Tuesday, March 4, 2008
SMU women’s basketball has three named to all-conference teams
Three members of the SMU women's basketball team - senior post Janielle Dodds, sophomore forward Delisha Wills and senior forward Sharee Shepherd - were honored for their standout seasons by earning spots on the 2008 All-Conference USA teams.
Dodds earned all-conference honors for the fourth time in four seasons after averaging a team-high 14.9 points per game for an SMU team that led Conference USA in scoring, at 74 points per game. She also led the team in rebounding (7.8 per game), broke the all-time SMU records in each category, and finished the regular season with 37 double-doubles - more than twice the total of any other player in Conference USA. She was named Conference USA Player of the Week Nov. 26 and shared the honor last week.
Wills was the Mustangs' second-leading scorer (12.6 points per game) and third-leading rebounder (5.4 per game) and finished third on the team in steals (40) and third in blocked shots (18). She had five double-doubles this season, and scored in double figures 17 times, including a career-high 23 points in SMU's victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Shepherd emerged as the Mustangs' top defensive player, finishing the regular season second in Conference USA in steals with 85, the sixth-highest single-season total in SMU history. Heading into the postseason, she now has 237 steals in her career, third on SMU's all-time list, and she broke the all-time SMU single-game steals record with nine thefts at UAB. Shepherd also led the Mustangs with a career-best 27 blocked shots, tied for fifth on the team in scoring (7.6 points per game) and finished second on the team in rebounding (6.6 per game).
The Mustangs head to Orlando, Fla., this week, for the Conference USA Tournament, having earned the second seed - and a first-round bye - as a result of their 21-8 regular-season record. The 21 regular-season victories are the most ever for the Ponies, who will face the winner of Thursday's Memphis-Tulsa game at 11 a.m. (central time) Friday in a game that can be heard on KKGM (1630 AM).
2007-08 All-C-USA Women's Basketball Teams
FIRST TEAM
Janielle Dodds, SMU, P, 6-3, Sr., Fairfax, Va./West Springfield
Jareica Hughes, UTEP, G, 5-3, Soph., Southfield, Mich./Southfield-Lathrup
Pauline Love, Southern Miss, F, 6-0, Soph., Luxora, Ark./Jones County JC
Twiggy McIntyre, Houston, G, 5-5, Jr., Sapulpa, Okla./Kansas State
Diamond Rogers, UAB, F, 5-11, Sr., Jackson, Miss./Murrah
SECOND TEAM
Valeriya Berezhynska, Rice, C, 6-4, Sr., Miami, Fla./Northwest Christian Academy
Natasha Lacy, UTEP, G, 5-10, Sr., El Paso, Texas/TCU
Izabela Piekarska, UTEP, C, 6-5, Sr., Warszawa, Poland/SMS Sport
LaCoya Terry, East Carolina, G, 5-10, Jr., Hephzibah, Ga./Hephzibah
Jasmine Young, East Carolina, G, 5-5, Jr., Richmond, Va./Monacan
THIRD TEAM
Delisha Wills, SMU, F, 5-10, Soph., Mesquite, Texas/Mesquite
Tye Jackson, Houston, G, 5-10, Sr., Houston, Texas/Purdue
Ashley Langford, Tulane, G, 5-5, Jr., Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg
Tia Lewis, UCF, F/C, 6-0, Fr., Poulan, Ga./Worth County
Crystal McFadden, UAB, G, 5-10, Sr., New York, N.Y./Murry Bergtraum
Larrissa Williams, Tulsa, F/C, 6-3, Soph., Little Rock, Ark./Robinson
ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Sharee Shepherd, SMU, G, 5-10, Sr., Houston, Texas/Dobie
Casey Baker, Marshall, G, 5-8, Jr., Bradenton, Fla./Lincoln Trail
Chanel Johnson, Tulsa, F/C, 6-3, Jr., Tulsa, Okla./Alabama
Natasha Lacy, UTEP, G, 5-10, Sr., El Paso, Texas/TCU
Jasmine Young, East Carolina, G, 5-5, Jr., Richmond, Va./Monaca
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Emma Cannon, UCF, F, 6-2, Rochester, N.Y./School of the Arts
Cobilyn Hill, Houston, C, 6-3, Houston, Texas/Eisenhower
Tia Lewis, UCF, F/C, 6-0, Poulan, Ga./Worth County
Amanda Peterson, UAB, G, 5-10, Homewood, Ala./Homewood
Courtney Taylor, Houston, G/F, 6-0, Crockett, Texas/Crockett
Source: SMU
