Lady Topper Hoops: Hilltopper Hysteria Recap and Preseason Notes

The Western Kentucky Lady Topper Basketball took a significant dip in quality last season.

The WKU program got used to hanging banners under Michelle Clark-Heard. After a dismal run from 2009 until the end of 2011–12, when Mary Taylor Cowles’ tenure ended in a WKU record 20 losses, Clark-Heard was hired and immediately reeled off 20 win seasons each year, winning four conference championships in six seasons.

Greg Collins’ first year was a season of frustration for 2/3 of the year. At one point, the Lady Toppers were flirting with a historically bad defense, giving up well into the 70+ points per game.

They settled into a nice groove in March or so, doing well in the postseason and making a run to the Sweet 16 of the WNIT. Given the rest of the season, WKU really turned it on late.

WKU loses very little off of a young team that struggled to replace superstars Ivy Brown and Tashia Brown, two players that were arguably two of the top 25 players in the program’s history, certainly statistically.

After Thursday’s short scrimmage, there really wasn’t much was to be observed in a ten-minute event. However, Dee Givens and Raneem Elgedawy seemed in great shape and in good form.

WKU’s other players looked engaged in the scrimmage and had a few flashes of brilliance. The Lady Toppers start their season off with a bang, facing Belmont at home on November 5. Belmont is a perennial NCAA Tournament representative for the OVC.

Here are some more observations from the scrimmage:

-Givens, Elgedawy, and Porter all looked good and in shape.

-Meral Abdelgawad looks like she bulked up some over the summer.

-Alexis Brewer’s injury issues seem to be ongoing. She did not dress.

-Arame Niang is no longer with the team (she grad transferred to Cincinnati, rejoining Clark-Heard)

Things We Know About the Lady Tops in 2019–20:

• WKU returns all of its starters from 2018–19 (Givens, Eldgedawy, Porter, Creech & Abdelgawad).
• Dee Givens and Raneem Eldgedawy were Preseason All-Conference USA selections
• Arame Niang is the only significant role player that is not returning.
• They added transfer forwards Bree Glover (Ole Miss) & Sandra Skinner (VCU) to the roster
• WKU’s non-conference schedule was brutal last year, this year’s schedule is nearly as tough with road trips to Louisville, Purdue & a Tournament at Saint Mary’s. They also host Oklahoma, Central Michigan, and Belmont.
• WKU looks to return to the NCAA Tournament after missing out last season.
• WKU was picked third in the preseason Conference USA poll behind Rice and Middle Tennessee.
• WKU has made the NCAA Tournament four times this decade. With this year remaining in the 2010–2020 decade, WKU already has twice more than the last decade, when the Tops won only in 2003 and 2008.