Nov 02, 2024

Coyote Women's Basketball grounds Eagles in season opener of Coyote Classic

Posted Nov 02, 2024 1:37 PM

Ryan Showman wasn't sure what the player rotation would be for his Kansas Wesleyan women's team entering the season opener against Northern New Mexico.

The Coyotes' convincing 76-50 season opening victory in the Coyote Classic on Friday night inside Mabee Arena didn't provide much clarity though. Eleven Coyotes played at least eight minutes and 11 scored in the game.

"It's a great problem to have," Showman said when asked about the team's apparent depth. "I don't know if I'm any closer to figuring out a rotation than I was before the game. People came in when their number was called and they did a good job."

Reserve players accounted for 34 points in the game.

"We're going to need that moving forward," he said. "The teams that are left standing at the end are the ones that stay healthy and have deep benches and rotations. That's what we're trying to build here."

It was a complete performance. KWU shot 45.8 percent (27 of 59); sizzled from long range making 11 of 25 3-pointers; had a whopping 54-30 rebounding advantage; and limited NNM to 30.6 percent shooting.

LaMyah Ricks was the top scorer with 19 points followed by Hampton Williams with 11. Paige Chauncey had 11 rebounds in her first collegiate start.

Trailing 13-8 following an 11-0 NNM run Abigail Lombardoni's 3-pointer ignited a 12-0 run that gave the Coyotes a 20-13 lead with 9:11 left in the second quarter. Another 12-0 surge later in the quarter increased the advantage to 35-17 and KWU went into intermission with a 41-24 lead.

The Coyotes shot 52 percent from the floor in the first half (14 of 27).

Ricks, KWU's irrepressible fifth-year point guard, kickstarted the offense with 14 points in the game's first 11½ minutes.

"I saw that the offense wasn't really flowing well so I just felt I needed to be a part of it whether that's to pass the ball or score the ball," she said.

Ricks was 7 of 12 shooting from the field, 4 of 4 at the line and grabbed seven rebounds in the game.

"I feel like I have more (scoring) opportunities and I feel I've grown over the summer and am more versatile," she said.

"She's been here for so long I don't even know where her hometown is, I feel like she's a Salina resident," Showman said with a laugh. "LaMyah was fantastic the first half, she took on that scoring mentality. The second half she was that scoring facilitator and found everybody else that was open."

The Coyotes steadily pulled away in the second half. They led 63-41 after three quarters and built their biggest lead of the game (75-42) late in the fourth quarter.

"The first week of practice we got back to basics and reset our standards," Showman said. "We've carried that through the last six weeks, and I think what you're seeing is that buy-in. We're playing at a higher level; we're finishing at a higher level because they know it's important to our success."

Shaela Carrillo led NNM with 14 points.