KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The 16 teams that make up the Big 12 gathered at T-Mobile Center for women’s basketball media days on Tuesday.
All 16 coaches and players from all 16 programs were in attendance to talk about the upcoming season, which starts the first full week of November.
Here are four takeaways from the day.
‘THERE’S NOT SEVEN GUARDS BETTER THAN HER’
Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly started his time during the televised portion of media day talking about Emily Ryan, his fifth-year point guard, who opted to use her COVID waiver to play one final season.
He didn’t seem amused with Ryan not being on the All-Big 12 preseason team, which was released a couple of weeks ago.
“There’s not seven guards better than her in this league,” Fennelly said. “In my opinion. I get my opinion.”
Ryan missed nine games to start last season but returned to take over her point guard duties and help the Cyclones reach the NCAA Tournament again, as they reached to the second round before losing to Stanford. She revealed earlier this month that she spent more than a year dealing with mental illness, which manifested itself in an eating disorder that, in part, led to last year’s absence.
Ryan said that there was “no question” that she was returning for a fifth year if she could. Fennelly is thrilled she did, saying the team is “really, really lucky.”
“One of my longtime friends used to say, ‘When you get a great point guard, they’re gifts from God. When you don’t have them, you’re in hell,’” he said. “So we’re in good shape in that regard, even though the other coaches in our league didn’t vote for her, so that’s okay.”
WHY TCU FOR VAN LITH
TCU guard Hailey Van Lith took her first reps with the Big 12 media since she joined the Horned Frogs via transfer last spring. Van Lith is coming off winning a bronze medal in 3X3 basketball at the Summer Olympics in Paris. She said the transition to TCU basketball has been relatively “seamless.” She even did her pre-Paris training in Fort Worth at TCU’s facility.
Van Lith is one of the college game’s most recognizable players. After three terrific years at Louisville, she went to LSU to play alongside Angel Reese and Flau’jae Johnson. She had the option to go to the WNBA but opted to trigger her COVID waiver and play one more year.
Given her profile, TCU might seem a curious choice. The program hasn’t been to the NCAA Tournament in more than a decade. But Van Lith sees TCU’s offensive approach as an opportunity to grow her game before the inevitable move to pro basketball next spring.
“One of the main reasons I wanted to come to TCU is the offensive system, the opportunity that that presents for someone of my playing style,” she said. “Not only will it benefit me, it’s also pushed me to get better this offseason. I’ve become so much better at making reads and playing in the pick and roll.”
TCU was picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll and TCU coach Mark Campbell said they are looking to create as many possessions as possible on offense, joking that shooters like Van Lith and guard Madison Conner have “fluorescent green lights” this season.
BEAR MOTIVATION
Last season was a breakthrough for Baylor under coach Nicki Collen. In her third season she got the Bears to the Sweet 16 for the first time under her leadership, which is also the first time since Kim Mulkey left to take over at LSU.
She has an experienced team coming back, one that now includes another player that went to the Sweet 16 last year with another team — former Colorado center Aaronette Vonleh.
With roster consistent and a free summer, as Baylor didn’t go on a foreign trip, she and her staff was able to help drive skill development through two-on-two and three-on-three play before fall workouts.
But that doesn’t mean she didn’t take the opportunity to remind her team of what could have been. The Bears were close to getting into the Elite Eight, with Collen saying the Bears were one possession away.
“We showed them clips of the mistakes that we made late in the game, and the difference in being a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight team — it can be one possession, it can be two possessions,” she said. “So it’s about focusing. It’s about focusing on the details.”
The Bears were picked to finish third in the preseason coaches’ poll.
NO. 1 AND FORGOTTEN
The Kansas State Wildcats were selected No. 1 in the Big 12 coaches’ preseason media poll, but by only two points over Iowa State.
The Wildcats, led by coach Jeff Mittie and a host of returnees, including center Ayoka Lee, are using last year’s second-round exit in the NCAA Tournament as fuel for this season and not their selection at the top of the media poll. In fact, Mittie admitted to being “a little surprised” K-State was No. 1.
Not that there was a lot of discussion about it when the team learned about the results.
“We expected to be picked somewhere near the top,” Mittie said. “But I think honestly, the minute that poll came out, I don’t know how they (the players) feel, we talked about it, and then it’s pretty much been in the rear-view mirror. I don’t think we’ve talked about it until today. We’ve been asked about it a lot today.”
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.