2012-13 Emory Women's Basketball Recap

The 2012-13 Emory women’s basketball team turned in a season to remember with the squad enjoying the most successful campaign in school history. Using a blend of game-tested veterans, along with an influx of new talent, the Eagles got out of the blocks quickly and never looked back with their season-long performance making them a force to be reckoned with, not only within the University Athletic Association but nationally as well with the squad staying ranked among the top 20 Division III teams all year.

A combination of a swarming and relentless defense, that allowed the second lowest points-per-game average in school annals, and a balanced scoring attack that saw a number of performers step up with big plays, were catalysts to the team’s success during the year.   For the record, Emory finished with an overall ledger of 24-4, establishing a school record for most wins in a season, bettering the previous mark of 21 set by the 1994-95 team.  The Eagles also battled to their first-ever UAA title, finishing the league portion of the schedule with a school-record 12-2 slate.  The league title allowed Emory to capture the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament where it hosted and won first- and second-round contests, propelling the club into the Round of 16.  During the storybook journey that was the 2012-13 season, Emory came through with many memorable moments including the following accomplishments:

** Ending the year ranked 13 nationally by D3hoops.com and 14^th by USA Today Sports. Emory was tabbed as the No. 21 team by USA Today and No. 22 by D3hoops.com.

** Making the program’s third-ever NCAA Tournament appearance and registering the school’s first postseason victories since 1997 when it hosted and defeated Whitworth (72-65) and Huntingdon (88-62) in the opening two rounds of the national tourney. 

** Racing off to an 8-0 start, the third time in school history and first since 1994-95 that an Emory team won its opening eight games of the season.

** Setting a school record with 16 home wins.

** Rattling off a seven-game UAA win streak (Jan. 13 – Feb. 3), the program’s longest single-season showing and tying the mark when the ’96-97 team won its last four conference encounters followed by the ’97-98 unit capturing its first three.

** Set a school season record with 176 three-point field goals.

** Set a school season record in both steals (405) and steals average (14.5 spg). The thefts total shattered the previous standard of 305 set by the 2010-11 team.

** Lead the UAA while ranking 32^nd nationally in scoring offense with a 71.2 points per game average.

** Lead the UAA in scoring defense with a 55.1 points-per-game average, the second-best effort in school history, behind only the 1996-97 team’s mark of 53.4.

** Pace the UAA and stand 21^st nationally in scoring margin (+16.1).

** Top the UAA and hold down the No. 49 position on the national list in three-point field goal percentage (.330).

** Lead the conference and rank 12^th in Division III in steals per game (14.5 spg).  The Eagles concluded the year with 10 or more steals in 24 outings.

** Sit atop the UAA and stand No. 8 nationally in turnover margin (+9.5).

The Eagles took advantage of the early season portion of the schedule, playing six home games as part of an 8-0 start. Included in that stretch were triumphs over Spelman College and Piedmont College at the Emory Tipoff Classic.  After posting a win over LaGrange College in its first road test of the campaign, head coach Christy Thomaskutty and her squad returned to the Woodruff PE Center to post decisive victories over Rust College and Sewanee. Emory closed out the month of November with an impressive 82-59 verdict at Birmingham Southern before winning its first two games in the month of December, 70-42 vs. Agnes Scott and 69-41 over Oglethorpe.

The Eagles ventured to the Maryville College and fell short to the eventual NCAA-bound Scots, 62-46, before regrouping to close out the 2012 calendar year by earning wins in their final two regular season non-conference games, bettering Piedmont for the second time before topping Huntingdon College.

Holding an overall record of 10-1, Emory opened UAA action with a thrilling 73-67 double-overtime win at Rochester, a contest that saw it rally from an 18-point deficit with 6:27 left in the first half.  The battle against the Yellowjackets would be the first of three overtime game that the Eagles would engage in during league play, with the second taking place in their following contests, a 56-53 defeat to No. 3 Washington University.  Emory did not let the setback against the Bears linger, bouncing back to earn seven straight wins to boost it conference slate to 8-1.  The Eagles won six of those games by 12 or more points with the other victory a 66-64 win at the buzzer at Carnegie Mellon.

A loss at home to Wash U dropped the team’s league showing to 8-2, but that would prove to be the team’s final setback in UAA action.  Emory started with a 15-point outcome against Chicago before battling back from an early six-point obstacle in overtime to subdue a tough Case Western group, 62-61.  The Eagles then hammered Carnegie Mellon, 76-55, setting the stage for a winner-take-all clash against Rochester.  With both teams heading into the highly anticipated affair with 11-2 league records, and with the victort earning the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, Emory built a 16-point cushion in the second half and held off a late charge by UR to claim the program’s first-ever UAA title with a 65-57 verdict.

With the NCAA Tournament bid securely in its grasp, Emory was rewarded for its regular season performance by being selected as a host site for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament.  Playing before an enthusiastic home crowd, the Eagles bettered a talented Whitworth University team that made the trek to Atlanta from Spokane, Washington, by a 72-65 count before wearing down Huntingdon College, 88-62, in the second round.   Playing in the Round of 16 for the first time since 1997, the Eagles saw their season come to an end when they came out on the short end of a 67-62 score to Whitman College in a contest played on the campus of Williams College.

Senior Misha Jackson completed her third and final season with the program in grand fashion, earning Honorable Mention All-America honors as chosen by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. The 5-foot-11 Jackson led the UAA in rebounding in both overall (9.0 rpg) and league (8.8 rpg) action and recorded a total of 11 performances with 10 or more boards, including back-to-back efforts of 17 rebounds against Spelman and Piedmont in the first two games of the year.  A First Team All-UAA honoree, Jackson compiled a league-high eight double-doubles (pts./rebs.) on the season while posting 17 during her tenure as an Eagle.  She established a school season record with 43 blocked shots and her career mark of 95 placed her second on the school’s all-time list.  She ended up ranked among Emory’s all-time top 10 performers in 11 categories including seventh in rebounds (621), fifth in rebound average (8.0 rpg) and 10^th in scoring (900 pts.).

Hannah Lilly completed her junior season as a First Team All-UAA pick for the second straight year after topping the squad and placing fourth among league players with a 13.0 points-per-game scoring average.  Lilly, a double-digit scorer on 19 occasions, maintained her status as one of the league’s premier long-range shooters, with her 60 three-point field goals ranking as the fourth-highest individual total in school annals and her 2.2 treys per game good for the No. 2 spot on the UAA ladder.  The team’s top scorer in 11 outings, she became the eighth player to score 1,000 points in a career when she reached that total in an 80-65 win vs. Chicago (Feb. 10).  Heading into her final year of action, she finds herself in the No. 7 slot on the school’s all-time list with 1,072 points and is No. 2 with 175 treys.

Savannah Morgan directed the Emory offense with a steady hand from her point-guard spot, earning First Team All-UAA acclaim ranking second in the conference and 21^st nationally with a 5.1 assists-per-game average.  Her 144 assists established a school season record, just ahead of the 142 she recorded during the 2011-12 season.  The 5-foot-8 junior tied for the No. 1 position among UAA performers and stood among the top 50 on the national scene in assist/turnover ratio, and also upped her scoring average from her first two seasons, standing second on the club and sixth in the conference in scoring average (11.1 ppg).  She compiled 17 double-digit scoring efforts and either led or shared for the team’s scoring honors on nine occasions.

Danielle Landry was one of three seniors to close out her career, starting all 28 contests and finishing second on the team and 12^th among UAA players in rebounding with a 6.0 per-game average.  The 6-foot Landry landed honorable mention All-UAA acclaim, scoring in double figures on 14 occasions en route to averaging a career-best 9.1 points per outing.  She played a key role in the team’s defensive scheme, averaging 2.2 thefts per game with that mark ranking fourth in the UAA.  Career-wise, she appeared in 100 games and wound up 10^th all-time at Emory in rebounds (613), third in steals (182) and 19^th in scoring (752 pts.).

Junior Selena Castillo enjoyed a breakout year in the backcourt, drawing starting nods in all 28 games and garnering honorable mention All-UAA recognition after establishing a school season record with 80 steals, while pacing the UAA and ranking 82^nd nationally among D-III cagers with a school-record tying 2.9 steals per game. In addition to her defensive contributions, Castillo helped boost the offensive fortunes of the squad, coming through with eight double-figure scoring performances en route to averaging a career-high 7.6 points per game.

The 2012-13 campaign also closed out the career of senior Katie Dickerson.  The Millersville, Maryland, native appeared in a total of 52 games over her four-year career and recorded four double-figure scoring performances.  Dickerson made her mark away from the court as well, earning numerous honors from the University for her various community and societal endeavors, including the Bobby Jones Scholarship as well as the Brittain Award, regarded as Emory’s highest student honor that recognizes one graduating senior that honors service to Emory and the greater community without expectation of reward or recognition. Finally, Dickerson was the female recipient of the athletic department’s McDonough Award, presented for positive contributions to the Emory community as a student, athlete and citizen.