- Y'know what they say. The best defense is...a good defense. Maybe that isn't a perfectly correct idiom, but it's true of William & Mary. Despite falling 55-47 at Drexel on Sunday, W&M still held the Dragons to their second-lowest point total of the season. And that type of performance has been a trend for the Tribe over the last few weeks. Against Elon (2/24/23), the Green and Gold forced 25 turnovers and racked up a season-high 15 steals. Four of those came from graduate guard Riley Casey —a personal best. In seven games this February, the Tribe forced, on average, 17.7 turnovers per contest, including a pair of 20-plus efforts.
- And speaking of idioms: as far as the Tribe is concerned, sharing is caring these days. William & Mary sits third in the CAA in assists per game (13.74), posting double-digit assists in all but two games this year. In its last five wins, W&M averaged 15.8 assists, while the 19 dished out at Elon (2/10/23) matched a season-high. Perhaps even more impressive, however? With as many assists as the Tribe is racking up, the squad isn't turning it over much. In fact, the Green and Gold are second in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (0.96).
- Crack open the record books because we've got a few new entries. Casey and fellow grad guard Sydney Wagner both reached program milestones over the weekend. With one free throw at Drexel, Wagner took sole possession of No. 11 on the program's all-time scorers list and is only 11 points away from moving into 10th place. And at home against Elon (2/24/23), she crested the 1,300 career point mark. Meanwhile, Casey's 484 points (so far) this year are tied for the seventh-best single-season scoring performance in Tribe history. She's only 10 points away from cracking the top-5.
- Of course, impressive offensive performances have become the norm for the Tribe's dynamic guard duo all season. Casey's 24 points against Elon marked her 11th 20-plus point performance of the year, while Wagner's 22 was her 8th. Since the calendar flipped to 2023, Wagner has hit double-digits in every game she's suited up for. And Casey, who also played every minute of Sunday's game in Philadelphia, has posted double-digit performances in eight straight.
- Respectfully, we have to disagree with Bilbo Baggins on this one. When it comes to W&M's first matchup with Monmouth this year, everything that was gold certainly did glitter. As much as a 73-68 victory can. Playing for just the third time in program history, the Tribe topped Monmouth in this year's Golden Game at Kaplan Arena. Casey and Wagner crested the 20-point mark as the Tribe recorded a season-low eight turnovers. And while she didn't post dominant scoring numbers, freshman Alexa Mikeska packed her stat sheet in other ways: dishing out five assists, hauling in five rebounds, and notching a pair of steals.
- Let's take it from the top. As a team, William & Mary leads the CAA in free throw percentage (.784), while Wagner leads all players in the conference at the stripe (.898). The Green and Gold also sit second in 3-point field goals per game (7.3) and are tied for third in 3-point percentage (.326). A big reason for those stats? Casey, who has been a serious spark for W&M from behind the arc. The Tennessee native is third in the conference from distance (.389) and third in 3-pointers per game (2.8). But keep an eye on Rebekah Frisby-Smith from range, too. She drained a career-high five triples at N.C. A&T (2/12/23) and, since January, has hit at least two treys in 11 of 15 games.
- Frisby-Smith has settled into her reputation as a 3-point threat, but watch out for her on the block too. With senior Bre Bellamy also playing down low, the pair have become two of W&M's strongest rebounding presences. Last month, Frisby-Smith averaged six rebounds per game, while Bellamy recorded her second double-double of the season (18 points, 11 rebounds) at Hampton to get February started.
- OT? That's A-OK with the Tribe. The Green and Gold's 84-74 OT victory at Elon (2/10/23) marked the fourth time W&M has used extra time to decide a game this year. It's also the first time in the program's 100-plus-year history that the team has won four games in OT in a single season.
- Wagner and Casey have taken advantage of every moment this season. Often quite literally. The preseason All-CAA First-Team tandem sits top-10 in the conference in minutes (Casey: 34.9, Wagner: 33.8) and is also top-5 in points per game (Casey: 17.9, Wagner: 16.1) and top-10 in 3-point field goals per game (Casey: 2.8, Wagner: 2.0). Nationally, Casey is 58th in 3-point percentage (.389), 24th in 3-pointers per game, and 30th in total 3-pointers (75).
