Women's Basketball Preview Part 7: Butler
Nov. 17, 2004
The Bulldogs enter the 2004-05 campaign off their first league winning record and tournament semifinals appearance in five years. Head coach Beth Couture and the Bulldogs' 14-15 record earned the team the distinction of the 14th-best winning percentage improvement in NCAA Division I last season. While this year's Bulldogs at first glance seem inexperienced, many gained valuable experience on the court in 2003-04, which should allow for the momentum to continue this season.
"I've been very impressed with our work ethic and attitude throughout the preseason," said Couture, who boasts a 278-155 record in 15 seasons as a head coach. "Our workouts have shown that we will definitely be a different team than last season, but we're still eager to take the program back to competing at a championship level.
"Obviously, we'll be deeper this season. Our roster allows us the flexibility to give teams a lot of different looks throughout a game. I think what we lost to graduation last season in terms of athleticism, we countered by bringing in a lot of size and skill."
Sophomore point guard Jackie Closser takes the reins of the Bulldogs' offense after appearing in 28 games as "All-Horizon League" Nancy Bowden's understudy last season. Closser joins backcourt mate Ellen Hamilton, giving the Bulldogs a guard combo with three-point capabilities. The duo combined for 84 treys in 2003-04, while each shot better than 35 percent from behind the arc. Hamilton, one of the league's best sharpshooters, earned league "All-Newcomer Team" accolades last season.
"Since the start of their sophomore seasons, it's apparent that Jackie and Ellen's maturity levels have grown to the point where I feel very comfortable with them handling our backcourt," said Couture.
Freshman Ashley Conner provides depth at both guard positions. Even though Conner has yet to appear in a collegiate contest, the Indianapolis native is no stranger to big games, helping her North Central squad to a state championship in 2004. Junior college transfer Jessica Smart gives the Bulldogs backcourt added athleticism. At Cincinnati State, Smart got the reputation as a shut-down defender, often matching up with the opposition's best perimeter player. Courtney Lickliter, one of the team's three seniors, is entering her second season at Butler after transferring from Lewis University, one of the Bulldogs' non-conference opponents this season. She saw action in eight games in 2003-04 and serves as one of the team's three captains this season.
"We have many different options for our backcourt," said Couture. "We have the ability to put an offensive or defensive tandem on the court, or we can put personnel in depending on if we need shooting or driving capabilities. This is something we haven't been able to do in the past."
In addition to Bowden's graduation, the Bulldogs also will have to overcome the departure of the team's starting forwards, Angel Mason and Dionne Goodwin. Junior Jessica Monaco and senior Maria Marchesano became regular contributors toward the end of the 2003-04 season, providing an offensive punch as the Bulldogs won six of their final eight games. Each shot around the 40 percent mark from three-point land last season, highlighted by Marchesano's 4-of-4 shooting from behind the arc in six minutes of action in the Bulldogs' 89-81 win over UIC Feb. 12.
"Looking back on last season, the most important part of Maria and Jessica seeing a lot of action down the stretch was their confidence level going into this season," said Couture. "They should be able to step in and help to fill the void of players we lost to graduation."
Junior Stephanie Boeke has made 11 starts during her Butler tenure and sparked the Bulldogs in their upset win over Chattanooga last season. In that game, Boeke scored a season-high nine points and three assists. Freshman Cassie Freeman is the second Indiana All-Star to join the Butler roster in as many years, joining Closser, a 2003 selection. Freeman, from nearby Heritage Christian High School, amassed more than 1,700 points during her high school career, helping the Eagles to a state runner-up finish in 2004.
"Cassie is the type of player on the wing that brings size and strength, in addition to being able to shoot," said Couture. "She'll cause mismatches because she can go inside or out and be effective."
The center position provides the Bulldogs with the most stability as sophomore starter Ashley Brenden returns along with senior Cortney Urquhart, the team's leading returning scorer. Urquhart should eclipse the 1,000-point plateau during the season and will be motivated to continue the program's rise to the upper echelon of the Horizon League, seeing the team improve from a 3-26 squad her freshman year. Urquhart received preseason second team "All-Horizon League" honors this season, as she enters the 2004-05 season as the Bulldogs' active leader in most statistical categories. Brenden started 20 games last season and finished among the Horizon League leaders in blocked shots. The 6-3 Brenden also has the ability to hit the mid-range jumper and step behind the arc and knock down shots.
"We feel confident about our low block play with the minutes that Cortney and Ashley saw last season," said Couture. "We also feel that they can play together in certain situations because of their talent in addition to their size."
Nikki Budgake, a junior, has appeared in 37 games for the Bulldogs in her two seasons in Indianapolis. The North Canton, Ohio native is one of Butler's two players who stand 6-3. Newcomers Candace Bain and Gina Grussing should both contribute immediately. Bain, a versatile 6-2 forward/center, has the ability to hit the trey and work down low on the block. Coming from Clarksville, Ind., Bain finished as her school's career leader in both points and rebounds, earning honorable mention All-State accolades. Grussing, a junior college transfer from Parkland Junior College, gives the Bulldogs a defensive and rebounding presence on the interior. After becoming Armstrong High School's career leading scorer, racking up more than 2,000 points, Grussing earned "Player of the Year" and "Freshman of the Year" honors by the Collegiate Conference of Central Illinois in her first season at Parkland. Shooting just shy of 60 percent from the field that season, Grussing finished seventh in the nation in field goal percentage.
"Even though we return two strong post players in Ashley and Cortney, we feel like our depth in the frontcourt will allow us to play more aggressively and have competition for spots," said Couture. "It's a plus for us that we have depth where our practices will be very competitive."
Butler's schedule opens with a tilt against SEC up-and-coming program Kentucky before the Bulldogs host Lewis Nov. 21 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in their home opener. Butler will spend the Thanksgiving weekend in Missouri, competing in the Billiken Classic with host Saint Louis, Austin Peay and Alabama A&M. The rest of the non-conference slate includes contests against in-state rivals Valparaiso, Evansville, IPFW and IUPUI, in addition to Western Michigan, Miami (Ohio) and Eastern Illinois.
The Bulldogs look to improve on their fourth-place finish in the Horizon League last season. Regular season and tournament champion UW-Green Bay returns a strong lineup, while Detroit and UW-Milwaukee also made the tournament's final four in 2004. Butler will play home-and-home series against all eight league opponents, including four doubleheaders at Hinkle Fieldhouse with the men's team against league competition.
