Welcome to the Atlantic 10 Women’s Basketball Tipoff for the 2019-20 Season. This morning, we feature the George Washington Colonials.
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The faces have changed. The drive hasn’t.
Behind better depth, expect George Washington to compete for an Atlantic 10 championship in 2019-20.
Coach Jennifer Rizzotti regards point guard Mei-Lynn Bautista as the face of the program the last four years. The three-year starter led GW to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and two A-10 Championship titles.
“We have seven new people who didn’t play a game for us last year. More than half our team is new, so we’re going to look a lot different,” said Coach Jennifer Rizzotti, entering her fourth season. “We’re deeper 1 through 13, and that’s the first time I’ve been able to say that since I’ve been here. I’m excited about the newcomers and the guys returning.”
Returners Maddie Loder, Kayla Mokwuah and Neila Luma all received extensive playing time last season. As steep as the learning curve was, the experience gained is a bonus for this season’s Colonials team. “It helped them in terms of their confidence and understanding what it’s going to take to be a lot better this year,” Rizzotti said. “I feel good about where their mindset is for taking the next step.”
To improve, these Colonials will have to be stronger on the boards and more dynamic on offense. “We had to play at a certain pace last year because we weren’t very deep,” Rizzotti said. “We’re more athletic and we should be able to play a little faster. Scoring at a higher rate is important to us.”
Redshirt freshmen Mayowa Taiwo and Tori Hyduke, sidelined last year with injury, add to that depth. Taiwo is a 6-0 forward and Hyduke, a 5-6 guard.
Transfers will also make an immediate impact, giving the Colonials more scoring threats than they’ve had in the past.
Sharp-shooting guard Sydney Zambrotta played in 62 games over two years for Louisville, finishing with 46 3-pointers in that span and connecting on 35.7 percent of her long-range attempts. Zambrotta was part of Louisville’s Final Four team in 2018.
“She comes from a program that’s had a lot of success at a national level,” Rizzotti said. “She wants to help build that kind of environment at GW. I’m excited to see how she can elevate our guard play.”
Loder, Zambrotta and Hyduke give the Colonials multiple options at point.
Graduate transfers Ariel Stephenson (Wake Forest) and Alexandra Maund (Yale) bring leadership and a hunger to succeed in the final year of their collegiate careers.
Stephenson averaged 11.7 points per game and 2.1 assists per game while starting 79 games for the Demon Deacons. Maund averaged 5.8 ppg on 51.6% shooting and chipped in 4.2 rebounds per game in her final year at Yale.
“Having them come in as fifth-year college students and 22-year-olds certainly adds maturity and understanding as to what it takes to be a college athlete,” Rizzotti said.
GW started 2-10 a year ago. Rizzotti doesn’t shy away from a tough nonconference slate to tune up for Atlantic 10 play, though she understands the need to balance that with confidence that comes with winning games.
“I like to schedule teams who are used to winning championships in their league, and that makes it a little bit daunting for our team,” she said. “I do it for a reason. It’s part of the process.”
That said, “It would be nice to get a few wins in November,” she added.
A look at the Colonials:
Coach: Jennifer Rizzotti, 4th season at GWU, 49-44; 20th year overall, 365-260
Last year: 10-20, 7-9 Atlantic 10 (lost to Saint Joseph’s 61-49 in the first round of the A-10 Championship)
They’ll miss: Mei-Lynn Bautista (9.3 ppg) and Kelsi Mahoney (8.3 ppg) both graduated. Bautista led GW to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and a two A-10 Championship titles. She was a nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year award last June. Mahoney shot a team-best .360 from beyond the arc.
Impact returners: Luma, a 6-0 junior, led the Colonials in scoring (10.4 ppg) and rebounding (6.1 ppg). One of three Colonials to appear in all 30 games, starting 28, She tied for the second-most on the team and ranked second on the team with 24 steals. Redshirt junior Sarah Overcash, 6-1, started 12 games; her 42 offensive rebounds was a team high. Loder started the final 14 games last year
Newbies of note: Zambrotta played in 62 games over two years for Louisville, which reached the Final Four her sophomore season. Graduate student Maund, a 5-11 forward, appeared in 85 games over three years at Yale. Wake Forest transfer Stephenson became just the 25th player at Wake Forest to amass 1,000 points. The graduate student did not play her final season due to shoulder surgery.
Reasons to be optimistic: In her three years at GW, Rizzotti guided the Colonials to two postseason appearances, including the NCAA Tournament in 2018. The influx of transfers and two healthy, seasoned freshmen give the Colonials more depth and maturity.
Circle the date: Three road games in eight days start with the Nov 13 contest at Lehigh followed by Memphis (Nov. 17) and Maryland (Nov. 20). If the Colonials can win the first two, they should have enough momentum to take into College Park, Maryland, for another bout with what will be a nationally ranked Terrapins team.
Bottom line: If they can rebound as well as they place defense, the Colonials should be back in the thick of the Atlantic 10 race.