SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE
-Junior Shoni Schimmel more than just a talented basketball player.
-USA WBB rolls past China 114-66.
(We continue with our look at the 2012-13 University of Louisville women's basketball team. We've reached the junior class and today's featured player is Shoni Schimmel.)
If you asked which women's basketball player spoke the the Title IX conference in Washington, DC in late June...the answer is Shoni Schimmel also.
Who was the star of a 90 minute documentary about life and basketball on and off the Umatilla Indian Reservation? Shoni Schimmel.
Maybe the most ballyhooed recruit (so far) in the history of UofL women's basketball, the Mission, OR. junior has been in the media limelight since her freshman year in high school.
She has not disappointed.
Louisville WBB fans...meet "Sho-time".
Last year saw her lead the Lady Cards with 14.3 ppg. Leading the 15 times in scoring during the season. Engineering another second round apperance in the NCAA and narrowly losing to a talented Maryland squad.
She is team first and foremost, though. She'll tell you of the importance of team chemistry, of pressure defense, of the transition game and rebounding.
As she goes into her junior year, she will continue to "sho" Cardinal fans and opponents the skills and basketball play that have matured into a overall team player. Take your eyes off her and she's knocking in a long range three. Lighten up on the defense and she's whipping a no-look pass to an open post player. Get lazy with the ball and she's streaking by you with a steal and headed for a layup.
You've just been "Schimmeled"
Basketball can be a funny game. Sometimes the shots won't fall, the refs seems biased against you and the ball seems to bounce directly into the opponents' hands on each loose ball. Overcoming the bad breaks is the sign of a disciplined, talented and mature team.
The team that Shoni will lead into the 2012-13 season is a disciplined, talented and mature group. A team that will be a force to reckon with in the BIG EAST. Gone is Becky Burke but back are Tia Gibbs and Monique Reid. Asia Taylor temporarily hobbled but Cortnee Walton and Megan Deines on board.
Shoni is the charismatic, flamboyant and volatile
Media and fans will sometimes talk about "the face" of the program...the one player who embodies and represents the squad. It's a discretionary and subjective tag...our guess is that most would select Shoni for the role of "face". We also expect that Shoni would turn around and tell you that there is no "face" to the squad...that it's a team effort, a team victory, a team cause and a team philosophy.
On and off the court. From the "rez" to meeting the "prez". Shoni handles it all with the same grace, skill and confidence.
THE SCHIMMEL STATS:
Year Games Starts Points Rebs. Assists P.P.G
2010-11 35 35 528 125 172 15.1
2011-12 31 31 444 139 146 14.3
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USA Olympic team with another lopsided win today...tying their all time point total with a 114-66
win over China. This one close early, China leading 28-25 with 1:30 left in first quarter.
Then...
A 17-2 run that had USA off and away to a 61-36 1st half lead. Angel with five steals and six first half points.
She'd finish with 16 in 20 minutes. Five steals and six assists. D. Taurasi leading the Americans with 22. USA finishes pool play a perfect 5-0. Canada next, on Tuesday.
..
...
With Gibbs and Reid back, Shoni will have a lot more options and teams won't be able to key on her. That'll make her even more dangerous on the court.
ReplyDelete--Joe Hill--
Who do you see starting for UofL besides Shoni Schimmel?
ReplyDeleteCurious Bearcat
Way too early to try and predict that. A lineup of:
DeleteShoni Schimmel
Bria Smith
Tia Gibbs
Monique Reid
Shawnta Dyer
looks pretty impressive, though
Paul
I like that lineup, assuming that everyone is healthy. I hope that Bria has spent the off-season shooting about 500 12-15 foot jump shots every day. She is obviously great at getting to the rim, but the better teams realized that they didn't have to respect her perimeter game and simply played the drive, making her less effective in Big East play.
Delete4 guard line up! I like! That will be a nightmare line-up for big teams. We would run up the floor all day with that line-up and the transition game would be beautiful. Shoni needs to pass more to Shanta' on fast breaks... and this teams needs to hit FT'S and Lay-up's
DeleteStarting on this team isn't going to matter too much. It's who is in there during crunch periods and Hammond and Slaughter will be two players who see that time.
ReplyDeleteCarl, Jr.
I agree. Hammond is our best rebounder and when she starts hitting that long jump shot and 3 pointer down...LOOK OUT! Nita needs to get her confidence back with her 3 point shot and use her shot fake more to frive to the hoop. She had a few games last season where she flat out knocked down the 3 after 3. She saved us in the PITT game and a few others.
DeleteI hope Tia & Mo are not rusty.
Asia is out with an injury until late December, right? I wonder how many minutes the frosh will get....And not trolling here but it is nice to see no players transferring this season.
ReplyDeleteR Megan n courtnee really going to help?I still think we r lacking at back up point guard can anyone convince me otherwise.
ReplyDeletePG situation worries me too. I knew that losing Tay was going to be huge! PPL don't want to admit it but if Tay would have stayed with the program and got a good 25 - 30 minutes a game last season season then we would have lost less than 10 games and probably got to the E8. Inuries or not. Her defense, rebounding, pushing the ball, and able to get to the rim at will were badly missed last season....WE BETTER PRAY WE GET EPPS OR CHONG IN 2013 OR......
ReplyDeleteWe're hearing Deines may be a sleeper that will impress. Tall guard who can handle the point. Distributes the ball well. Walton was a key component on the #1 team in high school basketball last year. Added depth to an already promising front line.
ReplyDeleteI think both are keepers.
Paul