2006-07 Season Preview

Now in her fifth season at UMass, head coach Marnie Dacko has established a solid foundation for the UMass women's basketball team. Winning eight of its last 11 regular-season games, the team looks to carry that momentum into this season. Losing only one starter from last year, UMass looks to improve on its 8-8 conference record. The Minutewomen return almost 80 percent of their scoring, including senior Tamara Tatham and juniors Pam Rosanio and Kate Mills. Mills and Rosanio were each selected to the Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Third Team. UMass already prides themselves on its tenacious defense, and is looking to run the floor more and turn defensive stops into scoring chances on the other end.

"It will definitely be a more exciting game because we have more people that can distribute the ball, more people that know the system and more people who will play less inhibited than they did last year," said Dacko. "We want to run, but our philosophy will focus on the inside-outside game to create more scoring opportunities."

The Backcourt

The Minutewomen's success this year may depend on how well they fill the point guard position. Losing four-year starting point guard Katie Nelson, Dacko will look to sophomore Sakera Young and freshman Kim Benton to quickly step up to the responsibility of running the show. Last season, Young played in 19 games, averaging close to nine minutes a game.

"Sakera has rededicated herself to the game of basketball," said Dacko. "Nagging injuries kept her from playing a lot last year, but she has done a great job coming into preseason training. We are going to look to her to be a defensive pest and wear the opposing team's point guard down."

Benton comes to UMass after leading her Cardinal O'Hara (Pa.) Lions to a No. 15 USA TODAY final national ranking and back-to-back league championships. Benton also earned a spot on the first team All-Catholic League.

"Kim has a great sense of basketball," said Dacko. "She can step up and knock down the open shot, but can also penetrate to create open looks for other players. We look for Kim and Sakera to both create fastbreak opportunities and be disciplined when we are not able to run."

With a young backcourt, Pam Rosanio's leadership will be crucial. In her first two years, Rosanio has been a second-team All-Conference member and an All-Rookie team pick. She has played every game for the Minutewomen, starting all but one in her career. Since coming to UMass, she has led the team in scoring each year, dished out 165 assists, and shot over 40 percent from the field.

"Pam will be our go-to player," said Dacko. "She is someone who fills the lanes, initiates our break, hits the open shot and makes the defense run the length of the court. I want her to be more vocal than she was a year ago, but she has done a great job developing her offensive skills."

Alisha Tatham returns to UMass after leading the Canadian Junior National Team this past summer in Mexico City to a berth in the 2007 World Championships. After being selected as captain for the Canadian squad last summer, the junior averaged 9.6 points per game in the qualifying tournament. As a sophomore at UMass, Tatham averaged 3.9 points a game, coming away with 17 steals and dishing out 34 assists. She is UMass' defensive leader and will be called upon to guard the opposition's top offensive threat.

"Alisha was one of the hardest workers in the off-season," Dacko. "We look to her to be a defensive stopper on the perimeter, getting in people's faces and applying a lot of pressure on the opponent's scorer's."

In position to have a breakout season is Stefanie Gerardot. Coming off an injury-ridden freshman season, Gerardot averaged 2.7 points per game with a 33.3 three-point field goal percentage. This year, she will be relied upon to hit open shots coming off of screens and in transition.

"After severe shin splints, tonsil removal and a lot of minor injuries, Stef has come back in great shape," said Dacko. "She is a very good shooter who is capable of putting up a lot of perimeter points. Over the summer, she worked very hard on getting a quicker release."

Rounding out the backcourt for the Minutewomen are junior college transfer Debin Bell, sophomore Erin Calipari and freshman Diatiema Hill. Bell comes from John A. Logan junior college in Illinois where she averaged 6.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.

"Debin is working hard on making the transition from junior college to Division I, and I think she can help us out a variety of ways," said Dacko. "Debin is adept at knocking down open looks and because of her strength, can also post up smaller players and score effectively down low." Hill hails from Francis Lewis High School in New York where she holds the record for most assists, steals and 3-point goals made.

"Diatiema is someone who can penetrate to the basket," said Dacko. "She is an impressive passer and has a solid understanding of the game. She has picked things up quickly in the early going."

Calipari has good range on the perimeter and has good defensive instincts.

"Erin will contribute to the team with her scrappy and physical play," said Dacko. "She has made tremendous strides this year in physical conditioning (both cardio and strength-based) and will give us some added depth at the off-guard position."

The Frontcourt

One of the focuses this season will be the quality, not quantity of shots taken and working the ball inside. The Minutewomen have three experienced post players returning from last year in senior Tamara Tatham, along with juniors Kate Mills and Whitney McDonald.

Tatham led the team in rebounds and steals, while Mills took the top spot in blocked shots and field goals made per game last year. McDonald saw action in 21 games, averaging 2.5 points and two rebounds per game.

"Kate has emerged as a leader, both on and off the court," said Dacko. "She did a tremendous job in preseason conditioning and weight training. Kate has really worked to perfect her post moves and has increased her perimeter range."

"Tamara is one of the best defenders on the team and in the league," said Dacko. "In the off-season, she has worked incredibly hard to develop confidence in her outside shot which will force defenders to come out and play her."

"Whitney has been working very hard at establishing a true post presence on every possession," said Dacko. "She is able to plant herself in the middle of the paint and take advantage of her body to create space. Whitney gained valuable game experience last season and we look for her to be a contributing factor to the teams success this season."

The Schedule

Following the new Atlantic 10 scheduling policy, the Minutewomen will play all but one A-10 team only once, allowing more non-conference games to be held. This will enable this year's team to renew some regional rivalries.

UMass will have some tough stretches where the mental toughness of the team will really show. The most difficult stretch appears to be late December through mid-January where the Minutewomen will play six consecutive games away from the Mullins Center. This includes the first three A-10 contests.

"We're going to do whatever it takes to prepare,"

said Dacko."The team is focused on reaching some lofty goals that they have set for themselves. They are cognizant on not only winning games but on preparing mentally and physically to be in a position to win by paying attention to detail. Last year taught us that the little things matter."

UMass opens their season with a road game at Vermont on Nov. 10. The Minutewomen return to Amherst for the Dick's Sporting Goods home opener against New Hampshire on November 14. Next, UMass will compete in back to back tournaments. First, the team will travel to Orange, New Jersey to compete in the Aeropostale Seton Hall Basketball Classic. UMass faces Navy in the first round and the either Howard or Big East foe Seton Hall in the second round.

The following weekend, they continue further south to the Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida to participate in the Best Western Roundball Classic. Also participating in that tournament will be host-school South Florida, Stephen F. Austin and St. Francis (N.Y.). Both Stephen F. Austin and South Florida earned bids to the NCAA tournament last season. The Minutewomen return home to face Wagner on November 30 and then take part in an all BayState doubleheader with the men's team on Dec. 2. The men play Boston College at 2 p.m. while the women will then play Northeastern at 4:45 p.m.

After consecutive road games at Hartford (Dec. 6) and Buffalo (Dec. 10), the Minutewomen return to the Mullins Center for the final time in 2006 to host Eastern Michigan (Dec. 13) and Delaware (Dec. 17). These teams each appeared in the WNIT last year.

Following a two-week final exam and holiday break, the Minutewomen will kick off their six game road trip at Boston College on December 31. UMass plays regional games at Holy Cross (Jan. 3) and Yale (Jan. 6) before beginning A-10 play at Rhode Island (Jan. 9). UMass then plays games at Richmond (Jan. 12) and George Washington (Jan. 14) before finally coming home.

Returning to Amherst for a four game homestand, the Minutewomen have created special events for each game. First, during Campus Appreciation Night, the team tackles Temple on January 18. Next, on Field Trip Day, UMass faces La Salle on Jan. 22. This game is a special week-day 11:45 a.m.

start and will offer an inside look at the University of Massachusetts for several thousand area children. The UMass Kids Club will witness a meeting between Saint Louis and the Minutewomen on Jan. 26 while the homestand concludes against Charlotte on Jan. 28. That game will be Girl's Scouts Day and will also be the day when UMass alumnae are invited back to campus for an annual reunion weekend.

During the last month of the regular season UMass will host three more home games. Rhode Island (Feb. 11), Duquesne (Feb. 16) and Xavier (Feb. 18) will all travel to the Mullins Center. Prior to this stretch, the team will travel to Saint Joseph's (Feb. 2) and St. Bonaventure (Feb. 4).

Following the three straight home games, the Minutewomen will close out the regular season at Dayton (Feb. 22) and Fordham (Feb. 25). The 2006-07 Atlantic 10 Basketball Championship will be March 2-5 at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.

"I like our team a lot," said Dacko. "We had a taste of success last year and I think we can build off of this. I think the players understand what it takes to be truly successful. There were stretches when we did not play very well and there were times when we played excellent team basketball. I am pleased with the continued development of our returning players. The new faces on the team give us a deeper backcourt than we have ever had before."