12/8/2024
I’m writing from a beachfront balcony this weekend. I like to think of myself like Hemingway. Unfortunately, after Davidson’s loss to Ball State, my strongest similarity to ol’ Ernest is severe depression. Last week, I reassured you that the simple trick to flipping this run of losses was improving shot-making, especially from beyond the arc. Well, against the Cardinals, Davidson shot 40 percent from three. So they should have won, right, Whittier? Isn’t this why we read your column? Aren’t journalists responsible for insights that lead to correct predictions? Yeah, sorry, guys…
It takes a strong man to admit when he’s wrong. I am incredibly weak. My friends affectionately say I have, “mosquito bites of muscle.” I wasn’t necessarily wrong; my mind was in the right place. I just didn’t consider all the factors. The early-season injury to Millie Prior is really starting to hurt the team defensively. They are in dire need of additional physical presence down low. The Wildcats gave up ten offensive rebounds while only grabbing three themselves. This helped lead to Davidson being outrebounded overall, 36-22. Davidson’s inability to prevent opposing squads from gaining additional chances puts them on their back foot for every game. Frustratingly, Davidson shoots themselves in that foot over and over again. In their nine games so far, they have only won the turnover battle twice. They committed 17 turnovers in this matchup, bringing their season average to 16.7 a game. It is nearly impossible to win with a turnover rate like that. On the bright side, Katie Donovan looked amazing in the matchup with the Cardinals, picking up 6 rebounds and 19 points on 8-11 shooting.
Fear not, friend; these struggles will be quelled. If Davidson can fix these turnover troubles, the ship will be righted. They travel over to Raleigh this week to play a flailing N.C. State. ESPN gives the Wolfpack a 98.8% chance of victory. That seems disrespectful. Sure, Davidson isn’t at the top of their game currently, but if they cut their turnovers even a little, they can hang with anyone. In the words of Mr. Hemingway, “Man is not made for defeat… A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” The Wildcats are far from defeated.
Although I would love to, I will refrain from making a prediction after repeatedly jinxing this group. In all honesty, I’m starting to consider the problem isn’t rebounds or turnovers, it might just be me.
12/1/2024
Anyone can wear their team’s jersey after they win a big game. True strength lies within those who proudly rep their squad the day following a major loss. Despite a frustrating 0-2 weekend down in Fort Myers, I encourage everyone to break out every piece of Davidson merch they have to sport around town this week. When the Wildcats eventually win the A-10, this will be nothing but a funny memory. Then again, I should probably stop making bold predictions; they haven’t worked out for me so far.
Davidson took on Virginia Tech in their first matchup of the mini-tournament. This was the type of game you watch, then immediately turn on a Disney movie and curl up with a mug of hot cocoa as you remember better times. The final score was 79-50. Last week, I griped about the team committing 25 personal fouls and turning the ball over 16 times. This week, they committed 25 personal fouls and turned the ball over 17 times versus the Hokies. I don’t know what treacherous deeds I have done to deserve this karma. On the bright side, it is officially time to buy your Candice Lienafa stock. She is continually improving with each passing game. She led Davidson in points with 12. ESPN might occasionally know what they're talking about. I concede.
It is hard to win while turning the ball over. Giving away possessions is not intuitive to scoring. Teams that manage to overcome this fault often do so through the three-point shot. If one has fewer chances, they have to make the most of the ones they have. Take the dominant 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, for instance. They finished in the bottom third of turnovers for the NBA, yet they still set the all-time record for wins due to their lights-out shooting led by Davidson alum Steph Curry. Living and dying by the three is not unheard of. Unfortunately for the women, they often have been dying by the three. In their losses this season, they are shooting a combined 23.2 percent from deep. In their wins, that number jumps to 37.5 percent.
This problem was evident in their matchup with Belmont. Davidson had 18 turnovers and shot 22.7 percent from the three-point line. This isn’t to say this roster is filled with bad shooters.
It’s not. In fact, these being the areas of concern for the Wildcats gives me hope. They start two freshmen, and injuries have had players rotating in and out; turnovers are natural for teams that are getting used to each other. Additionally, shots are going to fall. This group is too talented for this drought from downtown to last long. As Yankee legend Yogi Berra put it, “I ain’t in no slump, I just ain’t hitting.” Davidson simply just ain’t hitting, but believe me, they will.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and that light has a name: Charlise Dunn. After ending her incredibly successful junior year early due to injury, she’s back. The senior has been slowly integrated into the lineup over the past four games and is already making a difference. She reintroduced herself to the college basketball world against Belmont with 16 points and 8 rebounds, five of which were offensive. She had a tenacious defensive effort as well, picking up three steals and one block. All of this while shooting 50 percent from the field.
Davidson looks forward to a matchup with a solid Ball State team. Hopefully, by the time the buzzer sounds, the Cardinals will be left in a Bawling State.
11/24/2024
On my grandparents' fridge is a magnet that reads, “If I could do it all again, I would still choose you.” It’s a sweet sentiment. After this week’s devastatingly close loss against Wake Forest 60-55, I propose there should be a magnet in the Davidson women’s locker room reading, “If we could do it all again, we wouldn’t turn the ball over 16 times and commit 25 personal fouls.”
That was it. That was the difference. Davidson was up one at the half and was leading by six when the buzzer sounded at the end of the third quarter. Some may look at that game and be disappointed in how it unraveled in the fourth quarter, and that’s fair, but being the staunch optimist I am, I encourage everyone to look on the bright side. They should have beaten an ACC squad. The Wildcats played the better game. All without their starting center. They gave their opponents 27 free throws, gifted them the ball 16 times, and shot 25% from the three-point line. Despite this, they still had a shot at tying or winning the game with ten seconds left and another chance at tying with four seconds left.
Issy Morgan put up another strong effort. She finished with 11 points and 6 assists. Katie Donovan continued to produce. She had 11 points as well. Since Millie Prior got injured in last week’s game against Wofford, senior Tomsin Adenupe has been starting. She picked up 10 points, but also locked in on the other end, grabbing 3 steals and 1 block.
Displaced aggression occurs when one is so upset at something that they exert their anger on something else. Some have theorized Ted Bundy may have committed his crimes due to this. Similarly, the Wildcats' frustration at their loss against the Demon Deacons the day before would certainly help explain the murder committed in John Belk Arena versus Presbyterian College. They absolutely smashed the Blue Hose by 42, 81-39. It was an all-around dismantling, wire-to-wire victory. 12 separate players logged points on the stat sheet. It is worth noting, PC is now 0-6 on the season. There might not have been this many unhappy Presbyterians since King Charles II tried to impose the Episcopal form of the church in Scotland in the 17th century. Regardless, a good win is a good win.
Next up is another ACC matchup, Virginia Tech on November 29th in the Fort Myers Tip-Off. Fort Myers clearly hasn’t realized the season tipped off almost a month ago. ESPN says Davidson has a mere 7.5% chance of winning. I say ESPN hasn’t watched enough Davidson basketball games this year—my prediction: Davidson-72, Virginia Tech-68. Knock on wood.
11/17/2024
If any of your loved ones are unlucky enough to be fans of Wofford basketball, please check in on them after this Saturday. The men went down to Duke where they were held to 35 points and lost by 51. To make matters worse, if there is even any lower point than losing by 51, the women got manhandled by the Davidson Wildcats later in the day. The 74-63 win over the Terriers is a huge step forward for the Davidson squad. Following a tough week with a three-point loss to Highpoint and an 18-point loss to Cincinnati, (I very well might have jinxed them with my column, my bad) the women bounced back in a major way. They took a 25-22 lead with 6:34 remaining in the second quarter and didn’t look back. The team shot a ridiculous 44% from the three-point line. Seven of their eleven came in the second quarter where they outscored Wofford 27-11. When this group gets hot, they look unstoppable.
Senior Issy Morgan came alive today. She hadn’t scored in double digits in the first three games, but she exploded for 21. If one knew nothing about this season, they would assume Morgan is an All-American and a front-runner for A-10 Player of the Year. If she keeps playing the way she did this afternoon, she should be. She dropped 23 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and had 5 assists. She shot 50% from the three-point line and overall.
Sophomore Katie Donovan is your dad’s favorite player. She’s smart, she hustles, and she plays stifling defense. She picked up 17 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field. Freshman Candice Lienafa has burst onto the scene. The last two games she has come off the bench to lead the team in scoring. When no one else could get over 10, she picked up a tough 18 in the hard loss to Cincinnati on Wednesday. She got the nod and started. She scored 9 points and followed the trend of shooting 50%. She also guarded Wofford center Mia Flor despite being three inches shorter. Big win for all the short kings and queens out there, myself included.
It wouldn’t be a Davidson women’s basketball game if someone didn’t get hurt. With 5:29 left in the 3rd quarter, senior center Millie Prior came into the lane to play help defense on a driving Mia Flor. Unfortunately, when attempting to block the shot, Prior re-aggravated something in her right shoulder. She was already playing with a brace of sorts on that shoulder. She was taken into the tunnel and did not return to the game.
This was a mature win for the group. It wasn’t just a hot second quarter that propelled them to a win. It was consistent focus while facing Wofford’s constant full-court press which lasted the entire game. (Rick Pitino was spotted crying tears of joy while watching the Wildcats.) It was the dedication to making the extra pass. It was the choice to take charges despite being up 18. It was the cohesive nature of the offense. This team is an absolute pleasure to watch. Don’t get me wrong, there is room to improve. They turned the ball over 17 times, which is somehow down from their season average of 18.25 per game (Rick Pitino was spotted crying tears of sadness when reading that stat).
One last fun fact. The starting five is an all-international group. Overall, a majority of the team is international. Onto week three!
11/9
Have you ever heard of a team having six of their players tear their ACLS? No one has. That is, except for fans of the Davidson Women’s Basketball Team last season. The team started loaded with potential. They won 12 of their first 13 including a win over the mighty Duke Blue Devils who made it to the third round of the NCAA Tournament. Then it all came crashing down. Injury after injury ripped the roster apart. It was as if some higher power chose to smite the team out of pure boredom. What the '96 Bulls were to winning, the '24 Wildcats were to the injured reserve. The team held open tryouts, canceled multiple games, played senior night with only seven active players, and forfeited the rest of the season.
That’s all in the rearview window. This is a new year. Despite the perils of the past, the team is back. Led by New Zealander senior forward Mellie Prior, the squad already has a win. They came back from a double-digit deficit to narrowly defeat Florida Gulf Coast, a tournament team. The barn burner ended 57-56 after a FGU shot ran around the rim with five seconds to go. A huge three from senior Mallorie Haines gave the Wildcats their largest lead of the game and eventually won them the game. The women put on a defensive clinic, holding the national sixth-best team three-point shooting team to merely two triples.
The team is currently projected to finish fourth in the Atlantic 10. The prediction is dead wrong. If I jinx them by writing this, I apologize, but as long as injuries don’t rear their ugly head, this team should blow this conference out. They have a motto: Share, Shoot, Stifle. By the end of the season, every team that has the misfortune of playing the Wildcats will know this slogan very well.
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