Newsletter: SUU Dominant, Time to Talk Ladyjacks, Transfer Eligibility Lawsuit

The T-Birds will be fine; The Ladyjacks are good; and a new lawsuit will create quite the stir.

Kyla Deck and the SFA Ladyjacks are 6-2 and have won five straight after a win over Portland on Thursday. Courtesy Rylie Cerny/SFA Athletics

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Alright, to the newsletter. There wasn’t much action by way of games on Thursday night. That will change in January, for obvious reasons.

However, there were two games on the slate, both on the women’s side, and both featuring the last two WAC regular season and tournament champions.

Along with that storyline, both teams played some really good opponents.

Let’s start with the first.

Defending Champs Will Be Fine

Tracy Mason had to replace some big time players from her 2022-23 WAC championship team.

First Team All-WAC selection Cherita Daugherty ran out of eligibility and WAC Defensive Player of the Year Lizzy Williamson is now at N.C. State.

Those were two huge pieces of the 2022-23 T-Birds success.

So, there was some skepticism entering 2023-24. And after a 2-5 start to the season, it was understandable.

What fans may not remember is that at this exact time last season, the T-Birds were 3-6 overall.

Yep, the T-Birds eventually went on to win the WAC regular season crown as well as the WAC Tournament crown to earn their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.

So, after a slow start that included a pair of home losses to former Big Sky foe Eastern Washington and Western Kentucky in the WAC/Conference USA Scheduling Initiative, the T-Birds made a big statement on Thursday night.

Playing at The Pit, against a 7-2 New Mexico squad, Tracy Mason’s squad put on the defensive clamps, holding the Lobos to just 27 percent shooting in a 58-40 win.

It is the second straight year the T-Birds have beat the Lobos. SUU won 76-68 in Cedar City to open the 2022-23 season.

So, what to make of this current Southern Utah squad?

First off, Megan Smith, formerly Megan Jensen, returns and has been really good thus far. Smith is averaging 15.6 points per game as she has had to take on a larger role to do the Williamson departure. Daylani Ballena is averaging a team-high 15.9 points in her increased scoring role.

And freshman Ava Uhrich is having a phenomenal start to her first season of college basketball. Uhrich is averaging 11.6 points per game and shooting close to 56 percent from the field.

Here is the scary part….Southern Utah hasn’t had its full team, yet, in 2023-24. Tomekia Whitman is still recovering from an offseason leg injury. And questions still remain if Utah Valley transfer Jaeden Brown will play.

If either of these two are able to step on the floor, keep an eye out for the T-Birds.

As SUU broadcaster Spencer McLaughlin text me last night after the T-Birds win… “SUU women are going to be just fine.”

Time to Talk About the Ladyjacks

2-0 in WAC play. 6-2 overall. Five straight wins. And, while the final score may not indicate, a dominant win over a good Portland squad on Thursday night.

First-year head coach Leonard Bishop has the Ladyjacks believing. There was the dramatic double overtime win against ACU on Saturday. Kyla Deck and Avery VanSickle were key in the win.

Thursday night, Kurstyn Harden was her dominant self in the paint with a team-high 21 points and seven boards.

If you have watched this Ladyjacks squad at all thus far, one thing is very clear: they have players who can hit a big shot at any given moment.

Tyler McCliment-Call had a big 3-pointer in the fourth quarter on Thursday. Avery VanSickle has knocked down big 3-pointers late in games this season. Kyla Deck, at times, takes it upon herself to close out a game by getting to the free throw line. Destini Lombard comes up with a big assist or a big steal at crucial moments.

I will admit, I had doubts coming into 2023-24 about the Ladyjacks. How could you not? New head coach. A lot of new faces. Players having to step into new roles. There were some unknowns.

Not anymore.

Leonard Bishop’s team is good. Perhaps motivated with a huge chip on their shoulder considering a lot of doubt coming from other coaches and media around the league, including WAC Hoops Nation.

The schedule gets a little tougher over the next two weeks.

The Ladyjacks head to SEC country to take on Alabama on Saturday.

Eight days later, the Ladyjacks are at Middle Tennessee in their second leg of the WAC/Conference USA Scheduling Initiative on Dec. 17.

That is a big opportunity for the Ladyjacks as Middle Tennessee is 63 in the NCAA NET Rankings and Alabama is 20.

Transfer Eligibility Lawsuit is Filed

It finally came. A lawsuit that was threatened by multiple Attorney Generals has finally come to fruition.

On Thursday, per The Athletic, seven states filed the lawsuit challenging NCAA’s transfer eligibility rule, claiming it is an illegal restraint on college athletes under the Sherman Antitrust Act.

As we all know, student-athletes who are two-time Division I transfers and not graduate transfers would have to sit out a year with the new rule in place unless they are given a waiver.

And as we all know, this has affected multiple players and teams who, despite knowing the rule in place at the time, cried foul when the student-athletes were not granted a waiver for immediate eligibility.

In recent weeks we have seen multiple players have their waivers approved after pressure from those on social media.

Now, the pressure is even stronger with this lawsuit against the NCAA.

One paragraph sticks out from the article on The Athletic.

“If a judge were to grant an injunction, it would likely render any Division I college athletes currently seeking a waiver as immediately eligible to participate.”

So, it begs the question, as it could impact the UT Arlington men’s basketball team. If a judge were to put an injunction on the NCAA transfer rule, would Phillip Russell be able to finally take the floor for the UT Arlington men’s basketball team?

The Southeast Missouri transfer averaged over 18 points per game in leading the Redhawks to an NCAA Tournament berth in 2022-23. Currently, as a two-time transfer, Russell was ruled ineligible for the 2023-24 season even after his appeal.

Will an injunction change that? We all know KT Turner and the Mavs are hoping it will.

For now, all eyes will be on what happens with this lawsuit as it progresses through the U.S. District Court in the northern district of West Virginia.