Wednesday, November 27, 1996
W. HOOPS:
This season’s team features young, fresh talent, with only one
returning starterBy A. CinQue Carter
Daily Bruin Contributor
After last season ended and after coming off of her third year
as captain of the ship that is UCLA women’s basketball, head coach
Kathy Olivier expected to have a strong team this year.
With three returning starters, Olivier and the Bruins hoped to
greatly improve upon last season’s 13-14 record. She expected to
build the future of the program around a veteran foundation.
What the coach did not expect was to lose her starting backcourt
before the 1996-97 season even started.
But she did.
Standout senior guard Nickey Hilbert chose to forego her final
season of eligibility in order to begin graduate school, and super
sophomore point guard Erica Gomez has to sit out the entire season
with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee. As a
result, only junior Tawana Grimes returns as a starter.
"We miss Erica’s confidence and Nickey’s quickness," Olivier
said. "But we still have Tawana’s great leadership, (so) we’re
going to be alright."
The current task now for Olivier and her staff, is to get this
engine pumping while dealing with the loss of Hilbert and Gomez’s
combined 28.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 6 rebounds per
game.
Compounding that hardship, UCLA will be starting four freshmen.
The Bruins (1-0) are younger and deeper than they were last year,
but not as deep as they would be had last season’s starting guards
returned.
"As far as the new ones go, we have a lot of talent," Olivier
said. "And I’d rather be talented without experience, than
experienced without talent."
There are plenty of newcomers to watch. Starting power forward
Maylana Martin, point guard Melanie Pearson, small forward Marie
Philman, and centers Carly Funicello and Janae Hubbard, are all
freshmen.
"(Martin) possesses the size, quickness, ball-handling ability,
scoring range, and competitive fire to be a truly special player,"
Olivier said. Martin played this summer with the USA Junior
National Team, averaging 7.4 points and five rebounds.
Pearson will have big shoes to fill in the absence of Gomez, but
her coaches feel she will step up to the challenge.
"We will definitely be relying on Melanie to direct the
offense," Olivier said. "Her ball-handling skills are a big plus in
a player of her size. A quick adjustment to the college game would
not be a surprise."
Funicello looks to fill the void left by departed-senior Kisa
Hughes at center. Funicello was an All-State selection her last two
years of high school and was named the L.A. Times’ San Fernando
Player of the Year.
"Carly is a player who will come ready to play each day with a
competitive fire that will not accept ‘no’ for an answer," Olivier
said. "Our strength in the post will rest with Maylana, Carly,
Carla, and Janae."
Carla Houser, a transfer from James Madison University, is a
shot-blocking threat who looks to throw the opponents’ timing off.
Her 12 blocks at JMU set a freshman school record.
"Carla adds frontcourt experience … and will be a perfect
complimentary player inside to some of our newcomers," Olivier
said.
Hubbard possesses a soft shooting touch and has the ability to
physically dominate on the inside.
"Janae has a tremendous amount of talent," Olivier said. "I
expect her to be an immediate and major contributor."
Philman, who totaled 2,186 points and 1,154 rebounds through her
high school career (school records), was an All-State selection
last season and was chosen the Orange County Register’s Player of
the Year and overall Athlete of the Year.
"She has a physicalness to her game which I like. Marie is a
flat-out, get-it-done kind of player," Olivier said.
But the freshmen aren’t the only stories.
Grimes, with 77 steals last year (and 130 over the past two
seasons), is on pace to take over second place on UCLA’s all-time
list. Grimes also contributed 7.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per
contest while amassing 99 assists on the season. Grimes and Aisha
Veasley give the Bruins a 1-2 punch on defense.
Veasley, with her quickness and athleticism, usually makes her
presence felt as soon as she enters the game. In addition to her
5.8 points in 19 minutes last season, Veasley also grabbed 4.3
rebounds per game.
Sophomore Laura Tomich and juniors Veasley and Jamie Oenning are
the veteran reserves.
After red-shirting last season, Takiyah Jackson and Carla Houser
will see their first action in Bruin uniforms this season.
"Takiyah is a very flashy player," assistant coach Willette
White said. "She has an incredible amount of moves and is a crowd
pleaser. "We’re excited about her."
Oenning figures to add depth to the Bruin backcourt this season,
as does Tomich. Tomich is a three-point threat, as she shoots 40
percent from behind the arc last season. Oenning gives the Bruins a
strong presence from the free throw line, with her shooting 80
percent last season. They both look to give Jackson and Pearson a
lot of help off the bench.
Preparation for a tough Pacific 10 schedule, through "a
beefed-up non-conference schedule" begins this Saturday, according
to Olivier.
On Friday, the Bruins take on 11th-ranked Texas Tech (2-0) and
then Western Kentucky and New Orleans in the (Pac-10)
Challenge.
"These games will really give us a good indication of where we
are as a team," Tomich said. "We play well and we have a lot of
talent on this team. We’ve just got to bring it all together by
(NCAA) tournament time."
Just because Gomez is out for the season, that does not mean
she’s not still an asset to the team.
"Erica brings us confidence," Olivier said. "Just having her
around makes everyone feel better. And as a team, we’re only going
to get better and better."