University Southern California Trojans
Women's Hoops Looks Ahead to 1999-2000 Season
July 29, 1999 | Women's Basketball
July 29, 1999
This year's Women of Troy squad, led by third-year head coach Chris Gobrecht, will take the court with a new sense of purpose, relying on the battle-hardened experience of the veterans and the freshness of the newcomers in an attempt to return USC women's basketball to glory.
?USC will turn the corner this year," said Gobrecht. "This team is really committed to upholding the tradition of USC?s excellence. It?s a team that will achieve that excellence in its own way. The personalities that are now in this program are going to start showing themselves on the court. It will be a lot of fun to watch them come together. This is a team that has a much greater sense of purpose, and it is a team that can win.?
Losing only two starters from last season gives the Women of Troy an experienced base of returning players. Add to that a list of strong re-enforcements entering the program, and it is easy to see why USC will be much improved in 1999-2000.
?Everything is relative to where we were a year ago," said Gobrecht. "We are considerably stronger in the areas that completely devastated us last season. Our personnel will give us considerably more depth and a higher level of skill.?
USC finished the 1998-99 season with a 7-20 overall record and tied for ninth place in the Pacific-10 Conference with a 3-15 mark. Gobrecht looks back on the season as a learning experience. Not in her worst nightmare could she have imagined that four potential starting guards would be lost to injury and that starting center Adrain Williams would be sidelined for part of the season with a foot injury.
Happy to be facing the future, Gobrecht and her staff are excited to bring a healthy team to the floor of their new home: the Los Angeles Sports Arena.
No doubt people may not recognize the Women of Troy, complete with a new roster, a new court and a more aggressive style of play.
At the guard position, USC will return starters Tiffany Elmore and Camille Norwood, along with 5-foot-7 senior Erica Mashia, who is looking to return from three years of sitting courtside due to hip and knee injuries.
Looking to build on a strong first season, 5-foot-10 sophomore Elmore was the second-leading scorer on the team last year (behind the now-graduated Williams) and a Pac-10 All-Freshman honorable mention selection. Elmore averaged 11.9 points and 4.3 rebounds in 1999 as an off guard. She started in 25 of USC?s 27 games and saw the most time on the court, averaging 31.1 minutes per game.
"Tiffany was just a freshman last year and had the weight of the world put on her shoulders when all of our guards went down,? said Gobrecht. ?She is a really gifted player, a real hard worker and she loves to win. "
Norwood, a 5-foot-8 sophomore, earned great experience last season at the point guard position after then-senior Kristin Clark went down with an injury to her right knee. Norwood averaged 4.1 points, 1.2 assists and 1.2 rebounds in the 1998-99 season. She stepped up to the challenge of leading USC at the point and will be competitive in the coming season.
"Camille came out every day to get better and will continue to do so,? said Gobrecht. ?She was our best thinker last year on the court because she stayed connected to what was happening on the court at all times. She really benefited from last year's experience."
After being forced to watch the last three seasons from the sidelines (due to various knee and hip injuries), Mashia plans to return to the court full-time this season. She was an All-Pac-10 first team selection in 1995-96 as a freshman, when she set a Pac-10 and USC record for consecutive free throws made (33) just 13 games into her career. Her 84.4 free throw shooting percentage (65-of-77) was a USC single-season record. Mashia also took the No. 1 spot on the USC single-season three-point percentage chart (43.7%), making 38-of-87 from behind the arc. Gobrecht is convinced that Mashia could be just the right addition for this team.
?It would be a wonderful dream come true if Erica was able to return for us," said Gobrecht. "You have those players who, if you get them, it?s the icing on the cake. Erica is more than the icing. She is really a great basketball player and her understanding of the game is amazing."
Along with these three veterans, USC will also bring two talented newcomers to the guard position: 5-foot-5 Ayeshia Smith and 5-foot-7 Lauren Smith-Hams. Both will add scoring, ball handling and knowledge of the game.
Junior transfer Smith comes to Troy from Cowley County Community College in Arkansas City, Mo. A native of Philadelphia, Smith was a highly decorated player in the junior college ranks. As a 1996-97 freshman, she earned second team all-region honors and was named team MVP and Jayhawk League Freshman of the Year. In 1997-98, Smith led her team to a conference championship, earning her second consecutive year of all-league, all-region first team and league MVP accolades, while averaging 16.0 points and five assists per game as a sophomore.
"Ayeshia was signed because of our need at point guard," said Gobrecht. "She is a real quality athlete who can play the point position the way it is supposed to be played. She is excellent at making the scoring pass and going to the basket. She is a good three-point shooter and has good court awareness and leadership, which will make her an impact player on this team."
Completing the guard position for the Women of Troy will be freshman Smith-Hams. The California Division V Player of the Year at Pinewood High in Los Altos, Calif., she averaged 17.8 points, 7.5 assists, three steals and three rebounds as a senior. A four-time all-league first team selection, she will add needed depth at the guard position.
"Lauren has an excellent touch on the ball and is an excellent shooter," said Gobrecht. "She is another player who understands the game very well. She knows just when to make the pass at the right time and has a good understanding of where the ball needs to be on the floor, how to set herself up and how to set her teammates up.?
Expect to see a new look inside the paint as the Women of Troy fill the center position with two new faces, 6-foot-2 Denise Woods and 6-foot-4 Portia Mitchell. As a redshirt junior, Woods will take the court this year after transferring from San Francisco and sitting out the 1998-99 season. Woods earned All-West Coast Conference honorable mention honors as a sophomore after averaging 14.0 points and 8.9 rebounds a game with the Lady Dons.
?Denise gives us a player who can score, rebound and block shots," said Gobrecht. "I anticipate that she will be excellent on defense because she has such a terrific reach. She is another thinking player who will contribute to our being able to do some more sophisticated things offensively. Denise has an excellent work ethic and is the kind of player who can just sneak up on you and surprise you."
Mitchell, a 6-foot-4 freshamn center, will bring size and skill to USC in this season. Mitchell comes to Troy as a 1998-99 Women's Basketball Journal All-American. She was also named a Student Sports All-American selection during her sophomore, junior and senior prep seasons. As a sophomore, Mitchell earned all-state first-team honors, and was named to the all-area and All-South Bay/Westside second teams.
"Portia is a quality post player who can rebound and score underneath the basket. She has great strength and can be very intimidating defensively. She will be a terrific addition," said Gobrecht. "Not only her ability, but her personality will add a lot of real positive things to the team.
We have gotten considerably bigger inside with Denise and Portia. These two will give us size that we have not had available to us in the past few years."
Two other talented newcomers bolster a frontcourt already strengthened with the return of three veteran forwards: 6-foot-2 senior Tiffany Washington, 6-foot junior Tashara Carter and 6-foot-1 sophomore Carmen Krause. They will be joined in the paint by 6-foot-2 redshirt senior Danielle Golay and 5-foot-10 freshman Tennille Grant.
The most experienced of the forward squad, Washington will look to build on a strong season and help to return USC to national respect. A two-year starter (25 of 27 games last season) for the Women of Troy, she averaged 9.2 points and 7.0 rebounds last season.
"Tiffany really seized the opportunity last year to make a name for herself," said Gobrecht. "She went for it and began to turn heads as the year wore on. We knew that she could rebound and play defense, but she proved that she could score as well. She wants to finish with a performance that we can all be proud of."
Carter, a two-year USC veteran at the small forward position, averaged 9.4 points, 6.0 rebounds and two steals in 1998-99.
"Tashara can do so much for this team," said Gobrecht. "I think that our depth is going to help her game, giving her the ability to be more creative and competitive. She just has to get out there and do what she is capable of doing, because she can truly be a key player."
Krause returns after starting 13 games last season. Adding a knack for rebounding and quickness in the paint, Krause averaged 3.8 points and 3.1 rebounds in 1998-99.
"Carmen is one of those players you are just really glad to have on your team," said Gobrecht. "You can never quite predict how she is going to help or what she is going to do, but she will be out there. Carmen does things that help teams win. Though she can handle herself in the post, we want to be able to move her out to the perimeter."
Coming to USC after playing three seasons at Seton Hall, Golay will be a key player in the Women of Troy offense, adding size, depth and leadership. Eager to get back on the court after sitting out last season, she will make a difference both offensively and defensively. As a 1997-98 junior, Golay earned All-Big East second team honors and led Seton Hall in scoring with a 17.2 average. She ended the season as the Big East's fourth-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder.
"Danielle is a very intelligent athlete," said Gobrecht. "We are very excited to have her out there in the mix. Our ability to execute offensively and to run some fairly sophisticated plays will be greater because of her. She can score, rebound and pass, and is a very committed, very driven player."
Grant, a small forward who may also see time at the guard position, comes to USC from Kansas City, Mo. As a 1999 senior at Northeast High, Grant earned first team all-state and All-Metro League honors. She averaged 26.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, three steals and three assists per game and was named the Interscholastic League's Most Valuable Player.
"Tennille brings us some things that we really needed last year," said Gobrecht. "Mostly, she will play fearlessly. This is a good player who has all the intangibles, she has the mental toughness that you look for and the intelligence in the game. We are very excited to see what dimension she will bring to the team.?
Excited to get off to a fresh start, these players will battle to make a name for themselves as they rebuild the legacy of USC women's basketball.
"We all realize that last season we were in most of our games with the leading teams in the Pac-10," said Gobrecht. "What caught up with us over and over again was our lack of personnel and lack of experience. We had no capacity to weather the things that could normally happen in a basketball game: foul trouble, fatigue and inconsistency. The skills we have picked up ought to have a serious impact on our ability to win. I'm very excited to see what we can do as a team."
