Women's Basketball Preview Part 1: The Backcourt

With the 2017-18 season right around the corner, RaginCajuns.com will be doing a three-part preview starting with the backcourt today. That'll be followed by the frontcourt and then an overall season preview. The Cajuns open their exhibition season on Oct. 31 at 7 p.m. by hosting LSU-Alexandria at the Cajundome.

LAFAYETTE – Sometimes being thrown into the fire is the best way to grow and learn in sports and in life. It's not always the most sought after course of action, but in the long run it can pay off with young players gaining experience beyond their years.

The backcourt for the 2017-18 Louisiana's women's basketball team is being asked to handle that hurdle of growing up fast, with several freshmen being thrust into key roles entering the season.

But the women with experience playing at the Division I level that the Ragin' Cajuns do have are up to the task of helping their young teammates handle the growing process.

"Having guards like Troi Swain and Jasmine Thomas," said assistant coach Amber Gregg. "To take the younger players under their wing and teach them what we expect is the best way we can teach them.

"Having the players that we have that have been here for the last two seasons and know what we expect, they can help the younger players be molded into what we want."

Head coach Garry Brodhead and his staff are tasked with helping grow three true freshmen into women they can trust on the court. But on the court, they do have Swain, a senior who has a year at Louisiana under her belt, and Thomas, a sophomore who saw significant playing time during the 2016-17 season, to help the young women through the tough process.

Swain returns as the leader from last season in three-point shooting having shot 32 percent from beyond the arc, making 45 out of 140 shots and she averaged a respectable 10 points per game.

While Thomas, returns as the team leader in assists, having recorded 85 the previous season and she's also the returning leader in free throws attempted having attempted 120 making 79 of them for a solid 66 percent shooting from the line.

The two of them will be key to helping their teammates work through the learning process as smoothly as possible.

Going through the learning process are freshmen Skyler Goodwin, Mylisha Hammond and Jomyra Mathis. And with a preseason injury suffered by Thomas it means that all three of those women will see significant playing time, along with red-shirt freshman Danyale Bayonne and sophomore Malachi-Seraphin Williams.

"We're just trying to get our young guards to understand how we play," said Gregg. "We play fast and take care of the ball, we like to shoot and play run and gun but we like to do that while staying under control.

"For the new player's, it's a big adjustment coming from high school. But coach Brodhead is big on fundamentals, so we put an emphasis on those things."

Swain and Thomas are up for the challenge in teaching their teammates how to play Cajuns style, and they're excited to help their young teammates get better every day.

"The younger players look up to the older players, so we have to bring them with us and even if they get a little nervous it's ok," said Swain. "You've got to be patient with them and let them know what's right from wrong on the court and help lead them through the growing process."

"Since we don't have a lot of experience in the backcourt myself and Troi must be vocal and share the experience we do have," said Thomas. "We have to use our experience and get the younger women on board with what we're trying to do."

The Cajuns' backcourt, that plays with an exciting and fast paced style, along with a physical in your face defense that looks to cause turnovers and move quickly into transition, faces a challenge right off the bat with a non-conference schedule that's tougher than what they've had in previous seasons.

But navigating a schedule that includes three SEC teams and the Preseason Women's National Invitation Tournament, will only help them in getting ready for the extremely competitive Sun Belt Conference portion of their schedule.

"It's great that our young players are getting the experience they'll get from playing through our tough non-conference schedule," said Thomas. "And with my injury it'll allow the younger women to get experience playing in the backcourt that'll only help us in the long run."

The tough schedule, that includes a trip to the national-runners up Mississippi State Bulldogs and a short ride east to in-state rival LSU, should set the Cajuns up for a run at the conference title and put their young players in a position where they already know what it's like to face some of the country's best teams and players.

"If we want to be the best we need to play the best," said Gregg. "So, when we get into conference play, we've already played against some of the best teams in the country.

"Having the games where you're not only playing against the best players in the country but also the best teams will help our kids play at a higher level then had they not played against those teams."

"It's good to play the tough non-conference schedule that we have because it'll get the anxiety out of the way," said Swain. "It'll be tough but we've got to think of it as a learning experience and it'll help us play in conference when we've gotten through this tough non-conference portion of our schedule."

The Cajuns coaching staff has made sure to help the new women understand the process that they'll be going through and get them ready for the challenges that await them.

"We've taught our guards to fall in love with the process so that they don't get discouraged when it gets hard," said Gregg. "What struggling teaches you, success can't so when you work through the tough parts and you get successful it's a breeze to maintain that success."

The 2017-18 Cajuns might not have a smooth start, but it's something they're prepared for. Being thrown to the wolves isn't the best-case scenario, but come late December when the Cajuns begin their conference schedule, their backcourt will be battled tested and ready to navigate the conference season.

Women's Basketball Preview Part 1: The Backcourt

Players Mentioned

Danyale Bayonne

Skyler Goodwin

Mylisha Hammond

Jomyra Mathis

Troi Swain

Jasmine Thomas

Malachi-Seraphin Williams

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