Lady Raiders excited for promising 2017-18 season

Sunday, October 29

Murfreesboro, TN

3 PM

Middle Tennessee

Tennessee Wesleyan University

10/28/2017 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

First exhibition game Sunday at 3 PM

By: JOSH VARDAMAN, MT Athletic Communications

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – With a full cast of experienced players mixed with a talented incoming class, Middle Tennessee's women's basketball program is prepping for what could be a big year in Murfreesboro.

The Lady Raiders, who received votes in the USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll released on Thursday, were announced as the Conference USA favorites on Friday. Junior forward Alex Johnson was also named the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year.

Middle Tennessee will begin its season with a 3 p.m. exhibition Sunday at the Murphy Center against Tennessee Wesleyan, then follow with a second exhibition matchup against Trevecca on Nov. 2. The Raiders will travel to Vanderbilt for their regular-season opener, Nov. 10.

"We feel pretty confident in our team right now," Head Coach Rick Insell said at Monday's season-opening press conference. "Pretty exciting times to know that Sunday is our first exhibition game; it'll give us an idea of where we're at. Then, we're about a week or so away from playing Vanderbilt ... it'll be pretty exciting for them and us, and for our fan bases."

Here are some keys to focus on as the Lady Raiders begin their 43^rd season:

Johnson leads cast of leaders
Middle Tennessee will benefit from returning most of its roster from last season's 23-11 team.

The loss of three-year starting point guard Ty Petty will surely have a big impact. Petty's 18.4 points and 5.5 assists in 38.3 minutes per game will have to be replaced, but 73 percent of the Lady Raiders' scoring from 2016-17 returns, led by Johnson's 20.2 that was second in C-USA and 17^th nationally.

Along with Johnson, seniors Abbey Sissom, Gabby Lyon and Rebecca Reuter and juniors Katie Collier, Jess Louro and Jordan Majors will all use their multiple years' experience in the program to lead the team.

"I think the biggest thing is just being more vocal on the court and being mentors for the younger kids," Johnson said. "When we are on the sidelines with the younger girls, we want to just walk them through things that they may not have a good grasp on and just being vocal while we're on the court."

Sophomores Kyla Allison and Charity Savage will also likely see an uptick in usage this season, as will Majors, who was lost early last year due to a knee injury.

Allison made 12 starts in 29 games played last season and averaged 3.2 points per contest. Savage didn't make a start but played in 23 games, scoring 38 total points.

"[Allison] is a very talented young lady," Insell said. "You know, it's tough in Division I basketball to ask someone to step up this early in their career, and we've had to do it at times. In Kyla's situation, we're trying to fast forward her right now.

"Charity Savage is one of the most athletic young ladies we've got on our team. She's a very personable young lady, and we're hoping that before it's all said and done she's going to play a big role in what happens with this program."

Newcomers pushing for playing time
While the roster is stacked with returning players, some new players are providing competition at various positions.

Transfers Zeynep Canbaz and LaSonja Edwards and freshmen Jadona Davis, Anna Jones and Kara Meadows have all impressed early on.

Canbaz, a junior guard and native of Istanbul, Turkey, transferred from Western Nebraska Community College, where she averaged 9.2 points, 4.1 assists and 2.2 steals per game last season.

Edwards comes to MT from Gulf Coast State College. The 6-foot-1 forward was a member of Gulf Coast's back-to-back NJCAA national championship teams, and she ranked 12^th in total rebounds (229) at the JUCO ranks last season.

The theme of the freshman class is size. Jones is the shortest of the group at 6-foot-1, with Meadows standing at 6-foot-4 and Davis checking in at 6-foot-5.

"I'll be honest, the three freshmen that we've got coming in are pretty good," Insell said. "There were several big-time programs in Mississippi State, Alabama, Ole Miss, LSU that were recruiting [Davis] … and we were able to beat Ole Miss out on [Meadows]. Then, we brought in Anna Jones out of University School in Jackson … and we felt like she was a priority.

"We're really excited about all three of them, to be honest with you."

Raiders have lots of size
Adding the three big freshmen and Edwards to the roster has given Insell something he hasn't really had at Middle Tennessee: considerable size at every position.

Ten of MT's 14 players measure at 6-foot or taller, and the Lady Raiders could often trot out lineups where Sissom is their shortest player on the floor at 5-foot-9.

Though Meadows will miss time after injuring an ankle in practice, the depth and size down low could give Middle Tennessee an opportunity to play a little differently than in past years, especially defensively.

"I think by the time we get to the middle of the conference schedule, you'll see us using some of those young ladies," Insell said. "We're hoping that our 6-4's or 6-5's are going to be shot blockers and have a presence in the center. We haven't blocked any shots in the last seven or eight years. I think you'll see a change in that in the middle of the season."

Who'll take over for Ty Petty?
Petty left as the program's second-leading assister with 540, and she's also 14^th all-time with 1,453 points.

Though she's still around as a graduate manager on Insell's staff, Petty won't be able to suit up anymore for the Blue Raiders, and that could be the biggest hurdle this year's team will have to get over.

"Losing Ty Petty was big," Insell said. "We're hoping that one of our young ladies that has no experience is going to step up before the first game, and if they do, then we're going to be in pretty good shape."

Allison figures to have the inside track at the starting point guard spot, and her size at a flat 6-feet tall gives the Lady Raiders an interesting dynamic at the position. She will have to become more confident as the season goes along and work on her 16:25 assist-to-turnover ratio from last season.

Canbaz will also see time running the point, and Collier has proven to be a worthy relief off the bench, as well.

No matter who steps into the starting point guard spot, she'll luckily have a lot of experience around her to help through whatever growing pains may come up.

"It definitely has been different," Sissom said. "We have definitely all had to become more vocal on the court, and we are still trying to get better at that. Also, helping to mentor the younger girls is a big thing for us."

Tough non-conference schedule could provide big returns
As has been the case in the last several years, the Lady Raiders will get a heavy dose of strong competition in the non-conference portion of their schedule.

After starting the regular season with Vanderbilt, MT will square off with other Power 5 conference teams Ole Miss, Georgia Tech, Louisville, USC and Kentucky before entering C-USA play.

The tough non-conference slate has become a staple of Insell's program, and he's hoping his girls will again prove better for it once the C-USA schedule hits its toughest stretches late in the season.

"I think last year we ended up playing four teams that were ranked in the top 15 in the country at one time or another," the head coach said. "If you're looking at the schedule, we better have some experience, I can tell you that. But, we're excited for it.

"That's a lot of opportunity there. If we go win some of those games, or all of those games, it's going to give us a chance to be ranked in the top 15 in the country."