No. 6 Tiger Women's Basketball tips off their 2023-24 season against the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor and East Texas Baptist this weekend.
The Tigers are coming out hot on the heels of a wildly successful 2022-23 season where the Tigers finished with a 28-2 record, an undefeated home record, a third-straight SCAC Championship, and an NCAA III third-round appearance. The Tigers did not lose a game for three straight months. The Tigers were also ranked 2nd nationally in total points (2539), 3rd in steals per game (17.8) and 4th in turnovers forced per game (30.20). Through their success, the Tigers were selected as the favorite to take the SCAC title this season.
The Tigers were highlighted by senior
Ashlyn Milton. Milton filled up her trophy case last season. Along with winning the SCAC Championship, Milton was named SCAC Player of the Year, first team All-SCAC, first team All-Region, and fifth team All-American. Milton led the Tigers with 13.4 points per game and now holds the school record for single-season and career field goals made.
Milton wasn't the only successful Tiger, though. To go along with Milton on the All-Region list would be fellow senior
Maggie Shipley. Shipley would be named second team All-Region to go along with her first team All-SCAC selection. Joining them as all-conference players were
Josie Napoli (Beaverton, Oregon / Valley Catholic),
Maggie Robbins (Plano, Texas / Plano), and
Addie Putnam (Scottsdale, Arizona / Xavier College Prep).
Although the Tigers have lost two big stars from last year's team, they are not worried. Head Coach
Cameron Hill has always had an "Everybody Love Everybody" and "Together Tigers" mentality. Coach Hill recognizes that team effort and togetherness is the key to a successful season and he will continue to keep that mindset coming into 2023-24.
WBCA Rankings - Tigers Start At 6
The Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) has ranked the Tigers sixth nationally for their preseason poll. Obtaining the top spot is Transylvania, with NYU ranked second. Regional rival Hardin-Simmons comes into the 2023-24 season ranked eighth while Mary Hardin-Baylor is receiving votes.
2023-24 Schedule Overview
The Tigers will open up their season against Mary-Hardin Baylor on November 11th, then play the next day against East Texas Baptist. The first home games for the Tigers will be against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Cal Lutheran on November 17th and 18th. The Tigers will play against their first nationally ranked opponent when they travel to Abilene to face off against no. 8 Hardin-Simmons on November 25th. The Tigers will play their first SCAC opponent when they play against Southwestern on December 1st. The Tigers will open up the new year at home against Schreiner on January 2nd and then get a rematch of the 2022 SCAC championship on January 5th when they play Colorado College. February will begin just like the previous month, with the Tigers playing Schreiner on February 6th. To round off the regular season, the Tigers will be in Shreveport to match up against Centenary on February 18th.
Full 2023-24 Schedule
Preview - Season Openers
The Tigers will play their first two games of the season in Marshall, Texas. Their first game will be against Mary Hardin-Baylor on Saturday at 7:30 PM, then Sunday against East Texas Baptist at 1:00 PM.
On The Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders: The Crusaders finished their 2022-23 season with a 19-8 record and an ASC semi-final appearance. The Crusaders would be defeated by East Texas Baptist 65-68 in overtime. The Crusaders were consistent offensively, scoring 69.8 points per game, and only averaged 15 turnovers per game. However, the Crusaders were only 1-3 against ranked opponents last season. During their matchup, the Crusaders were defeated by the Tigers by a score of 74-63. The Crusaders will be returning leading scorer Arieone Rosborough. Rosborough averaged 14.7 points per game last season on a .428 field-goal percentage.
On The East Texas Baptist Tigers: The 2022-23 ASC runner-ups finished their season with a 20-7 record. ETBU's last game would be a loss against the University of Texas-Dallas by a score of 57-63. ETBU did not crack the top 25 last season but received votes every week. The Tigers were 3-3 against ranked opponents last season. The last time ETBU and the Tigers faced off was in 2021, with ETBU defeating the Tigers by a score of 70-76. ETBU may struggle offensively, as they have lost their top four point-scorers from last season. All-time, the Tigers are 2-1 against ETBU.
Key To The Season
The Press: A key to the Tigers' defensive success last season was their full-court press. The Tigers kept constant pressure on their opponents up and down the floor. The press gave the Tigers the ability to trap and take advantage of bad pass attempts. The Tigers averaged 33 points off of turnovers last season, including multiple games with 40-plus points off of turnovers. For this season, teams know that the Tigers will be pressing, but can they break the press?
Looking Ahead - Home Opener
After the conclusion of their games in Marshall, the Tigers will head back home to play against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on November 17th and Cal Lutheran on November 18th.
