The Lady Griz claimed the Big Sky regular-season basketball championship for the third time in four years, set school records in several offensive categories, earned a Top 25 national ranking for the first time since 1994, and won more games heading into the postseason than any team in Coach Robin Selvig's 29 seasons.
And they did it with just one senior.
Poof. Just like that, 27-2 with a bullet turned into 27-4 and goodnight Irene. It was as if da Vinci, with two final brushstrokes, had painted a mustache on the Mona Lisa.
“It's more disappointing, because we were in position to do something special,” said Selvig, who has guided UM to 16 NCAA tournament appearances. “You don't chalk up 27 wins and get ranked that often. It was there, but we didn't cap it off.”
Failing to receive an at-large NCAA bid re-enforced the harsh reality of the Big Sky, where a season's worth of success can be negated by one sub-par game. The silver lining is that UM should be better next season. Its top four scorers in conference play were sophomores, led by Big Sky MVP Mandy Morales and all-conference selections Sonya Rogers and Britney Lohman.
The Lady Griz shattered the 15-year-old school scoring record, ranking eighth in the nation at 77.5 points per game. They also set single-season records by converting 76.5 percent of their free throws and draining 192 3-pointers. They shot 38.2 percent from the arc, the second-best mark in school annals.
“Our transition game really came into its own,” Selvig said. “We had good open-court players. And the better we did it, the more we encouraged it.”
While the offense flourished, Selvig knows his team must sharpen its half-court execution, gain more consistent post play and rebound better. The four losses - to NAU, Utah, Weber State and Ohio State - came to opponents who prevented UM from running.
Selvig also expects defensive improvement, although UM led the Big Sky in field-goal defense (.356). The Lady Griz will work hard next season to elevate their matchup zone to the coach's exacting standards.
“You always have questions going into a season, but we're also going to have a lot of givens,” Selvig said. “I know what to expect out of this team, and I think I know what some of our shortcomings are. There's a lot of room for improvement, but we'll be building on a lot better base.”
It was a breakout season for the 5-foot-9 Morales, who finished with 612 points - the second highest total in school history - and was a finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation. The only player to rank in the top 20 nationally in scoring (19.7) and assists (6.8), Morales should only get better with experience.
Morales was named the league's player of the week five straight times during a magical December, and a record six overall. She appeared to wear down at the end, slowed by a sore back and the pounding of opposing defenses. Keeping Morales fresh will be a priority for Selvig next season.
“She was unbelievably good for a long stretch,” Selvig said. “She was finding people, and making every shot. I didn't feel that would keep happening, and it didn't bother me as much as it bothered her when it didn't keep happening. And that's part of growing, and maturing and becoming an experienced player.”
Rogers also cooled off a bit down the stretch, but still averaged 11.0 points while making a smooth transition from Morales' backup to the starter at shooting guard. At the starting forwards, juniors Dana Conway and Johanna Closson made key contributions, with Conway providing solid defense and Closson (9.9 points, 6.5 rebounds) earning all-conference honorable mention.
“From Christmas on, Johanna was really good,” Selvig said. “For the first time ever, she was a leader. And she was having fun, you could tell. It was great to see.”
Junior Laura Cote harnessed her quickness to become a sparkplug off the bench, and redshirt freshman Lauren Beck played limited minutes but showed flashes of the talent that should make her a factor next season. Cote could spell both Morales and Rogers, while Beck has the versatility to play the point, shooting guard or small forward.
A big part of UM's success came up front, with emergence of the 6-1 Lohman and fellow sophomore Tamara Guardipee. Lohman morphed from a defensive specialist into an all-around standout, averaging 9.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and shooting 53 percent from the field. The 6-2 Guardipee averaged 8.5 points and 6.3 rebounds to go with a team-best 40 blocked shots.
UM loses backup center Sara Gale, a valuable reserve who averaged 3.0 points and shot 53 percent.
“Without those three, we don't have this kind of season,” Selvig said. “Sara's graduation means we'll have to figure some things out, in terms of roles and playing time.”
Freshman Shadra Robison and sophomore Betsy Snead saw only mop-up duty, while freshmen Jessa Linford and Stephanie Stender were redshirts. Junior Jackie DeShazer will graduate, her career curtailed by knee problems.
Next year's newcomers are a pair of Washington high-school products, forward Sarah Ena and guard/forward Misty Atkinson, and Hardin standout Dvera Tolbert, who is expected to sign in April. The 6-0 Tolbert is an outstanding athlete who has already drawn comparisons to Nicky Eason, the jumping-jack forward who helped lead NAU to the 2006 NCAA tournament.
Selvig is still finalizing the schedule for next season, which will include home dates with Washington State, Idaho and Cal State Northridge, and road tests at Gonzaga and Wyoming. He needs to fill out the the field for the Holiday Classic, as well as pick up one more home game and a road game.
If the 2007 Lady Griz were left with plenty of “what ifs,” they also laid the foundation for a bright future.
“As good as we were, we can get so much better,” Selvig said. “That's exciting.”
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