Stiff Tests Await Chippewa Women
12/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jared Porter, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - To be the best, you have to beat the best.
The Central Michigan women's basketball team will have the opportunity to knock off top-ranked South Carolina (10-0) Saturday in its first game of the Subway Classic in Minneapolis, Minn., before facing another formidable opponent in host Minnesota (9-1) on Sunday.
Both games will tipoff at 1 p.m. and will be carried live on Big 10 Network Plus.
There are few, if any, opportunities in a season for teams to square off against the No. 1 team in the nation. Central Michigan coach Sue Guevara said practice this week has been business as usual and the Chippewas have prepared for their matchup with South Carolina just as they have for every opponent.
"As far as preparation, there hasn't really been any changes," Guevara said. "What we do is we take a look at (the Gamecocks') strengths and weaknesses. We can't take away everything South Carolina does, so we ask ourselves, `What can we do?'
"That's how we put the game plan together, with some very specific goals for our players against South Carolina, which we do with everybody. It just so happens that they're the No. 1 team in the country.
"This week, we've worked a lot on our transition defense, our rebounding, our 2-3 and buzz (defenses) and we really focused on being much more disciplined on the offensive end of the floor against the pressure we're going to see this weekend."
Returning all five starters from last season's Southeastern Conference championship squad, the Gamecocks have 97.6 percent of their scoring, 96.0 percent of their rebounding and 98.4 percent of their assists back from last year.
Among the returnees are SEC Player of the Year Tiffany Mitchell, the SEC Freshman and Co-Sixth Player of the Year Alaina Coates, and a two-time All-SEC selection Aleighsa Welch.
"They have size, they have athleticism, they have good guard play, they attack and they're deep," Guevara said. "I think when you can substitute 6-foot-4 for 6-4 and 6-5 for 6-5, you have a pretty good advantage."
"They're the reigning SEC Champions and they have been together a while. So they have great chemistry with a lot of help coming off the bench."
The Chippewas wrap up the Subway Classic with a Sunday game against a Minnesota team that is currently riding a five-game win streak. The Gophers have three players averaging double-digits in points in Rachel Banham (18.3), Shae Kelley (16.3) and Amanda Zahui (14.3).
"I don't think there's any doubt that our players are excited for the chance to play great teams this weekend," Guevara said. "They have been really focused in practice. They understand that both South Carolina and Minnesota offer major challenges for us, but I know I won't have to do a lot of chewing to get them motivated to play. They're really looking forward to the challenge."
The Chippewas (4-3) snapped a two-game losing streak with a 91-63 win over Delaware State on Tuesday. CMU got off to a slow start against the Hornets, something that has marked many of their games this season.
Guevara said after Tuesday's game that the Chippewas simply cannot afford a similar start against South Carolina, or the Gophers.
All-America candidate Crystal Bradford continues to lead the Chippewas in scoring (18.8) and rebounding (9.7) while working herself back into playing shape after offseason knee surgery. Guard Jessica Green is second on the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game.
Freshman Cassandra Breen has been a pleasant surprise and leads CMU's three-point shooters, knocking down 42.9 percent (12-of-28) of her triple tries.
