By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics

Monet Dance and Cassidy Geddes came to William & Mary with strong academic profiles and plenty of talent on the basketball court. That much these freshmen had in common. As for personality traits, as with any pair, there were some differences.

"Monet has a funny, aloof personality; Cassidy is very strict and regimented," said Erin Dickerson Davis, the Tribe's second-year coach. "So we thought putting the two of them together as roommates would be a good balance for both of them."

It could have backfired — roommates have been known to squabble a bit. But this idea was a home run, so much so that they will keep it going next year.

Not only have they helped each other with that balance, Dance and Geddes have developed a chemistry that starts in the dorm and translates to the floor. Dance, a 5-foot-3 point guard from Roswell, Ga., has a 4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio against conference opponents entering the CAA Women's Basketball Championship. 

Geddes, a 5-7 guard from Hickory, N.C., is averaging 11.2 points a game on nearly 40% shooting in conference play. She was named to the CAA's All-Rookie team Tuesday.

None of that happened overnight.

"Certain things I would do in high school didn't translate as well as I thought they would," Dance said. "Finding what the right pass is, when to make it and who to make it to by knowing the personnel was one thing I had to focus on after the transition from high school."

"It was a lot of learning and figuring out what worked in high school to now in the college game," Geddes said. "It was building up to what we knew we'd have to face later on in the season."

Their breakout party came on Jan. 26 at home against Hofstra. It was a tie game going into the fourth quarter, and Davis had Dance and Geddes on the floor for the final 10 minutes. The rookies took over.

Geddes scored 17 of her career-high 22 points in the fourth quarter, eight coming on free throws in the final 3:03 of a 61-50 win. Dance had two assists, each of which led to dagger 3-pointers by Geddes, and no turnovers in those deciding 10 minutes.

"The chemistry really showed between me and Cass that game," said Dance, who played 17 minutes that night after logging 14 in her previous three games. "Hyping up her shots for makes were big for us."

Geddes seconds that.

"It's just so much easier to hit shots when Monet is more excited when it goes in than I am," she said. "All the chest bumps and high fives, it just translates to everyone on our team and really creates momentum for us.

"I know that whenever I'm open, she's going to find me. If I'm in the corner, even if she's going the opposite way and not looking at me, I know that ball is going to find me."
Dance said the chemistry between her and Geddes was evident "very, very early, even in the summer." Geddes remembers how excited they both got during summer and preseason scrimmages when the coaches put them on the same team.

As that chemistry developed, Davis saw both of them develop into leaders.

"During Christmas break, we had a lot of time to talk as a team and get things out on the table," Davis said. "Cassidy and Monet were leading most of the conversations, and that showed they talk about this stuff all the time.

"Seeing them on the court together isn't surprising. They had already developed the relationship that was leading to a common goal. And that common goal is for us to win."
Winning has become the norm for this program. The Tribe has won 12 conference games in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history. And going into Thursday's second-round game against either Hampton or Hofstra, Dance and Geddes don't feel like freshmen anymore.

"We were actually just talking about this yesterday," Geddes said. "We still make characteristic freshman mistakes. But for the most part, the game has slowed down a lot more.

"We understand and pick up things a lot easier. There has definitely been a turning point."

W&M kicks off their postseason against either Hampton or Hofstra in the second round of the CAA Women's Basketball Championship at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in the nation's capital.

Tribe fans are encouraged to join the spirit squads in sending the team off to the arena at noon from the Courtyard Washington Downtown hotel in Washington, D.C. There will also be a fan bus to transport fans from the hotel to the arena before the game and also returning to the hotel after the game.