City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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(Ed. Note: This article is part of our 2022-23 season coverage, which will run for the six weeks preceding the first official games of the year on Nov. 9. To access all of our high school and college preview content for this season click here)

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2022-23 Saint Joseph’s Hawks
Coach: Cindy Griffin, 22nd season, 350-294 (.543)
Last Year: 13-17 overall (7-8 Atlantic 10); lost in A-10 semifinals (UMass, 76-58)
 

Not sure how much of a fan Griffin is of Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood, but last season was certainly a mix of the good, the bad and the ugly for the Griffin’s Hawks. The good: a trio of freshmen become major parts of the rotation, and will form the core of the program over the next three years. But that didn’t stop St. Joe’s women from finishing with a losing record for the fourth straight season, a surprise run to the A-10 semifinals not enough to mask that it was generally a disappointing season for a team that was loaded with veterans, especially considering a couple of them left the team in the middle of the season. A mostly-fresh roster has Griffins’ hopes higher for her 22nd season, but they might still be a year away.

Key Departures: SG Kaliah Henderson (10.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg), F Laila Fair (8.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg), F Lovin Marsicano (5.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg), F Alayna Gribble (5.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

The Hawks have to replace about 35% of their minutes and 40% of their scoring a year ago; not a tiny dent, but not an overwhelming amount, either. Henderson only played 12 games, losing her spot in the starting lineup and then leaving the team entirely; Marsciano and Gribble, both 6-foot-1 forwards, each graduated, though Marsicano is using her fifth year of eligibility as a grad transfer at Monmouth, very close to her hometown of Manasquan (N.J.). The most significant loss is Fair, a skilled 6-2 forward who started 15 games as a freshman a year ago and scored a season-high 20 points against Penn, but left for Massachusetts in the offseason.

New Faces: F Laura Ziegler (Fr. | Falkonergaardens Gymnasium, Den.), F Judit Ambrona (Fr. | Barcelona, Sp.), F Paula Maurina (Jr. | Hartford), G Emirson Devenie (Fr. | Royal Crown Academy School, Aus.)

To help offset the departures, Griffin and her staff brought in three new forwards, including a Division I transfer who will bolster the frontcourt right away, and a guard with good size (5-11) in Devenie. Maurina, who started 32 of the 37 games she played at Hartford over the last two years, averaged 13.0 ppg and 3.9 rpg last season, and immediately gives them more experience and scoring pop up front, while the 6-2 Ziegler is a strong outside shooter and also gained experience playing in the FIBA U-20 European championships for Denmark this summer. 

Projected Starters: PG Julia Nystrom (4.6 ppg), G Katie Jekot (9.6 ppg, 4.8 apg), SG Mackenzie Smith (9.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg), F Talya Brugler (10.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg),  F Paula Maurina (13.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg @ Hartford)

There are a few different ways that Griffin could go with her starting lineup, but we’re going to assume a three-guard, two-big lineup to open the season, as they’ll be a little on the small side if they bring Maurina off the bench. Three of the starters are certainly locked in: Jekot, who’s started 94 of the 100 games she’s played over the last four years, is in her sixth year of college and sets the tone for the whole program. Brugler and Smith both had standout freshman years, the 6-1 Brugler leading the team in scoring and rebounding, the 5-11 Smith in 3-point shooting (34-of-88, 38.6%), as well as both free-throw makes (57) and attempts (72). Nystrom, another sophomore, is about a lock to start after doing so 26 out of 28 games a year ago, proving herself a strong outside shooter (36.2%) as well. Whether Maurina starts or not, she’ll play a significant role in her first year on Hawk Hill.

Key Reserves: G Olivia Mullins (4.4 ppg), G Emma Boslet, F Laura Ziegler, G Emirson Devenie

The bench is a mix of experience and youth, but there’s a nice variety here in the reserves, allowing Griffin and her staff to go in different ways depending on game flow. Ziegler gives them another big body in the frontcourt as well as an inside-out scoring threat, Devnie and Boslet shooters with length, and Mullins another ball-handler who can create her own shot. There’s also 5-11 senior forward Jaden Walker, who started seven games two years ago but didn’t play last year, and the 6-2 Ambrona, who’s dealing with an offseason injury but could see minutes if she can get healthy in time to get acclimated.

By the Numbers
(6): The number of times Brugler was named A-10 Rookie of the Week last year, leading to her winning A-10, Big 5 and CoBL Rookie of the Year honors. The younger sister of Bucknell standout-turned Drexel standout-turned Drexel Director of Basketball Operations Tessa Brugler, Talya burst onto the scene with one of the better debut seasons in SJU women’s history, but it was clear there was more to come. Brugler said she’s been working on her mid-range game and her physicality, and a step forward in her production could make her one of the top players in the Big 5.

(64.5%:) St. Joe’s assisted shot rate last season, a number which was 19th best in the country, according to HerHoopStats. The Hawks were one of the five slowest teams in the country last year, so they don’t rank too highly in assists per game (13.7, 116th), but they were one of the best in the country at finding each other for buckets a year ago. Jekot led that charge, but four women — all returners — had more than one assist per game. This should be a strength of theirs once again this year.

(32.8%): The Hawks were a strong outside shooting team last year, their 3-point percentage of just under one-third ranking them No. 86 in the country, according to HerHoopStats. And they have good shooters returning in Smith, Brugler, and Nystrom, though it would help if Jekot — whose 120 3-pointers led the team — saw a slight uptick from her 30% mark, like the 33.7% number she put up the year before. If Ziegler and Devenie are strong outside shooters, or Boslet (who only attempted 17 triples last year) emerges in that area, St. Joe’s could be even better from deep this year.

Keep an eye on…

Frontcourt Production: If all goes according to plan, the Hawks hope to have three forwards who are 6-1 or 6-2 who can really give them something offensively in Brugler, Maurina and Ziegler; if that’s the case, the floor should open up plenty for Smith, Jekot, and the rest of the guards. All three of the posts can score inside and out, are capable rebounders and passers, and Griffin should be able to play any two of them together, or just one if they’re going a little smaller. This should be a team that’s built inside-out at its best.

Lineup fluctuation: Last year, Griffin had 11 different Hawks start at least one game, with nine starting at least four; only Jekot (24 starts) started each one of her appearances, and only Brugler and Smith played all 30 games. The rest was a mix of injuries, early departures, and lineup changes as some of the youth experienced peaks and valleys over the course of the season. You can bet Griffin’s aiming for more stability this year, without the need for any freshmen to be starting, and a more established group entering the year that shouldn’t have the personnel troubles they experienced a year ago.