DELAND, Fla. – Hatter Women's Basketball takes to the skies for its first trip outside the sunshine state playing at the UNLV Thanksgiving Tournament in Las Vegas.
"All the teams are really good, they're great mid-majors out there, and I think the challenge for us out there is you play back-to-back-to-back," head coach
Lynn Bria said "For us it's our endurance and being able to play like that, but every team has to do it. It's really important this week that our preparation is right on, and it's important that we've got to be strategic in our days off and how long we practice. We're going to need everybody, and I think the deeper our bench the better. All the teams are good, it's going to be a great tournament for us to be out there and continue to get better, I think this is the tournament that really prepares us for our league. It's a great opportunity for people to show us what they can do and how they can contribute to our team, and we need everybody. I don't think we have a set rotation yet, but we have a lot of getting better to do, we're not near where we need to be, but we have got better in the last two weeks."
While Stetson's Saturday and Sunday opponents will be decided based upon results of the earlier day's contests, Friday's opponent is known coming in, the Lady Techsters of Louisiana Tech.
The other six potential opponents, tournament hosts UNLV, Albany, East Tennessee State, George Washington, UC San Diego and Illinois State. The tournament format will feature four games per day from Friday through Sunday taking place in either the Cox Pavilion or Thomas & Mack Center.
The Saturday opponent will be the match of Stetson's result between UC San Diego and Illinois State.
The Lady Techsters enter Friday's contest at 3-1 overall, same as Stetson, coming off a four-point loss in their most game, a 63-59 decision at Southern Methodist. LT has defeated Central Baptist, Arkansas State and ULM with all games taking place in Louisiana but facing the Warhawks in Monroe.
The Ruston-based side is paced by Keiunna Walker, who averages 15 points per game. Tech is also getting double-digit performances from forward Anna Larr Roberson [10.8] and guard Amaya Brannon [10.0] on a gamely basis. Silvia Nativi has registered the team's most assists with 21, with six in three of four contests, but is a threat to shoot with a .769 shooting percentage [10-for-13] and has not missed a three this year [3-for-3].
Walker, Roberson and Brannon have started every game this year for LT, joined by Salma Bates with four starts. Bates struggled a bit this season, but dropped 17 against Arkansas State, the Lady Techster's closest win, 59-56. Nativi and graduate student Gabbie Green have split the remaining slot.
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS (PDF).
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