2011-2012 Lady Buckeyes Basketball

[nodakst]

Huge holes to fill after the graduation of last year's class. The class accounted for significant scoring, rebounding, and 3 pt. shooting.

Prahalis and Hill are for certain starters and I think Ashley Adams also needs to start as she came on strong last year. Stokes will probably see strong playing time but the Buckeyes will need the frosh and soph class to step it up. Who out of Moore, Ellerbe and Harmon develop into another low post player? And the frosh class has back court players that are going to need to step up.

I think the conference is well balanced but their are e teams that I see really pushing for the title. Most of this is based on expereince across theboard:

Purdue: Return Drey Mingo, Courtney Moses, Brittney Rayburn, and get KK Houser back. Houser and Moses are a dangerous backcourt. Antoinette Howard prrovides a versatile wing forward player. If Moses avoids a sophomore slump and can build off her soph. year, she'll be all-conference.

Penn State: Alex Bentley at the point, along with Zhaque Gray and Meggie Lucas in the backcourt and Mia Nickson and Nikki Greene down low. Lucas, like Moses, could be an all conference player her sophomore year. Greene also came on strong at the end of last season.

Iowa: Kachine alexander who led the team graduated but Iowa brings in a top 10 frosh in Sam Logic to support Kamile Wahlin, Jamie Printy, Kelly Krei and Morgan johnson. Two other frosh to watch are post players Virginia Johnson and Bethany Doolittle. Theirra Taylor is progressing well after missing most of the past two season with an ACL issue.

Those are my thoughts. Michigan State will look a lot different if 6-7 madison Williams is ready to comeback after missing last season due to injury. If she can team with Lykendra Johnson, Michigan State will have the best post game in the conference.

 

[osubucksfan2]

In order for her to be very good, Ashley Adams needs to get her feet out of sand and get some agility....

IDK what to expect this year...

 

[lord vegas]

In order for her to be very good, Ashley Adams needs to get her feet out of sand and get some agility....

IDK what to expect this year...

Im giving her the benefit of the doubt because she was coming off of that knee injury so conditioning and explosiveness were going to be lacking. But i agree whole heartedly.

 

[lord vegas]

Here's what I expect for the 12 season, Pulled from the 10-11 thread.

Looks like our wings better go bananas every game. Looking at the roster we almost have to run teams into the ground and tire their bigs out. We have enough guards and SF to supply other B10 teams one or two. And we add three more in the incoming class.

The only size we have is message board guys favorite Alexsandra Dobranic(Sp?) who goes 6'4", and then Ashley Adams who goes 6'5". After that Nada. Neither can be labeled as fleet of foot either.

Keys to next season to me:
1. Sammy outgrows her 3 year old toddler melt downs during games and becomes an all around leader.
2. Hill has consistent jumper and finishes at the rim. I expect her to be one of the leading scores next year. She has the athleticism to be special. 3. Adams gets more agile and becomes half of the beasts that Davenport and Lavender were on O and D.
4. We rebound as a team exceptionally well, especially from the wing.
5. Our bench gets deep and productive because we will be pushing the rock.

 

[nodakst]

Outside of Hill and Adams, it's hard to say who among the other 6 soph/juniors will step it up as no one has averaged more than 9 minutes per game. WIll the frosh take note of this and come in ready to play?

As you mentioned, lord vegas, Prahalis is gonna have to effectively manage the fine line between her passionate play, and her emotional outbursts. ANd it's important to role model this control for the younger players. When she's on, there are few better.

Whatever chemistry issues that were impacting the team last winter need to be addressed by the coaching staff and upper class early.

 

[Buckskin86]

Ohio State women's basketball: Familiar faces return to work with Foster
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
By Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Two people who grew up inside the Ohio State women's basketball program are joining the staff of coach Jim Foster for the upcoming season.

Foster said yesterday in a telephone interview that he has chosen Patrick Klein to fill an assistant-coaching vacancy, and Candace Dark will assume the role of video coordinator.

Both are Ohio State graduates with deep ties to Foster and the women's basketball program.

"They were both great student-athletes," Foster said. "So they have the ability to help us outside of their areas. That was a plus for both of them."

Klein was a student-manager for the OSU women's team in the 2004-05 season and became a graduate assistant coach the following two seasons after earning a bachelor's degree in business management. He also spent three seasons as an assistant to Illinois coach Jolette Law.

"He knows coaching," Foster said. "He knows the league. He loves the university. It was a no-brainer."

Cont...

http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...faces-return-to-work-with-foster.html?sid=101

 

[Buckskin86]

Women's basketball: Spotlight falls on Buckeyes
Thursday September 8, 2011
By Jim Massie
The Columbus Dispatch

The Big Ten announced its 2011-12 conference schedule for women?s basketball yesterday, and a quick scan shows that Ohio State is playing 11 nationally televised games.

The Buckeyes are on the Big Ten Network eight times and have three games on ESPN2 or ESPN3. The exposure doesn?t bother coach Jim Foster.

?The Big Ten Network has had a significant impact on us, and it continues to have a significant impact based on this schedule,? Foster said.

The defending conference tournament champion Buckeyes open Big Ten play on Dec. 30 at Wisconsin. Their home opener is against Iowa on Jan. 2 in Value City Arena. Both games will be televised by the Big Ten Network.

The three ESPN2/ESPN3 games are at Michigan State on Jan. 15, at home against Purdue on Feb. 12 and at Penn State on Feb. 20.

Nebraska also joins the conference this season. The Buckeyes play host to the Cornhuskers on Jan. 19 and travel to Lincoln on Feb. 26 in the final regular-season game of the season. The latter is a Big Ten Network game.

?We?ve played them three times in the last six years,? Foster said. ?To me, it?s almost like they already were in the Big Ten.?

The addition of Nebraska means Ohio State will play five teams twice and six teams once in the 16-game regular season. The one-timers are Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Penn State and Purdue.

http://www.buckeyextra.com/content/stories/2011/09/08/spotlight-falls-on-buckeyes.html

 

[nodakst]

Great schedule for OSU in that they get two games against Wisky, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, and Nebraska which will probably be worth 9 or 10 B1G TEN (12) wins. Purdue, Penn State, and Iowa bring back the most talent and Foster gets Purdue and Iowa in Columbus.

 

[lord vegas]

Cold Feet

Ladies Bball had a recent decommit.

Kianna Holland, a 5-9 guard from Seneca, S.C., told ESPN HoopGurlz this week that she has rescinded a verbal commitment she made to Ohio State in the spring and has re-opened her recruitment.

 

[lord vegas]

A little more intel on Kianna Holland from EsPN:

Battle in the Boro-July 11: Continuing her strong spring and summer performance. Pushing the ball on virtually every possession. Vision and confidence allow her to read the floor and make good decisions both on the break and in halfcout scenarios. Her long range consistency and quick release necessitate quick and tight close outs from defenders. Has a tendency to pull up rather than take it all the way to the rim on occasion but the pull up isn't a bad option either. Went cold for a period and compensated with some sharp distribution of the ball. Defensively had a few moments of reaching and lunging that left her out of position against quicker guards who could convert the opportunity. (Lewis)

 

[Buckskin86]

Ozone media day pics...

http://photo.the-ozone.net/photos/2011_2012/WomensBasketball/11-10-13-WB-0501-DH.jpg

 

[Buckskin86]

Naz's Blair works way from hoops newbie to Ohio State commit
By JOSEPH STASZEWSKI
October 24, 2011

There was a time when Lisa Blair knew nothing about basketball and it was the last thing in the world she want to be doing.

?I didn?t like it,? the 6-foot-6 Nazareth center said. ?I felt like I was being forced to. I wasn?t passionate for it. I didn?t want to go to practice. It took me a while to realize this is what I wanted to do and this is what I love.?

Blair cited the summer heading into her junior year at St. Michael Academy as the turning point. It was then that high school and Exodus travel ball coach Apache Paschall saw a change. She said she realized she could compete with her own teammates, many of whom are playing at or will be attending Division I schools. It made her believe she could compete with anyone at that point and drove her toward rapid improvement of all areas.

Joseph Staszewski
Nazareth's Lisa Blair verbally committed to Ohio State Sunday.

Joseph Staszewski
Lisa Blair celebrates her commitment with coach Apache Paschall at the Rose Classic.

?She actually made a layup in a game,? Paschall joked. ?You can feel good when that happens. She actually made a layup. Then started blocking shots and she arrived. We knew then that other schools were going to look at her.?

Blair began to get a bevy of Division I interest, but there was one school that had a special place for in her heart from the start. Ohio State has been her favorite since she began learning the game four years ago, part of that has to do with the fact that good friend and former Exodus teammate Sammy Prahalis is a star at the school and the family atmosphere around the program. Blair realized her own dream by committed to the Buckeyes on Sunday. She picked them over South Florida, Morehead State, Weber State and LaSalle.

?It means everything to me,? said Blair, who arrived at the Rose Classic in an Ohio State hoodie. ?It proves how hard I worked and how dedicated I am. In the beginning I never would have thought that I would have been able to go to Ohio State.?

cont...

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/high...sketball_Wm9dk9WHxfWgJ9lfj16DGJ#ixzz1bxLNb0Cz

 

[LitlBuck]

Media Day

By Jim Massie The Columbus Dispatch
Friday October 28, 2011 5:44 AM

ROSEMONT, Ill. ? The changing of the guard inside the Big Ten women?s basketball universe caught no one by surprise yesterday during the conference?s media gathering.

Penn State was voted the preseason favorite for the championship in polls conducted by the league coaches and media.

Ohio State was nowhere to be found on either short list ? the conference only ranks a top three. Purdue was second, and Iowa and Michigan State each took one of the third spots.

The Buckeyes, winners of six consecutive regular-season titles before stumbling last season, would have landed somewhere in the middle. Such is the perception of life at Ohio State without All-America center Jantel Lavender, a four-time conference player of the year.

Senior point guard Samantha Prahalis was placed on the all-conference preseason team.

Prahalis shared the possible player of the year vote among the coaches with Penn State junior guard Alex Bentley. The media gave the nod to Bentley. Prahalis enters the season among active players with the most career points (1,397), assists (707), and steals (180).

Junior guard Tayler Hill also returns to the starting lineup with sophomore post Ashley Adams, a late-season addition to the group.

Coach Jim Foster, who is retooling the offense around Prahalis, Hill and junior guard Amber Stokes, was unruffled by what others think two weeks before an opening season tip.

more
http://www.buckeyextra.com/content/stories/2011/10/28/osu-no-longer-favorite-in-big-ten.html

 

[Buckskin86]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF09RCo9A20"]Behind The Scenes: 2011 Ohio State Women's Basketball Media Day - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmb_9bH7YN0"]Behind The Scenes 2011 Ohio State Women's Basketball Media Day - YouTube.flv - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Buckskin86]

McKinley's Alston to play basketball for Ohio State
By Todd Porter
CantonRep.com staff writer
Posted Nov 08, 2011

McKinley High School senior Ameryst Alston, the reigning Ms. Basketball in Ohio, has verbally committed to play basketball at Ohio State.

Alston accepted OSU's offer during her official visit to the campus over the weekend.

Alston is Stark County's only Ms. Basketball and she is the two-time defending Stark County Player of the Year. She already is McKinley's all-time leading scorer.

She averaged 21.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 3.4 steals during her junior season.

http://www.cantonrep.com/highschool/x76453609/McKinleys-Alston-to-play-basketball-for-Ohio-State