Chattanooga Mocs
Overall Rank: #25
Conference Rank: #1 SoCon
Chattanooga Team Page
Chattanooga continued its rise as one of the top mid-major programs in all of women’s college basketball last season with another 29 win season and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. The season was also highlighted by a 67-63 upset win over Tennessee back on November 26, 2014. That win set the tone for an epic run that included a win over traditional power Stanford as well. While the NCAA Tournament ended in a disappointing loss to Pittsburgh, head coach Jim Foster has quickly turned the Mocs into a force to be reckoned with.
2014-15 Record: 29-4, 14-0
2014-15 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Jim Foster
Coach Record: 58-8 at Chattanooga, 841-315 overall
Strengths:
Defense is going to be a staple once again for Chattanooga in their quest to get back to the NCAA Tournament and make a run at winning 30 games in the 2015-16 season. The Mocs limited opposing teams to just 50.5 points per game last season, which was good for second overall in the nation. Forward Jasmine Joyner is back to lead the way for Chattanooga and Joyner had the right balance of efficiency with her shot selection and was tough on the boards as well. Senior guard Chelsey Shumpert will anchor a very experienced backcourt that will look to control tempo and limit opposing teams’ possession while getting just enough offensively to win games.
Weaknesses:
Free show shooting has to get better this season for the Mocs to take another step forward in the NCAA Tournament. They shot just 66.8 percent from the charity stripe. Another glaring issue was the inability to get to the foul line in the NCAA Tournament loss to Pittsburgh, as Chattanooga was just 2-for-3 at the foul line. In postseason play it is going to become more critical for the Mocs to attack the basket and get to the foul line in order boost their offensive production.
Final Projection:
The schedule will test this veteran Chattanooga team right out of the gate with their participation in the Preseason Women’s NIT which could bring potential matchups with teams like Baylor or DePaul. There will be a trip to Knoxville for a rematch with Tennessee along with a visit from Connecticut on November 30th. Two underrated games on their non-conference schedule are a return trip to play Stanford and a battle against a tough South Florida team that should make the NCAA Tournament. It is going to be important for the Mocs to stay healthy and get instant contributions from redshirt junior Queen Alford, who is a transfer from Jacksonville and was one of the top offensive players in the Atlantic Sun Conference. A healthy Aryanna Gilbert, who returns from a season ending injury, will be a potential difference maker for Chattanooga. Gilbert did a nice job offensively when she was healthy last season. Look for the Mocs to rise up and get a win against a basketball blueblood in non-conference play and be on cruise control to another NCAA Tournament bid this season.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
Alicia Payne, Senior, Guard, 5.4 points per game
Chelsey Shumpert, Senior, Guard, 11.5 points per game
Queen Alford, Junior, Guard, DNP last season
Aryanna Gilbert, Sophomore, Guard/Forward, 7.8 points per game
Jasmine Joyner, Junior, Forward, 12.0 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 62.6 (210th in nation, 5th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 50.5 (2, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.2 (21, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.5 (63, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.1 (102, 3)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 32.9 (105, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 66.8 (239, 7)
Rebound Margin: -0.2 (182, 4)
Assists Per Game: 14.0 (101, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.2 (27, 2)
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