Welcome to the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Tipoff for the 2020-21 Season. Today, we feature the Davidson Wildcats. To revisit all of the season previews throughout the week, click here.
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Three years in, Gayle Fulks has her Davidson women's basketball team on the rise.
A handful of league coaches believe the Wildcats could threaten for the conference crown, only Fulks is tempering expectations for now. It's been a rough start to the preseason starting with her only freshman, Sallie Schutz, suffering a knee injury in a non-contact drill on the very first day of practice.
Top that with Suzi-Rose Deegan, a first-team All-Atlantic team pick last fall who was also Rookie of the Year, sidelined in Australia following ankle surgery. Fulks does expect the 5-10 sophomore guard to return to campus, but she can't pin down when she'll be game ready.
"She wasn't allowed to fly for a while," Fulks said. "We're waiting on that. It's tricky. This whole COVID thing is tricky. She could be back after Thanksgiving, but it could be January. She hasn't been able to do anything yet."
Senior Sarah Donovan is also a question mark due to lingering effects from a concussion, "We're hopeful, but it's a bonus if we do have her," Fulks said. "She hasn't practiced in a month."
That sets the table for a trying fall, but Fulks said all of it is part of weathering an unprecedented season of college basketball that will call for adjustments throughout. The good news is a junior class with a high ceiling: Cassidy Gould, who started 19 games last year; Chloe Welch, who started 27 games, achieving personal bests in every offensive and defensive category; and Sarah Konstans, who rebounded from a freshman year lost to injury to starting 15 games.
"They all play really well together," Fulks said. "They share the ball. They can shoot pretty well. The experience out of that bunch is going to help."
Davidson also boasts one of the top point guards in the league in senior Katie Turner, who became a 1,000-point career scorer last year while leading the team with 127 assists and 66 treys.
"She's probably the most experienced guard in our conference," Fulks said. "She's started every game of her career, and we don't take her out a whole lot. She's been rock solid. She looks great."
Sophomores Adelaide Fuller, Cameron Tabor and Peyton Carter are all expected to contribute. Fuller averaged 4.5 boards as a rookie and led the team in blocks.
In just three years, Fulks has amassed 45 wins and back-to-back winning seasons. She'd laid the foundation for the Wildcats to move into the top tier of the conference and challenge for a conference title, particularly if Deegan can get healthy.
A look at the Wildcats:
Coach: Gayle Fulks, 45-48 in three seasons at Davidson and overall
Last year: 16-15, 8-8 Atlantic 10, (lost to No. 2 VCU 58-52 in Atlantic 10 Championship quarterfinals)
They'll miss: Ally Welling (6-3 F, 5.3 ppg, 3.5 rpg, started all 31 games) was last year's lone senior. This year's team is heavy on veterans (6 seniors, 3 juniors) and returns nearly 92 percent of last year's scoring.
Impact returners: Suzi-Rose Deegan, 5-10 sophomore G (15.9 ppg, 7.7 rpg, first-team all-Atlantic 10, A-10 Rookie of the Year, one of 3 Australians on team); Katie Turner, 5-7 senior G (10.4 ppg, 37.3 3-point percentage); Sarah Donovan, 6-0 senior G/F (11.4 ppg, from Canada), Chloe Welch, 5-9 junior G (8.6 ppg); Adelaide Fuller, 6-3 sophomore F (4.5 rpg, another Australian)
Newbie of note: Sallie Schutz (6-2 G/F), the lone freshman, tore her ACL in preseason and will likely redshirt.
Reasons to be optimistic: When the ball's in the hands of a veteran point guard like Katie Turner, it's hard not to be positive. She's never missed a game, she can shoot the three and she fills the stat sheet night in and night out. Expect her to guide this team through any early-season bumps. Deegan was also among the top talents in the league and should be a force again after the holiday break. This is a program on the rise led by one of the nation's top young coaches in Fulks.
Bottom line: "Don't judge us by our first three games," Fulks requests, and we won't. But if Deegan mends as quickly as Fulks hopes, expect Davidson to round into form midway through the conference season.