Brandon Gonzalez | Staff Writer
The women’s basketball season is about to get under way at home in the Ocean Bank Convocation Center against the Florida National University Conquistadors on Monday, Nov. 4 – a repeat of last season’s home opener.
In their last matchup, the Panthers beat the Conquistadors by 87 points to kick off a 2023 – 2024 season that brought renewed expectations for a team that had been floating around a 34% winning percentage for the past two seasons under fourth-year coach Jeyska Burks-Wiley.
Burks-Wiley, who led the Panthers to a 21-12 win season and made the Conference USA tournament after missing out on it the year before, has been instrumental in the Panther’s turnaround these last few seasons.
Despite losing to Troy in the WNIT playoffs, the 2023-2024 season was a success on all levels.
Credit for the team’s winning ways goes as much to her as it does to the balanced scoring from the entire team, with the points-per-game for the Panthers’ top eight scorers all being within 1 point of each other.
Senior point guard Tanajah Hayes was the Panthers’ primary facilitator when she was on the court, with her 103 Total Assists being almost 50 more than the next-highest player.
On the defensive end, her team-leading 60 Total Steals more than solidified her ascension as one of FIU’s top two-way players.
However, Hayes only started half of her 27 total games, so if she is to maintain or even further her production she has to be given more opportunities to do so.
Junior guard Angena Belloso is returning, she started a majority of the Panther’s games last season and was the Panther’s most accurate shooter from deep with a 38% 3-point percentage.
Do-it-all junior forward Mya Kone has returned as well and will benefit from the addition of senior forward Isnelle Natabou from Iowa State to give her some scoring relief in the frontcourt.
Kone led the Panthers in scoring last season with 11.4 PPG while also leading them in blocks with 38, and while Natabou didn’t get an extended start on the Iowa State roster she played well for her previous team, Sacramento State.
Natabou could start at center, giving the Panthers a larger interior presence that they lacked last year.
A key point with this roster is consistency, three of the most important faces from last season have returned in Kone, Belloso, and Hayes.
With the team’s additions in the offseason only serving to add on to their pre-existing greatness, it’s not an over-exaggeration to say the Panthers are ready to do more than just make the playoffs.
This game will be a major test for FNU, who started out last season 3-11 through 14 games before turning around and winning 12 of their next 13 to close out the year 15-12.
With the late rebirth of the Conquistadors last season they could prove a solid early season match-up for the Panthers.
A repeat of last year’s showing is unlikely, but nothing is ever out of the realm of possibility for this Panthers team.
Prediction:
FIU: 90
FNU: 70
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