Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 2 | October 2019

24 Inside Hokie Sports season preview WOmen’s basketball 3 Who plays the point guard position? A year ago, Mabrey started all 34 games for the Hokies as the point guard, but she also shot 46.2 percent from beyond the 3-point arc and set a Tech single-season record with 80 3-pointers—part of a year in which the Hokies hit a school-record 324. Brooks expects to play Mabrey more at shooting guard this season after he brought in Cole, a graduate transfer from Georgia who led the SEC and finished fifth 4 Can this team find conference success? Tech got off to a terrible start in conference play in 2018-19, losing its first three games by seven, two and four points. The Hokies lost their first seven conference games overall, including two in overtime, one by two points and the four-point defeat to Virginia in Charlottesville. They showed a lot of moxie in the latter half of conference play, winning six of their final nine games. The Hokies need to take better care of the ball. A look at the conference stats reveals a Tech squad that was pretty much even with its ACC opponents in every category except for turnovers—a byproduct of young guards (Mabrey and Sheppard). The Hokies turned it over 69 more times than their opponents. As everyone knows, empty possessions aren’t a recipe for winning. Hopefully, added depth brings more careful ballhandling—and more victories—this season. 5 How will the chemistry be? Tech’s roster includes nine players who didn’t play a minute for the Hokies last season. It also includes just one senior who actually has played for Brooks—daughter Kendyl, who started 19 games last season and has played 103 games in her career. So there will be an adjustment period. Brooks and his staff started that with a three-game European trip this summer, and the team played well. Can the new faces mesh quickly with the returnees once the season tips? Tech hopefully can use a manageable nonconference schedule—only two Power 5 opponents—to build that chemistry and be ready for the conference slate, which starts with road tilts at Florida State and NC State. Aisha sheppard nationally in assists last season. He also brought in freshman guards Cayla King and Makayla Ennis, both with point guard skills, and his daughter, Chloe, enters the mix after taking a redshirt season. He has given himself depth and thus options in the backcourt, and if he gets steady play and consistent production from one or all of them, then he probably keeps Mabrey extensively in that scoring guard role. Top Storylines 5