WILLIAMSBURG, Va.—The William & Mary women's basketball team visits the Robins Center for a stern road test against Richmond on Thursday night. The game will tip at 6 p.m. on ESPN+ with a free audio broadcast on the Tribe Sports Network.
The Tribe looks to keep their momentum going after their first win of the season last Thursday against Chowan.
Tribe Sports Network
For the second consecutive year, the Tribe Sports Network will be providing free audio broadcasts of all W&M women's basketball away contests. Jack Angelucci will be on the call with a pregame show beginning at 5:30 p.m. featuring a pregame interview with
Erin Dickerson Davis. Fans can listen at
tribeathletics.com/listenlive.
TRIBE NOTES
• The Matchup
After earning their first victory of the season against Chowan last Thursday, the Tribe has a full week to prepare for undefeated Richmond on Thursday at Robbins Center. The game will tip at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
•
The Opponent
The reigning Atlantic 10 champs and preseason A-10 favorites, Richmond is off to a 4-0 start this season after winning 29 games a year ago. The Spiders rank eighth nationally in FG% (53.5%), 10th in FT% (83.3%) and 3FG% (43.3%) while averaging 81.5 points per game this year.
• A Look Back
W&M enters year three of the
Erin Dickerson Davis era fresh off their second consecutive winning season (15-14), and second consecutive 12-6 mark in CAA play. The Tribe finished fifth in CAA posting back-to-back top-five finishes in the conference for the first time since 2007. During last year's non-conference W&M also won the FIU Thanksgiving Classic.
• Last Time Out
The Tribe ended a three-game skid to start the season by beating DII Chowan 66-42 on Thursday at Kaplan Arena. W&M used a 29-6 advantage in the first quarter to then coast over the final 30 minutes.
Bella Nascimento led three W&M players in double figures with 11.
• Ready From the Jump
The Tribe's 29 first quarter points against Chowan were the most by W&M in an opening quarter since scoring 30 against USC Upstate in 2017. They also rank as the third most first frame points in program history since the women's game switched to quarters in 2015-16. The Tribe's 31 at Northeastern in Jan. 2016 is the most all-time.
• Speaking of Strong Starts...
W&M's 29-6 advantage after the first quarter against Chowan ties the largest lead the Tribe have ever held after one in the quarters era (2015-16). W&M held a 27-4 lead over Hofstra after the first in 2020.
• Locking it Down
The Tribe's 42 points allowed against Chowan is the least number of points given up by W&M under
Erin Dickerson Davis. The Tribe only gave up 31 against Randolph College in 2021, the last time they held a team to 42 points or less.
• Spread the Wealth
Three Tribe players scored in double figures against Chowan,
Bella Nascimento (11),
Kayla Beckwith (10) and
Anahi-Lee Cauley (10), marking the first time W&M had three double-figure scorers this year. Last season the Tribe had three or more double figure scorers 12 times.
• Newfound Height
The Tribe adds six new players to the roster in 2024-25, four freshmen and two transfers. Five of the six newcomers are over 6-feet tall. The average height of the six new players is slightly over 6'1, while the average height of the eight returners is 5'9.
• Sharpshooting
The Tribe went 7-of-14 from deep in the loss at Irvine. The last time the Tribe shot 50% or better from behind three was Jan. 19 against Delaware. W&M only accomplished the feat twice all of last season.
• Turning Defense to Offense
W&M held Chowan to just 24.2% shooting, the lowest shooting percentage for an opponent during
Erin Dickerson Davis' tenure. The Tribe also scored a season-high 19 fastbreak points against the Hawks.
• Nice Start for Nat
Natalie Fox has already made an impact off the bench for the Tribe, posting a double-double in her second collegiate game. Fox snagged 12 rebounds and added 10 points against Long Beach. The 12 boards were the most by a W&M player since Dec. 2020 and the most by a freshman in over a decade.
• Ballin' Bella
Bella Nascimento has provided consistent scoring for the Tribe so far this season. The senior guard has scored in double figures in four of the first five games this year,including a pair of 21-point games.
•Punching the Time Clock
All eight of the returners for W&M played in at least 24 games last year and averaged over 10 minutes per game, accounting for 84% of minutes and 81% of starts for the Tribe a season ago. The group also accounted for 94% of the Tribe's assists last year and 70.7% of last year's scoring.
• Coach E Extended
W&M Director of Athletics, Brian Mann, announced in late August that head coach
Erin Dickerson Davis had agreed to a contract extension through 2029. Through two seasons Davis became the fastest coach to 20 CAA wins in program history and fastest to 30 career wins in 95 years.
• Preseason Accolades
Bella Nascimento earned Preseason All-CAA Second Team honors on Oct. 18 and is the Tribe's returning leading scorer at 12.4ppg.
Cassidy Geddes earned a preseason honorable mention coming off her CAA All-Rookie honors last year. W&M was picked tied for fourth in the preseason poll.
• 60 is the Magic Number
60 points is a key number for W&M. The Tribe is 18-5 under
Erin Dickerson Davis when holding teams below 60. While team's have had a mixed bag of success scoring in the 60s vs. W&M, opponents are 29-4 against them when scoring 70+ since 2020-21. Offensively, the Tribe is 32-12 when scoring over 60 and 2-18 when held below 60 under Davis.
• Tough Early Tests
After kicking off the season against back-to-back MEAC champions Norfolk State, the Tribe traveled to Long Beach State and UC Irvine. LBSU enters 2024-25 picked fourth in the Big West, while Irvine was picked second in the same conference. Later in the month they will play A-10 favorites, Richmond, and ODU, which was selected third in the Sun Belt. Howard was picked tied for first in the MEAC with NSU and will come to Williamsburg Nov. 29
• Pack Your Bags
From Nov. 29 until Jan. 3 the Tribe will not play a game at home. The 35 straight days without a home game is the fifth longest stretch in DI.
