Women's basketball sits atop WCC
By Cecile Nguyen
As the Broncos ride a seven-game win streak and sit comfortably in the No. 1 spot in the West Coast Conference at 11-3, Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson believes that this season will be nothing like last year's "disappointing" campaign.
"We're very, very proud of our girls' performance thus far this season. We have very high expectations of the team on a daily basis," Bento-Jackson said. "We know that there will be a lot of challenges for us as we approach the WCC."
Santa Clara's current win streak is the longest the team has enjoyed since they won nine straight games en route to a WCC regular season title in the 2005-06 season.
At this time last year, the Broncos owned a record of 8-7 before finishing 13-17. Bento-Jackson questioned the team's toughness and competitiveness and said that, at times, those traits were nonexistent.
"It was an extremely disappointing year, and those players that did return to this season's team haven't forgotten," said Bento-Jackson.
Consistency in offense, defense and bench contribution are just some of the things Bento-Jackson believes will be vital to the team's success this year.
"There are certain things that we know that we need to do every single night in order to give ourselves a chance to be successful," said Bento-Jackson. "Our half- court defense is absolutely key -- rebounding and just sharing the basketball. The more people we get involved on the offensive end, the more of a threat we are to our opponents."
Opponents have not been able to handle the hot play of senior guard Chandice Cronk, who became the second straight Bronco to lead the WCC in scoring last season. Cronk continues to lead the team in scoring with 17.5 points a game, followed closely by Jen Gottschalk with 17.4.
"Our seniors have really done a really good job of leading," said Bento-Jackson. "Chandice Cronk has basically put our team on her back a few different times this year and really carried out a win for us. Jen Gottschalk has done a tremendous job," she continued.
"Tracey Walker playing at point guard, a new position for her from last year, has really done a great job being more consistent than she ever was last year," Bento-Jackson added.
To try to create consistency within the team, the Broncos could stick with the successful starting lineup that is Cronk, Walker, Elizabeth Doran, Sara Majors and Gottschalk. The Broncos are 10-2 when those five start the game.
"Liz Doran has been a starter for us, has been extremely consistent for us on the offensive end, and working very hard to improve on defense," said Bento-Jackson. "She and Sara Majors have stepped into a much larger role for this basketball team and both have done a tremendous job."
In hopes of motivating the team, Bento-Jackson assigned University of Connecticut Women's Head Coach Geno Auriemma's book "In Pursuit of Perfection" to her coaching staff and players to read over the summer. Auriemma has lead the UConn Huskies to five national championships in his 23 seasons as head coach. The Huskies are currently No. 1 in the nation.
"Our team read the book just to get an indication of what it takes to be a champion," she said.
The suggestion seems to have worked -- Bento-Jackson said that there is a noticeable difference in the team's mentality this year.
"There were times last year where we lost a lead or weren't able to finish ball games off. In the 14 games thus far this season, this team has proven that they have changed in that area," said Bento-Jackson. "We lost leads, but we fought back. They are more competitive, they're tougher and they're not allowing one mistake to affect the next possession."
As far as expectations for the remainder of the year, Bento-Jackson is optomistic the team will continue to compete and be mentally focused for a full 40 minutes, every single game, something she hopes will generate further success.
"There's just so much parity in our conference. I truly believe that our conference is up for grabs and that anybody can beat anybody and anybody can lose to anybody," Bento-Jackson said. "With that in mind, every night will be a challenge, and we have to bring our best effort every night."
The Broncos will look to extend their winning streak this Saturday, as they prepare to square off against conference rivals St. Mary's at 7 p.m. in the Leavey Center.
Contact Cecile Nguyen at (408) 551-1918 or cnguyen5@scu.edu.