Davidson faces off against two very different Catamounts

Today will be a full day of basketball up here in Davidson, N.C. I will not be available to host a live blog or post an original story directly after either game, but I will try to get some thoughts online by Sunday.

Annette Watts' women's team will kick off the action at 2 p.m. against Western Carolina. Although the Catamounts come into this matchup with a seemingly harmless 8-5, 0-1 record, they continue to be every bit the team that fought Chattanooga to the bitter end in last year's conference title game. This year, Western Carolina has won at Clemson, at Louisville, at Oregon State and Hawaii. Their losses have come at the hands of Minnesota, N.C. State, Wake Forest, Chattanooga, and, most recently, UNC Wilmington. The Davidson men's team might know a little something about how a record doesn't really reflect the true quality of a basketball squad.

The Catamounts have been led by a high-scoring trio of upperclassmen: Monique Dawson, Brooke Johnson, and Ashley Pellom. All three players have averaged in double figures this season, while the 6-4 Johnson has averaged 6.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks a game. Unfortunately for the Catamounts, however, Johnson was seriously injured in last week's loss to Chattanooga. Reports are that she won't be returning this season.

The Wildcats will be bolstered by the return of Katie Hamilton who saw limited minutes in her first game back against College of Charleston last week. Although she is still not at full speed, Davidson hopes that Hamilton can give them another scoring threat on the perimeter to take the defense's attention away from Alex Thompson and Honna Housley.

The most important matchup in this game will be Mercedes Robinson and Julia Paquette against forward Kendra Eaton. Davidson completely floundered against this same group of forwards last year, and they were unable to stop the easy layups in the paint. The top six scorers for the Catamounts are all upperclassmen which means that they will be highly disciplined and difficult to rattle. The Wildcats will need to shoot a high percentage from the field and limit turnovers in order to have a chance to pull out the victory. If they can take advantage of Johnson's absence and learn to play well in the matinee timeslot, the Wildcats could be rewarded with a signature conference victory.

In the nightcap, the Davidson men's team will take on a similarly clad, yet totally different Western Carolina basketball team. While the female Catamounts have enjoyed immense success over the past few years, the men have struggled mightily in the Southern Conference and look to be going down that road again after stud sophomore Nick Aldridge was asked to leave the team.

The Catamounts have very little identity as a basketball squad right now, and that showed as they dropped an embarrassing conference loss to lowly 2-11 Furman on Thursday night. Conversely, the Wildcats are coming off a commanding victory over conference leader Georgia Southern where they had three players score in double figures, and led by a score of 21-3 at one point.

Things to watch for:

-Katie Hamilton might be back, but she won't be at full speed. Watts will be walking the fine line of giving Hamilton valuable playing time versus keeping her fifth-year star healthy. In the past, this team has fallen into bad habits of letting Hamilton do all the scoring for them. If they do not integrate her back into the offense effectively and efficiently, they might not be as successful as hoped for in conference play.

-In Davidson's last home game against High Point, star forward Julia Paquette went 2-12 from the field, missing open layups left and right. She cannot afford to lose her calm in the next two home games against WCU and Chattanooga.

-Although Will Archambault did hit a three-pointer in Davidson's blowout victory over Georgia Southern, he played the game at a slower pace than normal. I wondered if the ankle injury that he sustained at N.C. State had anything to do with it. If Paulhus-Gosselin replicates his effort from Thursday and stays out of foul trouble, Archambault might be given plenty of time to think about his ankle and his intensity.

-Although Kyle Hines and his UNC-G Spartans still lurk on the horizon, the Southern Conference does not offer much in terms of overpowering frontcourts. GSU's Louis Graham was supposed to be an all-conference player, but he could not stop Thomas Sander in the ways that the ACC teams could. Andrew Lovedale almost seemed surprised that he was able to elevate and get his hands on so many tipped balls around the basket. Ultimately, the effectiveness and consistency of Davidson's frontcourt will determine just how successful this 08 campaign will be.

Women Ballers Embody Spirit of "David"son

It all started with 10 minutes left in the first half against Appalachian State. The Wildcats were winning 26-8 and looked to be on their way to another easy victory over a lesser SoCon opponent. The women’s basketball team had only struggled twice in the last two months, and they were cruising along with no signs of stopping. All of a sudden, something happened. Shots began to rim out; the defense lacked intensity; the team was pressing and didn’t quite know how to play anymore. Although the Wildcats would hang on to win the Appalachian game (despite letting the Mountaineers pull it to a six-point game), they went up to Greensboro with the same scared mentality.

The Wildcats were blown out of the water by a Spartan team that had lost to Davidson earlier in the year. Coach Watts said that she was embarrassed by the performance because she thought that the team lacked intensity and desire. Tonight, Davidson returned to Belk Arena against a mid-level College of Charleston team. Coach Watts promised a renewed effort. She promised a Wildcat team that would play with pride.

By halftime tonight, Davidson was losing 40-25, and the team lacked pride. Over a week ago, this team was eyeing a possible NCAA at-large bid. By 8 p.m. on Wednesday, they were staring down the barrel of a fourth-place standing in a weak Southern Conference. Coach Watts had seen enough.

The Wildcats came out of the locker room with a renewed fire. They had the energy and intensity of a team that had their backs against the wall, and they played the role quite well. After all, these women have been playing the role of “David” against “Goliath” for many years now. It just so happens that this year they have the full assortment of talent to take down the giants.

The Wildcats stymied every offensive attempt that the Cougars put together, as they held them to a mere three points in the first twelve minutes of the second half. The Davidson offense began clicking as the Wildcats worked the paint for easy layups and hit Honna Housley for two huge three-pointers.

As the Wildcats cut into the lead, their spirit returned to their faces. Every Cougar pass was seen as an opportunity for a steal, every missed shot an opportunity for a big rebound. When the final buzzer sounded, Davidson had a 74-62 victory. They had scored 47 points in the second half, led by Tia Washington who had 19 on the game.

Perhaps the most defining image of the contest and of this season came when Danielle Hemerka returned to the lineup with under two minutes to play. She had been sidelined with a bloody nose and returned with a big protective facemask. With the Wildcats clinging to a six-point lead, a missed Jessica Mitchell free throw gave the Cougars a chance to cut into the lead. Three Cougar players went up for the rebound, but couldn’t secure it immediately. Hemerka jumped into the fray and pulled out the offensive board, forcing the Cougars to foul again and putting the game out of reach. With her 17 total points and team-leading six rebounds, Hemerka embodied the never-say-die attitude of a Wildcat team that is still learning to play in its new role: that of Goliath.

Even if they can’t beat everyone by thirty points, or trail to an evenly matched team down the road, look for these Wildcats to be resilient. Tonight they convinced themselves that they can win, and they even converted a few believers. The rest of the way isn’t paved with easy pit-stops, but I think that these Wildcats like it that way.

**photo by Richard Shayegan**

Conversation with Annette Watts

Coming off of a disappointing loss to UNC-G this past weekend, the Davidson Women's Basketball team is faced with some big contests against WCU and Chattanooga over this coming weekend. They will need to win at least one of these games if they hope to stay in contention for the regular season conference crown. I recently had a chance to sit down with head coach Annette Watts.

Will Bryan: Talk about the success of this season in the context of the pre-season expectations going in. Also, briefly touch on Saturday's setback at UNC-Greensboro.

Annette Watts: We didn't know how the chemistry would come back together with Katie Hamilton returning from injury. One would think that with a terrific player coming back, it would help everything on the whole. Yet I feared that the people who had stepped up last year would not maintain their game when she was back. I feared that they would stand back and watch. We are such a better team when you have to guard all twelve of us. I think that has determined our success. Those folks who stepped up last year have continued their play with Katie back in the lineup.

However, it is a process because we have never been on this side of the fence. We have never been first in the conference for consecutive weeks. We have always been the underdogs. We have always been David against Goliath. Right now we are struggling a little bit being Goliath, as we are playing not to lose instead of playing to win. We will get through this, but the question remains how rapidly that process will take place.

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