DePaul Blue Demons
Overall Rank: #32
Conference Rank: #1 Big East
DePaul Team Page
Once again DePaul was the team to beat last year in the Big East. They ended up tying Seton Hall atop the conference standings with a 15-3 record, but the Blue Demons got the best of the Pirates in the Big East title game. Despite the lofty record, DePaul was given a nine seed in the NCAA Tournament due to the relatively low strength of schedule. DePaul knocked off Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling 79-67 to top seeded Notre Dame in the second round. All in all, 2014-2015 was a successful season for Coach Doug Bruno and company and they will aim for another good year this time around.
2014-15 Record: 27-8, 15-3
2014-15 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Doug Bruno
Coach Record: 239-99 at DePaul, 587-309 overall
Strengths:
DePaul will have to move on without Brittany Hrynko and her 19.1 points per game, but there are plenty of prolific scorers ready to step up. Megan Podkowa, a 6-2 senior wing, is an extremely dangerous scorer from everywhere on the floor. Last season she averaged 14.2 points per game and added a team high 6.4 rebounds. Podkowa shot an amazing 52.6 percent from the floor last season and it is not like she is just hanging out in the paint all of the time. Nearly one-third of her shot attempts were from beyond the arc and she connected on 40.9 percent of those attempts. Chanise Jenkins is a dangerous shooter too and connected on 40.0 percent of her attempts from long range. She averaged 12.4 points per game and added 4.7 assists. Jessica January was a double-digit scorer too. She can pass the ball and score attacking the basket, but her outside shooting was a bit of a struggled last season. Still, with three double digit scorers back at DePaul, scoring is not going to be a problem.
Weaknesses:
Size was an issue last season. Brooke Schulte and Podkowa are fine rebounders out of the backcourt, and Podkowa is basically a guard who looks like a forward, but this team needs a post player who can crash the glass. Mart’e Grays and Brandi Harvey-Carr are the two most experienced options. Grays, a 6-2 sophomore, averaged 13.5 minutes as a freshman and proved to be a productive shooter. She is not a bruiser in the paint or a particularly strong rebounder, but she can certainly stretch the defense. Harvey-Carr will stay in the paint. The 6-4 junior is the tough rebounder this team needs, but she averaged fewer than a dozen minutes last year.
Final Projection:
DePaul is once again the team to beat in the Big East. The lack of experience at the forward position will not be that big of an issue in conference play. However, it could be what keeps DePaul away from a deep NCAA Tournament run. Nevertheless, with so many talented shooters and scorers on the perimeter, this is a DePaul team that can beat anybody on any given day.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
Chanise Jenkins, Senior, Guard, 12.4 points per game
Jessica January, Junior, Guard, 11.6 points per game
Brooke Schulte, Junior, Guard, 7.9 points per game
Megan Podkowa, Senior, Forward, 14.2 points per game
Brandi Harvey-Carr, Junior, Forward, 3.7 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 86.0 (2nd in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 70.2 (291, 8)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.2 (50, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 44.4 (336, 10)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 10.4 (2, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.8 (53, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 66.7 (244, 8)
Rebound Margin: -2.2 (246, 8)
Assists Per Game: 19.8 (3, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.4 (17, 4)
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