Women’s hoops still waiting to turn the corner

Womens hoops still waiting to turn the corner

Noah Thomas | Sports Editor | @iNoahT

Despite optimistic expectations by coach Adell Harris prior to the start of women’s basketball season, UNC Wilmington has stumbled repeatedly on the court in the first half of this year’s schedule.

Following a 63-52 loss at home to Delaware and a loss on the road against Charleston, the Seahawks (5-9, 0-3 CAA) have continued to be ineffective in the early stages of conference play. The lack of scoring ability has been the biggest black mark thus far.

“I thought we struggled to score from the jump,” Harris said after the loss to StarNews Online. “We had a lot of shots around the goal in the first half, but we weren’t putting it on the square and finishing. We were kind of soft around the goal, not playing through contact.”

UNCW has shot worse than 40 percent from the floor in nine of its 13 contests. 

Jenny DeGraaf, a transfer from Penn. State, made her first start since late November vs. Delaware. She’s arguably UNCW’s most talented player, but has yet to find a role on a team still building toward something greater.

DeGraaf’s scoring struggles have been highlighted by numerous highs and lows. She scored 11 points vs. Delaware on 5-of-7 shooting — her fourth game in double figures this season — but it was the first game in weeks in which she’d shot over 50 percent.

Other moments, like games against James Madison and East Carolina in which she shot 1-of-12 and 3-of-12, respectively, have kept down a player who was once predicted to lead the team in scoring.

On the bright side, UNCW looks poised to eclipse last year’s abysmal seven-win season even if it just picks up a few conference wins in the final two months of action. A deeper roster, injury-free and full of experienced players both homegrown and brought in from outside the program, has been a help for Harris.

The Seahawks have time to turn things around. With more than half their schedule remaining, Harris and her team find themselves just four games below .500 with a desire to win.

UNCW’s next attempt at a win will come Friday vs. Drexel. The Dragons, sporting a 11-3 record, are near the top of the CAA and off to the best start in program history.

A win would act as a much-needed confidence booster for the Seahawks. A loss could make an already complicated puzzle more difficult to solve.