Three of the top four scorers can return for Virginia, so new coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton has some important building blocks.
She also has roster flexibility, starting with five open scholarships to use on targets in the transfer portal and prep ranks.
“We already hit the ground running with that,” Agugua-Hamilton said at her introductory press conference last week. “I think obviously I like to recruit the four-year kid, but the transfer portal has also changed some things. Looking at some good transfers that are going to fit our culture, but also can be competitive on the floor.”
It helps that Agugua-Hamilton is bringing her staff with her from Missouri State, so she won’t have to spend the next few weeks reaching out to recruit at that level.
“That will be an easy transition for me, and I’ll be able to delegate and get organized pretty quickly, so that will help. But we’ve got to develop these kids, and we’ve got to recruit. Those are the two things that need to happen here in the next couple of months,” Agugua-Hamilton said.
The building blocks for 2022-2023 include 6’2” senior forward Camryn Taylor (12.8 ppg, 6.1 rebs/g, 40.3% FG, 18.2% 3FG), 5’11” junior guard Mir McLean (11.4 ppg, 8.3 rebs/g, 43.7% FG, 14.3% 3FG), and 5’7” senior guard Taylor Valladay (9.5 ppg, 3.7 assists/g, 37.0% FG, 25.7% 3FG).
Other key rotation pieces that can return are 6’2” senior forward London Clarkson (5.2 ppg, 3.9 rebs/g, 46.3% FG), 6’0” senior guard Carole Miller (5.1 ppg, 31.5% FG, 30.8% 3FG), and 6’0” junior guard Kaydan Lawson (4.3 ppg, 4.4 rebs/g, 28.1% FG, 15.3% 3FG).
The returning players and whatever newcomers Agugua-Hamilton and her staff are able to recruit will fit into an up-tempo approach preferred by the new group.
“We like to get up and down. I have a continuity offense that we flow into, but also run a lot of quick hits,” said Agugua-Hamilton, who told reporters at the presser that she uses the mover/blocker scheme that she learned from breaking down tape of Tony Bennett’s Virginia offense as her base offense.
“I like versatile players, post players that can shoot, guards, big guards that can post. I like to play with the defense a little bit that way and utilize our mismatches when we can. Offensively, that’s how we play. Defensively, if you look at our track record, when I was at Missouri State, we were top 10 in scoring defense in the country. Rebounding, we were up there, our stats in the country, because that’s a staple. That’s who we’re going to be. We have to defend at a high level, be physical, understand angles. I’m more of a gap defense coach than deny.
“So, that’s primarily what we do. But then rebounding is big. Rebounding is big. That was one of my strengths as a player, and it carries on as a coach. If you want to play for me, you’ve got to be able to rebound the ball. So, that’s something that we’re going to do as well,” Agugua-Hamilton said.
To the question in the headline: how quickly can she get Virginia turned around?
It’s not going to be easy. The program is coming off a 5-22 season, and Tina Thompson was 30-63 in her four seasons at the helm.
The ACC is deep – with N.C. State and Louisville, at this writing, set to play tonight for berths in the Final Four, from among the eight programs that received NCAA Tournament bids this year.
“There will be some ups and downs, some good times and bad, but we’ll get through them together,” Agugua-Hamilton said. “There’s a lot of work to be done here, but there’s a lot of blessings ahead. There are banners to be hung. This community is hungry for more, and so am I.”
Story by Chris Graham
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