WASHINGTON — George Washington head coach Caroline McCombs was all smiles at Atlantic 10 Media Day, a clear sign of excitement for the season but also a sense of pride for what she has built for this season.
“I think we were really intentional in this offseason in trying to find the right pieces to build our program,” she analyzed. “We have nine newcomers, three graduate transfers, two junior college transfers as well as four first years. Our team has been working hard implementing everything every day, developing the right mindset and skillset to compete in the A-10. We’re excited to compete and look forward to the season.”
While of course McCombs will look to her defense to “pound the stone”, she was pleased with the direction the offense is going in.
Her Revolutionaries team is as athletic as it has ever been as this is her fourth campaign with the program.
“We want to play with great pace, and great space,” determined McCombs. “The player development is really our offense. We’ve been really investing in our young women every day, so you’re going to see some dynamic play from our guards. We’re as athletic as we’ve ever been in my time here. I think our post play is terrific and utilize our posts getting touches around the rim and want to score in the paint and perimeter, that inside-out attack and then reattack.”
Here’s a look at how the Revolutionaries stack up this season
Coach- Caroline McCombs 4th season
Last Year- GW was 13-18/6-12 in A-10 play. The Buff & Blue were 10-5 at home and won their last three regular-season contests, triumphing over Massachusetts, Davidson and Loyola Chicago, before falling to Saint Louis in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Championship.
They’ll Miss- Nya Robertson (16.2 ppg), Nya Lok (10 ppg/4.7 rebs/84.1% FT), Mayowa Taiwo (5.3 ppg/7.8 rebs/43.4% FG/50 stls)
Impact returners- Kamari Sims (4.5 ppg), Caia Loving (2.6 ppg/51.9% FG), Maxine Engel (2.5 ppg)
Newcomers of note- Makayla Andrews (13.2 ppg/5.2 rebs/42.2% FG at Lafayette), Mariona Planes Fortuny (16.9 ppg/6.9 rebs/48.3% at Bryant), Paige Mott (8.0 ppg/4.9 rpg/55 assists/31 blocks as a senior at Northwestern), Maeva Fotsa (12.2 ppg/10.4 rebs/43.8% FG at South Georgia Tech)
Reasons to be optimistic- GW believes it has identified pieces which perfectly fit what it is trying to do.
Throughout the recruiting process, McCombs identified two junior college players in Filipa Calisto and Maeva Fotsa, both internationals, who can assist the team.
Calisto hails from Mozambique and is a player who can score both in the paint and from deep, to go with her abilities as a defender. She was discovered, signing during the early signing period.
Fotsa is from Canada and was discovered in the spring as McCombs determined what was needed for her program. Fotsa is a rebounder and defender who checks off those boxes. McCombs emphasized her energy levels, which may be tops amongst the Revolutionaries.
GW also went the traditional recruiting route gaining four freshmen in Miriam Diala, Morgan Matthews, Kyraha Parnell and Gabby Reynolds. Once again, McCombs assessed that each fits GW and the overall style of play.
X-Factor- George Washington has hit some home runs with their graduate transfers and hopes to have rounded the bases twice more with Makayla Andrews and Mariona Planes Fortuny.
Andrews comes from Lafayette where she earned Second Team All-Patriot League honors during a senior year in which she averaged 13.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Andrews also recorded her 1,000th career point last season.
From the beginning, Andrews clicked with both the team and coaching staff, appreciating the support. It was evident during the first conversation that she was comfortable and would be someone who would fit in the program.
“I would say just to leave my mark, come out with a bang and let everyone know that I’m here,” Andrews stated regarding personal expectations. “I’m still going to be my same competitive, get to the basket, make plays, be a good teammate, good defender, so I’m really excited to start to play.”
Planes Fortuny appeared in 108 total games and started all 29 last season with Bryant. She achieved a career-high 16.3 points per game and was named to the All-America East First Team. Additionally, she finished fourth in the program’s all-time scoring list at 1,281 points.
“Mariona is a terrific player, she can play inside, outside, and is very skilled,” McCombs observed. “She shoots threes, scores around the block, her versatility makes us even more of an offensive threat this season. She’s got a great IQ as well. We really expect her to contribute tremendously for us.”
Mott joins the Revolutionaries from Northwestern, where she has played in 113 games with 68 starts. The Philly native brings a lot of experience, coming to GW with 691 career points, 431 career rebounds, 119 career assists and 74 carere blocks.
Circle the dates- With so many new wrinkles playing out on the court, GW has an opportunity to figure it out while sleeping on its own beds as nine of the team’s first 10 games will be played in Washington, D.C. One of those contests is a Dec. 20 home tilt against Towson, a 20-win program a season ago. Atlantic 10 play begins early for GW as round one of the Revolutionary Rivalry tips off once again at home Dec. 3 against George Mason.
Bottom line- After taking a step back last season, GW is poised to make some noise this season and get back to the standard it has long established. It has built this roster with that in mind and hopes to capitalize.