Wake Forest Athletics
Women's Basketball Season In Review
5/14/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
May 14, 2003
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Wake Forest Women's Basketball
2002-03 Season Wrap-Up Record: 13-15 * ACC: 3-13
Season Highlights
* Wake Forest opened the 2002-03 campaign with a 87-71 victory over LaSalle, breaking the school record for three-pointers in a game (15).
* The Deacs put together an early-season streak of eight consecutive victories, its longest such stretch in 10 seasons.
* WFU's 9-1 start to the year was its best opening to a season since the 1992-93 campaign.
* Wake Forest totaled 13 victories in 2002-03, its highest number of wins in seven seasons.
* Senior Tiffani Listenbee earned third-team All-ACC honors and was an ACC All-Defensive team pick, WFU's first such honoree.
* Freshman Cotelia Bond-Young was named to the ACC All-Rookie team and runner-up in Rookie of the Year voting.
* Listenbee led the ACC in field goal percentage while Bond-Young was the league's top rookie in both scoring and assists.
* Two Deacons -- Bond-Young and Tonia Brown -- reached the century mark in assists, while Bond-Young's assist-to-turnover ratio (1.72) already ranks as a Wake Forest career best.
Women's Basketball Season Ends With 13-15 Record
Wake Forest women's basketball closed out the 2002-03 campaign with a 13-15 record. It was the highest number of victories in seven seasons for the Demon Deacon program and the most wins posted by a WFU team during head coach Charlene Curtis' tenure.
Although Wake Forest got off to its best start (9-1) in 10 seasons, the Deacs struggled in conference play, enduring a nine-game losing streak in the middle of the season. They rebounded to win three of their last six games before finishing 3-13 in league games and finishing ninth in the ACC standings.
Season highlights included an eight-game win streak in non-conference play, a victory over Virginia for the first time since 1978, and the first road victory at Maryland in three seasons. Individual standouts included Tiffani Listenbee, a third-team All-ACC and All-Defensive team selection as well as Cotelia Bond-Young, an ACC All-Freshman honoree.
Lucky Number 13
WFU's 66-55 win over Clemson on Feb. 27 marked the Deacs' 13th victory of the 2002-03 campaign. It is the most victories posted by a Wake Forest squad since the 1995-96 season and most during the Charlene Curtis era at WFU.
Listenbee, Bond-Young Earn All-ACC Honors
Wake Forest's Tiffani Listenbee and Cotelia Bond-Young earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors, as announced by the league office in March.
Listenbee, a senior forward from Clinton Township, Mich. was named to the All-ACC third team as well as the All-Defensive squad. Bond-Young, a guard who hails from Landover, Md., earned All-Freshman team honors.
Wake Forest's 2003 selections mark the second straight year the Deacs have placed somebody on an All-ACC team, and the third time in the last five years WFU has been represented on the All-Rookie squad.
Listenbee was the second-leading vote-getter on the third-team and picked up one vote for the first-team. Over the course of the season, she ranked among conference leaders in scoring (10.4 ppg), rebounding (6.4) and field goal percentage (.532). Listenbee was even more impressive during ACC play, as she led the league in field goal percentage (.547) and ranked 14th in scoring and seventh in rebounding versus conference opponents.
Listenbee was also selected to the five-member ACC All-Defensive Team, a first for the Demon Deacon program.
Bond-Young led all ACC freshman in scoring (10.0 ppg) and assists (3.7 apg) while putting together a school-record 1.72 assist-to-turnover ratio in her first season with the Deacon program. She connected on 42 three-pointers in the regular season and ranked third among league rookies in steals and sixth in rebounding. She was the second-leading vote-getter on the ACC All-Freshman team, receiving 41 of a possible 50 votes.
The All-ACC and All-Freshman squads were selected by members of ACSMA (Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association), while the All-Defensive team was chosen by a vote of the league's nine head coaches.
Listenbee Saves Her Best For Last
Wake Forest senior forward Tiffani Listenbee played some of her best basketball during the final stretch of her collegiate career, which helped her earn third-team All-ACC honors and make a case as one of the league's most improved players for 2002-03.
For a stretch late in the regular season, Listenbee led Wake Forest in scoring for six consecutive games and closed out the season scoring double-figures in nine of 12 contests. She was also the team's leading rebounder in five of the final eight outings of the year and posted double-figure rebounding performances in four games.
Also included in the second half of the season were two double-doubles -- 20 points and 13 rebounds versus North Carolina and 18 points, 12 boards at NC State. The 20 points tied her then-career high, while the 13 boards were a personal best. She broke that scoring high with 21 points versus North Carolina A&T.
Listenbee also improved her field goal shooting numbers, shooting 43-of-63 (68 percent) from the field during that six-game stretch as the team's scoring leader. She finished the ACC season as the league leader in field goal percentage (.547) and was the only Deacon averaging double-figure scoring in conference games (10.8 ppg), a mark that ranked 14th in the league.
Bond-Young Bursts Onto the Scene
Wake Forest freshman Cotelia Bond-Young made an immediate impact and became an effective go-to player for the Demon Deacons this season, leading to her selection on the ACC All-Freshman Team.
The 5-7 guard led all ACC rookies in scoring (9.9 ppg) and assists (3.75 apg). She also finished the the regular season as the league's 18th-leading scorer and seventh-ranked assists leader overall. Her 43 three-pointers ranked fourth in the ACC in treys per game (1.54), while her three-point shooting percentage (.319) was 10th among league leaders. She led the league in both of those categories for much of the early season.
Bond-Young quickly proved to be a solid all-around player, as she also ranked third among ACC rookies in steals (1.25) and sixth in rebounding (4.3). Her 1.72 assist-to-turnover ratio (105-61) ties as the third-best season ratio in school history and is currently WFU's career record in that category.
Bond-Young owned a team-high 16 double-figure scoring games and led WFU in scoring five times and in assists 15 times this season.
A Rare Road Win
Wake Forest's 79-75 win at Maryland on Feb. 13 wasn't just a rare feat for the Demon Deacon squad (WFU has picked up just three victories in its last 26 ACC road trips), but it was an unusual accomplishment for any ACC team on the road this season.
In conference games this season, the home team won nearly 64 percent of the time (46-of-72). Seven of nine ACC teams had a conference record of .500 or better at home this season.
Bond-Young Sets Assist-to-Turnover Record
Although her scoring numbers were below her early-season average in the second half of the ACC season, freshman Cotelia Bond-Young stepped it up in the rebounding and assist categories. She pulled down rebounding team-highs of 10 at Clemson and six versus Georgia Tech. She had 10 boards at Florida State while notching her first double-double.
Bond-Young was also the team's assists leader in 15 games this season, including six of the last seven outings. For the season she's averaged 3.75 assists with just 2.18 turnovers per game. She was the ACC's top freshman in assists and led WFU assist-to-turnover ratio (1.72). That mark ties as the third-best season ratio in school history. And with her 100th assist against Georgia Tech in the team's regular season finale, Bond-Young qualified for the school career rankings and is currently holding the career record for assist-to-turnover ratio.
Listenbee: The Iron Deac
On Jan. 23 against NC State, senior forward Tiffani Listenbee played in her 100th career game as a Demon Deacon. In fact, Listenbee did not miss a game during her entire collegiate career (112 games). She is the only current player on the squad who can claim this accomplishment.
Listenbee became the second Demon Deacon in as many years to see action in every outing of her career. Last season, LaChina Robinson closed out her career playing in all 112 games possible, a mark that ties for seventh at WFU in career games played.
Brown Nets 100th Three-Pointer
Although she wasn't able to match last year's school-record 62 three-pointers, junior guard Tonia Brown continued her assault on the WFU three-point shooting records in 2002-03.
She scored just one three-pointer against Maryland on Jan. 12, but that was all she needed to notch her 100th career trey. Already listed on WFU's career three-pointers chart, Brown is the sixth player in school history - and first since Alisha Mosley (1997-00) - to reach the century mark in that category.
With one season left in her collegiate career, Brown completed her junior campaign ranked fourth all-time at WFU with 117 career three-pointers and fourth with 381 career attempts.
After setting the school's single-season record with 62 three-pointers last season, Brown tallied 35 treys in the 2002-03 campaign. Freshman Cotelia Bond-Young led the squad with 43, a mark which ranked 10th on WFU's single season list.
Miller Back On The Court
After missing all of the 2001-02 campaign with a back injury, senior forward Heather Miller returned to the court in 2002-03. Also serving as a team captain, Miller provided veteran leadership on the floor, averaging 2.5 points and 1.7 rebounds while starting nine contests.
Miller was impressive in a two-game set at North Carolina and versus Maryland in January, scoring eight points and tying her career high with eight rebounds versus the Tar Heels. She followed that up with nine points (on a trio of three-pointers) versus Maryland.
Ferrell On The Offensive
Sophomore forward Erin Ferrell learned to play new roles in the Deacons' scheme this season -- as a starter and a scorer. The part seemed suited for her, as she tied a career high and led the team with 16 points in her first start versus Georgia Tech and followed that up with 11 points, nine rebounds at FSU. Versus Clemson, she came off the bench for a team-high 15 points.
While Ferrell had appeared to have settled into her role as a defensive stopper off the bench, she made some noise on the offensive end of the floor as well. She averaged 7.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.1 points and 1.1 boards over her averages as a rookie last season -- figures that were impressive enough to earn her the team's Most Improved Player award.
Ferrell posted 11 games of double-figure scoring this year, nearly four times her mark of three double-figure games from all of last season. In the team's win at UNC Wilmington, she set a new career high in rebounds (10) and recorded her first double-double with 12 points as well.
Deacon Duo Dishes 100
Wake Forest has two players -- freshman Cotelia Bond-Young and junior Tonia Brown -- who have each dished at least 100 assists this season. Brown leads the team with 107, while Bond-Young reached the century mark in the team's final outing of the regular season and finished with 105 for the year.
The last time Wake Forest achieved this mark was the 1992-93 season, when Nicole Levesque tallied 112 assists and B.J. Thames dished 106.
Besides WFU, North Carolina was the only other team in the ACC to have two players with at least 100 assists at the conclusion of the regular season.
There's Something About Mary(land)
Something about playing the Terrapins brings out the three-point shots in the Demon Deacons. In its two meetings with Maryland this season, Wake Forest shot 19-of-47 (40.4 percent) from three-point range, hitting nine three-pointers in the first meeting at home, then scoring 10 in a four-point win at Maryland on Feb. 13.
That pattern holds especially true for Deacon Heather Miller. The senior forward, who has converted on 11-of-32 (.344) from beyond the arc this season, is 6-of-11 (55 percent) against the Terps. She played a total of 32 minutes in the two meetings with Maryland this season, and scored 20 points in that span.
Oh, So Close!
After cruising through the months of November and December with just one game decided by 10 points or less, the Demon Deacons went through some battles in the second half of the 2002-03 campaign.
After defeating UNC Wilmington by six, 65-59, on Dec. 29, Wake Forest then went 1-8 in games decided by 10 points or less. All nine of those games were against ACC opponents.
Overall, half of the Deacs' ACC regular season games (8 of 16) were decided by a close margin.
That stretch includes a pair of two-point losses to Florida State, a two-point loss and a four-point win against Maryland, a four-point loss to Georgia Tech, a 10-point loss at then No. 1-ranked Duke (which was a two-point game with less than a minute remaining), a 10-point loss at home to No. 6 North Carolina, and a three-point loss on the road at NC State. The ninth game was a five-point loss to Duke in the conference tournament.
Deacs Open Season On a Streak
Wake Forest had put together two impressive streaks from the start of the season that were unfortunately halted with a loss to Florida State on Jan. 2. WFU had an eight-game win streak going into that game, its longest such streak since a nine-game run in the 1992-93 campaign.
Wake Forest was also riding an eight-game home win streak, beginning with the final two home games of last season and first six games of the 2002-03 season.
In addition, Wake Forest's 9-1 record before the FSU loss was its best opening to a season since a 10-1 start in the 1992-93 campaign.
Another streak was halted on Dec. 21 at Radford. Wake Forest had scored at least 70 points in five consecutive games, a feat it had not accomplished since posting five straight 70-plus scoring games at the start of the 1998-99 campaign. The Deacs, however, put up a then season-low 56 points at Radford in a 20-point victory.
Did You Know?
Wake Forest's 10-point loss (71-61) at then-No. 1 Duke in January was the Blue Devils' toughest test in an ACC home game this season. Duke's other conference games at home -- all Blue Devil victories -- were decided by an average of 30.5 points.
Duke's 71 points in that win over WFU was its third-lowest point total at home this season (behind 65 points in its loss to UConn and 69 points versus Clemson).
WFU's five-point loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament was also the Blue Devils' toughest tournament game, as they defeated Georgia Tech 76-52 in the semifinals and UNC 77-59 in the championship game.
Working "Overtime" To Come Up With These Notes
With Wake Forest's triple-overtime loss at FSU on Feb. 2:
* It marked just the second triple overtime game in school history and first in ACC play. The Deacs took UNC Charlotte to a third extra period on Dec. 19, 1993 before losing, 90-87.
* It was the second-lowest scoring overtime game in school history. WFU fell to Virginia, 61-55 in one overtime period last season.
* It was just the fourth game in school history that went beyond one extra period. The Deacs have played two double-overtime game, defeating James Madison in 1997 and losing at Virginia in 2001.
* Wake Forest's record in overtime contests now stands at 9-12, and the Deacons have lost four straight such games, all against conference opponents.
A Balanced Scoring Attack
Last season, guard Tonia Brown was the Deacons' leading scorer with 13.9 points per game -- and she was the only WFU player putting up double figures. This year, she's averaged nearly four points less -- 10.3 per game -- but she also received a lot more help with offensive production. Check out these numbers: * Three players averaged doubles figures in scoring, including Tiffani Listenbee (10.6 ppg) and Eafton Hill (10.2) in addition to Brown. A fourth player, Cotelia Bond-Young, put up 9.9 points per game.
* Ten of the 14 active members of the roster have posted at least one double-figure scoring game this season. Five have posted at least 11 such games.
* Three times this season -- versus High Point, Virginia and Maryland -- the Deacons have had five players with double figures in points.
Deacs Set School Records In Three-Pointers, Attempts
Wake Forest started off the 2002-03 season with a bang, breaking the school's single-game record for three-pointers in the 2002-03 opener against La Salle. The Deacs drained 15 treys (25 attempts) against the Explorers, shattering the previous school record of 13 set on Dec. 3, 1993 against Butler. That mark was the best performance by an ACC team this season and also tied as the sixth-best three-point performance nationally this season.
Wake's best performance from beyond the arc in all of the 2001-02 season was nine against FSU.
The Deacons also broke the school record for three-point attempts in a single game, taking 30 shots at Florida State on Feb. 2.
Wake Forest ranked first in the ACC in three-pointers per game (5.64), but seventh with a .298 three-point shooting percentage. (See next note.)
In the 16 ACC regular season games, the Deacons attempted 310 three-pointers, 68 more than the next team in the ACC, North Carolina (242) and at least 130 more shots than NC State (176), Clemson (174), Georgia Tech (172) and Florida State (168).
The Wake Forest school record for three-pointers in a season is 172, set by the 1998-99 squad. Wake Forest had 158 three-pointers in 2002-03, which passes last year's total of 151 and currently ranks as the second-best season performance in school history.
A Roller-Coaster Ride From Beyond the Arc
Wake Forest was the ACC's top three-point shooting team in terms of both percentage and three-pointers per game for most of the early season, but its three-point shooting fluctuated wildly in ACC play.
In their first three conference games, the Deacons shot just 10-of-61 shooting from beyond the arc (16.4 percent). The next three games showed an upward trend, as WFU converted on 22-of-60 (37 percent) from long range.
While the numbers continue to fluctuate, the Deacs posted their best ACC three-point performance of the season at Maryland on Feb. 13, converting on 10-of-23 for nearly 44 percent.
On the defensive side of the three-point shooting battle, the Deacs had done a fairly good job of keeping their league opponents from scoring a lot of treys -- until the Cavaliers went 10-of-18 from beyond the arc in the team's second meeting with Virginia. Through the first nine games of the ACC season, WFU held seven opponents to 33 percent or lower from beyond the arc. (Top-ranked Duke shot 33 percent, while the other five teams shot 23 percent or worse.) Over the last four ACC games however, Wake's opponents have collectively shot over 38 percent (29-of-76) from downtown.
One More Three-Point Note
Going into the Jan. 2 Florida State game, Wake Forest had scored at least two three-pointers in 54 consecutive games, dating back to an 0-of-10 performance from beyond the arc at Duke on Jan. 2, 2001 -- exactly two years to the date. But, the Deacs connected on just one three-pointer against the Seminoles. WFU still owns a streak, however, of 72 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer.
Individually, freshman Cotelia Bond-Young had a team season-long streak of nine straight games with at least one three-pointer, but it was halted with an 0-of-1 performance versus Georgia Tech on Jan. 31.
A Pair of Blockers
With a team-high 23 and 19 blocked shots so far this season respectively, the duo of senior forward Tiffani Listenbee and junior forward Eafton Hill continued to work their way up the WFU career blocks list. After appearing on the list early in her sophomore year, Hill owns sole possession of seventh place on the list with 67. Listenbee moved onto the list earlier this season, and finished her career in eighth place with 62 career rejections.
Poll Particulars
At various times throughout the season Wake Forest received a few votes in the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Top 25 coaches' poll. It marked WFU's first appearance of any kind in the polls in quite some time. WFU's last national ranking in the Associated Press poll was Feb. 18, 1988 when it appeared at No. 20.
Wake Forest conference opponent Duke has been ranked No. 1 or 2 in both polls all season long (finishing fourth in the final coaches' poll), while North Carolina finished 12th in the AP, 15th in the coaches poll.
In the final WBCA/Summerville RPI rankings, WFU was listed 90th.
Twenty Points Times Eight
Wake Forest players collectively tallied eight 20-point games this season -- three apiece by both Eafton Hill and Tiffani Listenbee, and one each by Tonia Brown and Cotelia Bond-Young.
The Deacs doubled their 20-point game total from all of last year. In the 2001-02 season, Brown posted four 20-point games while Bianca Brown tallied one.
Sax Supplements the Roster
Wake Forest added a walk-on to its roster in October. Sophomore Kara Sax, a 5-6 guard from Glastonbury, Conn., joined the squad. Sax, who wears No. 21, assisted with the women's basketball managerial staff last season.
Sax sawe action in 10 contests this season. She played in her first ACC game at Clemson on Jan. 26 and scored her first points of the season on two free throws. She was a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line this year.
Jones Misses Rookie Campaign With Injury
The Deacs were without the services of highly-regarded freshman Porsche' Jones this season. The 5-3 point guard who hails from Winston-Salem (Carver HS) injured her left knee this summer before entering Wake Forest, suffering cartilage damage and undergoing surgery in September.
Jones redshirted the season and will have four years of eligiblity beginning with the 2003-04 campaign.
Jones is the first local player to join the Deacon roster since Sonya Henderson played for WFU from 1982-85.
Looking Ahead to 2003-04
Here's what returns for the Deacs in terms of production next season:
* 61 percent of scoring (1,127 of 1,838 points)
* 62 percent of rebounding (699 of 1,130 rebounds)
* 81 percent of assists (357 of 440 assists)
* 67 percent of steals (174 of 260 steals)
* 79 percent of three-pointers (125 of 158 treys)
* 41 percent of blocks (35 of 85 blocks)
Oh Captain, My Captain
For the first time in a few seasons, the Wake Forest women's basketball team elected season captains prior to the start of the 2002-03 campaign. Seniors Tiffani Listenbee and Heather Miller as well as junior Bianca Brown served as team captains.
Looking At the Big Picture
This 2002-03 campaign marked the 32nd season of women's basketball at Wake Forest University. The program owns an all-time record of 340-468.
