8 minute read
High Aspirations
With a new coach and new 6-9 center, UW women look at a turnaround 2021 campaign
BY BOB SHERWIN • CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Nancy Mulkey came into the 2021-22 basketball season never having scored a point for the Washington women’s team, yet she may be considered among the best players ever to put on a Husky uniform. At the very least, no Husky player has ever reached the height the 6-foot-9 Mulkey has achieved.
In a most uncommon circumstance, the Huskies women’s team this season will be built around Mulkey, a newcomer entering her fifth (COVID added) season. The center — the tallest player ever to play for the Huskies — is a highly decorated transfer from Rice University. This past spring, she followed her former Owls’ coach, Tina Langley, to Seattle.
Langley, named UW’s head coach in April, takes over the declining Husky program (7-14 last season) after six successful seasons at Rice. She finished with a school record .674win percentage (126-61) that included a 44-4 conference record over the past three years.
Mulkey, essential during those past three years (after playing one season at Oklahoma), has played in 108 career games, amassing 1,160 points with 447 rebounds, 105 assists and a remarkable 328 blocks. Last season, Mulkey averaged 15.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.5 blocks. She was the MVP of the 2021 Women’s NIT tournament, won by Rice.
“Nancy is someone who can do so many things well. She can shoot the ball, handle the ball on the perimeter and, obviously, can be very effective in the post,” Langley said. “She makes her team better at both ends of the floor. Her skill set is pretty tremendous.” Mulkey, who announced her transfer on May 2, is one of 20 candidates on the Watch List for the Lisa Leslie Award (nation’s top center). She was a semifinalist last season.
Head Coach Tina Langley
Junior Haley Van Dyke
Junior T.T. Watkins
Sophomore Lauren Schwartz
Three weeks after Mulkey signed on, another Owl player followed Langley and Mulkey to Washington. Lauren Schwartz, a 5-11 sophomore forward, Rice's second leading scorer (13.1 point average) a year ago, transferred in on May 21. She started 56 games for the Owls over the past two seasons and is a pure shooter. She is a career 47 percent shooter (50.6 percent last season), 39.8 percent from behind the 3-point arc and 84.2 from the free-throw line. “She can shoot the ball exceptionally well, can handle well and plays four positions for us,” Langley said of Schwartz.
In five WNIT games last season, Schwartz averaged a team-high 20.0 points and shot a remarkable .633 (38 of 60) from the field and .533 (8 of 15) behind the arc.
Three weeks after Schwartz arrived, a third quality transfer with a strong winning legacy joined the Husky family June 14. Trinity Oliver, a 5-9 junior guard from Baylor, played 88 games for the Bears, vital to Baylor’s 126-7 record (70-2 in the Big 12) over the past four years. She was part of Baylor’s 2019 national championship team.
The new faces/new places off-season frenzy didn’t end there. Not even. The Huskies added an assortment of incoming freshmen. They are 6-1 forward Marisa Davis-Jones, Gatorade Player of the Year in Arizona, 5-10 guard Avery Vansickle from Colorado, and 6-2 forward Olivia Pollerd from Australia.
Two other players who we haven’t seen since the 2019-20 season have returned. Guard T.T. Watkins opted out all last season over COVID concerns. The 5-11 junior had played two previous years for the Huskies with 29 appearances, 11 starts. Also, guard Missy Peterson from Edmonds, Wash., missed last season after a knee injury. The 5-11 senior guard had played in 79 games, starting 50.
There are also ‘like-new’ freshmen. They are 6-0 guard Jess Finney of Arizona, who became eligible in December and played in 14 games; 5-11 guard Jayda Noble from Colbert, Wash., who played in 11 games, eight starts; and 6-2 forward Alexia Whitfield, limited to just 12 games off the bench last season because of injury.
Senior Nancy Mulkey
Waiting for everyone to finish their introductions are four returning players who were significant contributors last season. Junior forward, 5-11 Haley Van Dyke from California, is the leading returning scorer, 12.0 PPG and was second in rebounds at 5.8 RPG. She started 20 of 21 games. Senior guard, 5-9 Alexis Griggsby started 18 of 20 games, averaging 5.7 PPG. Junior center, 6-4 Darcy Rees from Australia, averaged 8.3 PPG in 19 appearances, six starts, and 5-11 redshirt freshman guard Nia Lowery played in all 21 games with eight starts.
They all had the option to transfer during the transition but decided to remain a Husky.
So, for those keeping score, that’s six brand new players (three transfers; three freshmen), joining four returning players with plenty of past playing time, three not so much time, and two who we haven’t seen in more than a year.
“We’re a team, coming off a lot of injuries, that trying to get all on the court together became very important,” Langley said. “New people on the court with different skill sets, so learning each other has been a slow process but one I think our studentathletes have been very committed to.”
She said that bringing together all the disparate elements into a cohesive unit is a challenge. But one of many.
“I think there are a lot of challenges. There’s a new offensive system. There’s a new defensive system. There’s a new philosophy. There’s a new culture. Everything is new,” Langley said. “That’s what makes it also exciting and fun. But challenging.”
For players such as Mulkey, who received an extra year of eligibility – granted by the NCAA because of 2020 COVID restrictions – it has been unforeseen serendipity. Players not only can extend their athletic experience but also enhance and augment their interpersonal and leadership skills.
“It’s another opportunity to continue growing,” Langley added. “We all know that we grow as leaders through college. To get an extra year to be part of a team and understand the culture to help younger players understand that is such a great blessing as you’re preparing to go into the workforce. It’s a little more leadership experience.”
Langley will use the eight-game non-conference schedule to sort out the starting lineup, the rotation and elusive team chemistry. Further complicating her preparation is uncertainty over her players’ health. The team needs to be careful with Peterson, recovering from her ACL surgery last year. Rees has had a temperamental foot injury that has caused her to miss games the past two seasons. Other players have nagging injuries that will need an economy of minutes early.
Langley hasn’t shifted her focus to the Pac-12 Conference yet but she says she knows its reputation. She calls it “the best conference in the country.”
Stanford is a perennial competitor, having won the NCAA title three times with two runnersup and 14 Final Four appearances since 1984. USC has a couple crowns and five other conference schools have at least one Final Four appearance, including both Washington and Oregon State in 2016. Last season, Stanford won the NCAA title, beating Pac-12 rival Arizona in the finals, 54-53.
“We can be better by the end of our non-conference,” Langley added, “if we continue to stay true to our process.” “I think there are a lot of challenges. There’s a new offensive system. There’s a new defensive system. There’s a new philosophy. There’s a new culture. Everything is new,” Langley said.
Senior Missy Peterson
