia Ellis, a freshman. All three players bring different skill sets to the position and are expected to battle for playing time. Now a redshirt sophomore, Frazier was projected as Liberty's starting point guard last season, after making 30 starts as a freshman. She earned a spot on the 2011 Big South All-Freshman team, after dishing out a team-high 85 assists and shooting a team-best 41.7 percent from three-point range. "It's great to have Emily back and healthy," Green said. "She displays a great basketball IQ and the ability to score from three-point range while seeing the floor well and distributing the ball. She will be an invaluable part of our team because of her experienced presence on the floor." Miller earned Big South All-Freshman team accolades of her own last season, thanks to a team-high 131 assists and 56 three-pointers. She stepped up in some of the Lady Flames' biggest games, including a 15-point, eight-assist effort in the Big South Championship title contest against High Point. "Reagan returns after an exceptional freshman year," observed Green. "She has the ability to score from deep range while having the vision to distribute the ball to both the post and perimeter. Last year's experience, along with her leadership, will be important to the team's success this year." Ellis comes to Liberty after helping Cypress Falls High School go 103-10 during her final three seasons with the team. The 5-6 point guard was named District 17-5A Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, while notching 10.0 ppg, 6.8 apg, 5.0 spg, 3.1 rpg and 0.9 bpg. She also displayed her athletic ability in track and field, high jumping 5-7 and long jumping 18-8. Reagan Miller "Sadalia brings high energy and understanding of team concepts while quarterbacking at the point guard position," explained Green. "The daughter of a coach, she understands the game very well. Sadalia is capable of getting to the rim in an exceptional way and finishing, as well as scoring from three-point range. We expect her to continue to develop into an impact player who will provide a very bright future for our team." The most recent addition to the team, Julia Winn will also add depth at the point guard spot. Winn, who is the shortest player on the roster at 5-4, helped Littleton High School win the New Hampshire state title as a senior. She averaged 13.4 ppg a year ago and became just the fourth female in school history to tally 1,000 career points. "Julia comes from a tremendously strong high school program and is best characterized as being a champion," offered Green. "She is a cerebral player who understands team concepts and strategies very well. Julia is also exceptional at making difficult mid-range jumpers." Wings The wings are the most experienced group of players on Liberty's 2012-13 roster, including four of the team's five seniors (Devon Brown, LaKendra Washington, Brittany Campbell and Terika Lunsford). Brown has made 85 starts during her career, while competition should be fierce to replace Danika Dale at the other wing spot. Brown has already enjoyed a sensational career with the Lady Flames, playing a key role on two Big South Championship-winning teams. She will now look to finish her final season in style, coming off of a junior campaign which saw the Waynesboro, Va., native rank second in the Big South in free throw percentage (.790), fourth in