Lady Cougs hope to haunt Eagles

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Lia Galdeira attempts a layup against California in Beasley Coliseum, Feb. 9, 2014.

High expectations along with an experienced team greet the 2014-15 women’s basketball season.

The Cougars are poised to make a run at the NCAA Tournament after coming off a 17-17 (9-9) record last season. Last season the Cougars saw the postseason for the first time since 1991, losing in the first round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) to Montana.

Head Coach June Daugherty has recruited a class of freshman from all over the globe. The Cougars bring in seven freshmen to accompany the eight returning players.

Daugherty said this recruiting class is the best she has ever had. That is not too shabby for a coach who has coached over 700 college basketball games.

“It’s a group of high character, it’s a very talented group, they’re very long and athletic, and they’re a versatile group,” Daugherty said about her newest recruiting class in an interview with cougfan.com. “I think, too, that we’ve got several kids in that group who really love basketball and want to be great, and they’re going to be willing to do whatever it takes to achieve greatness at this level, individually and as a team. A coach couldn’t ask for more than that.”

The Cougars will look to senior Tia Presley and junior Lia Galdeira to lead the charge. Both made 2014 All-Pac-12 honors last season. Last season Presley led the team in scoring with 19.0 points per game, coming in a close second was Galdeira at 18.5.

“It seems crazy that two dynamic scorers can play together and on the same team, but we found a way to make it work,” Presley said at Pac-12 Media Day. “When she’s playing really well, I feed off of it, and I think the same when I’m playing well, she does the same thing, so it’s been great playing with Lia.”

If the Cougars are going to have success this season they must improve on two fronts, Daugherty said. The first is solidifying the front line, where the coaching staff believes the team will be more physical and skilled than a year ago. The second is improving on defense, where the Cougars ranked second-to-last in the Pac-12 after allowing an average of 75.9 points per game. That equates to 1.6 more points given up on defense that the Cougar offense averaged.

Washington State’s attack does not let the post play go unnoticed. 6-foot-4 senior center Shalie Dheensaw and 6-foot-1 junior forward Mariah Cooks will head the post play for the Cougars this weekend.

There is no lack of enthusiasm coming from Daugherty about this upcoming season.

“I’m very fired up, I tell you what,” Daugherty said at Pac-12 Media Day. “We’ve gone through some practices, gone through some scrimmage situations. We’ve got several new faces but Tia and the upperclassmen are really doing a great job of leading this group, so we’ve got the chance to be really special, and we’re very excited about that.”

The Cougs have said that a home court advantage is critical to success in the Pac-12.

“The fan support has grown quick,” junior guard Lia Galdeira said. “I have been here for two and a half years, and from my freshman to sophomore year people have enjoyed watching us. The louder the fans are the better we will play.”

The Cougars host an exhibition game against the Central Methodist Eagles at 1 p.m. this Sunday, Nov. 2, 2014.