Photo by: Parker Waters
Women's Basketball Opens Official Practice Thursday
Sep 27, 2018 | Women's Basketball
NEW ORLEANS – The Green Wave women's basketball team opened its official preseason practice schedule on Thursday morning at the Hertz Center on campus, beginning its preparation for the season that starts in just 42 days.
Head Coach Lisa Stockton is embarking on her 25th year at the helm of Tulane women's basketball and is just seven wins away from her 500th at Tulane. She will also lead the program to its 600th overall win this season with just two more victories.
"It's really special, and I think it's special to be any place for a long time," said Stockton. "We've had such great kids through here. Today we really talked about my first team [in 1994-95] and how they were the first NCAA Tournament team [at Tulane]. We talked about what their strengths were and what we need to really aspire to.
"It's a great group this year, and we had a lot of energy today. I think we've started off in a great position in that the kids have worked really hard in the weight room and conditioning. The other thing is that they get along great. We're starting off right now with such synergy and such good chemistry. That energy transforms onto the court."
The Green Wave return a veteran roster this year with four seniors, double its number of seniors from last year. Forward Meredith Schulte is the team's top returning scorer among seniors as she averaged 7.5 points per game in 2017-18. Center Harlyn Wyatt is the top returning rebounder with her 6.2 boards per game last season.
Senior Tatyana Lofton came on strong at the end of last season, starting the final five games of the year and averaged 6.3 points per game in the final 13 games of the year. Center Ksenija Madzarevic is the fourth senior for Tulane this year and will look to provide depth in the frontcourt and keep being a threat in the paint with her 0.5 blocks per game.
"The seniors are all so different from each other," Stockton said. "We've been fortunate in our program to have seniors who are really committed to the program. They've contributed on the court and in the community, and they set the tone for us with their leadership."
Tulane's top returning scorer overall is junior guard Kayla Manuirirangi. The New Zealand native averaged 7.7 points per game last year. She is joined in the junior class by forward Maddison Wells whose playing time, scoring and rebounding all grew as the 2017-18 season went on. She doubled her points per game average in the second half of the season.
Sophomores on the 2018-19 team are guards Kaila Anderson and Sierra Cheatham plus forward Krystal Freeman. Cheatham started 10 games last season and was a 3-point specialist, sinking 37 3-pointers last year. Anderson played in all but two games last season and averaged 2.3 assists per game. Freeman, a Pineville native, proved to be a versatile rebounder when given court time last year and had two games with seven rebounds.
New to the team this year are freshmen Erin Gutierrez, Mia Heide, Dynah Jones and Dene' Mimms. Gutierrez and Jones – a local product of John Curtis Christian – are guards while Heide and Mimms – from New Orleans and a graduate of Warren Easton Charter – are 6-foot-5 forwards.
The regular season for Tulane begins on November 8 with a home game against Texas Southern. The Green Wave will also play host to Loyola-New Orleans in an exhibition on October 30.
Head Coach Lisa Stockton is embarking on her 25th year at the helm of Tulane women's basketball and is just seven wins away from her 500th at Tulane. She will also lead the program to its 600th overall win this season with just two more victories.
"It's really special, and I think it's special to be any place for a long time," said Stockton. "We've had such great kids through here. Today we really talked about my first team [in 1994-95] and how they were the first NCAA Tournament team [at Tulane]. We talked about what their strengths were and what we need to really aspire to.
"It's a great group this year, and we had a lot of energy today. I think we've started off in a great position in that the kids have worked really hard in the weight room and conditioning. The other thing is that they get along great. We're starting off right now with such synergy and such good chemistry. That energy transforms onto the court."
The Green Wave return a veteran roster this year with four seniors, double its number of seniors from last year. Forward Meredith Schulte is the team's top returning scorer among seniors as she averaged 7.5 points per game in 2017-18. Center Harlyn Wyatt is the top returning rebounder with her 6.2 boards per game last season.
Senior Tatyana Lofton came on strong at the end of last season, starting the final five games of the year and averaged 6.3 points per game in the final 13 games of the year. Center Ksenija Madzarevic is the fourth senior for Tulane this year and will look to provide depth in the frontcourt and keep being a threat in the paint with her 0.5 blocks per game.
"The seniors are all so different from each other," Stockton said. "We've been fortunate in our program to have seniors who are really committed to the program. They've contributed on the court and in the community, and they set the tone for us with their leadership."
Tulane's top returning scorer overall is junior guard Kayla Manuirirangi. The New Zealand native averaged 7.7 points per game last year. She is joined in the junior class by forward Maddison Wells whose playing time, scoring and rebounding all grew as the 2017-18 season went on. She doubled her points per game average in the second half of the season.
Sophomores on the 2018-19 team are guards Kaila Anderson and Sierra Cheatham plus forward Krystal Freeman. Cheatham started 10 games last season and was a 3-point specialist, sinking 37 3-pointers last year. Anderson played in all but two games last season and averaged 2.3 assists per game. Freeman, a Pineville native, proved to be a versatile rebounder when given court time last year and had two games with seven rebounds.
New to the team this year are freshmen Erin Gutierrez, Mia Heide, Dynah Jones and Dene' Mimms. Gutierrez and Jones – a local product of John Curtis Christian – are guards while Heide and Mimms – from New Orleans and a graduate of Warren Easton Charter – are 6-foot-5 forwards.
The regular season for Tulane begins on November 8 with a home game against Texas Southern. The Green Wave will also play host to Loyola-New Orleans in an exhibition on October 30.
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