The 24th-ranked Hurricanes women’s basketball team faces familiar foe in WNIT semifinal
This November feels a lot more like March for the 24th-ranked University of Miami women’s basketball team. While most teams are starting their seasons with ho-hum non-conference games, the Hurricanes play against No. 19 Marquette in the Preseason WNIT semifinal Thursday night at the Watsco Center.
Both teams are 3-0.
Marquette is a high-octane team that is averaging 97.7 points; and the game has added meaning because the Golden Eagles are coached by Carolyn Kieger, who was an assistant under UM coach Katie Meier for six seasons. Much of her staff also has Miami ties.
“Marquette can score in bunches and may be one of the best teams we play all season,” Meier said. “They have five senior starters, and all have scored over 1,000 points.”
Meier and her players are treating this week like the early rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
“It really has me motivated, I can’t believe how dialed in I am,” Meier said. “And I can tell my upperclassmen get it, too. When you’re marching through a bracket, playing Friday-Sunday, that was really good for us. Our first two opponents, Stephen F. Austin and Hartford, were top two in their leagues last year, so that was like playing first-round NCAA tournament games.
“Now, us and Marquette, we could definitely be teams that play second weekend in March, so it feels like March instead of November,” she said.
The Hurricanes are coming off a 75-62 home win over Hartford Tuesday night. Senior forward/center Emese Hof led the team with 21 points and tied for the sixth-best single-game field goal percentage in program history, finishing 10-of-12 (83.3 percent) from the floor.
Redshirt junior Beatrice Mompremier had her second double-double with 19 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Mompremier was a McDonald’s All-American at Miami High and transferred to UM from Baylor last year.
Meier and Kieger spoke on the phone Monday and are eagerly awaiting the matchup.
“There is a lot of Miami in Marquette, and as a human, you have a lot of emotions, but Carolyn and I spoke and the prevailing emotions were, ‘Your team is really good,’ and `Your team is damn good, Oh my god.’” Meier said. “We’re both really happy with our teams. We both have a ton of respect for each other, and this is going to be a blast. There’s going to be a lot of intensity. It’s very rare you coach against someone you consider family but that’s really not the story. I get that it is a story, but these are two big-time teams that are fun to watch, and that is the real story here.”
Thursday’s winner faces either Auburn or Iowa State in the Preseason WNIT title game Sunday at 4:30 p.m. If Miami wins and play Auburn, the game would be at home, while a potential matchup with Iowa State would be on the road.