Women’s basketball: CU Buffs hit ground running in early days of preseason practice

More than a half hour before the start of practice earlier this week, Colorado women’s basketball senior Quay Miller was on the court, working with several of the freshmen, even before coaches arrived.

That extra work – and the leadership displayed by Miller – is necessary for a CU team that has lofty goals this season.

Typically, head coach JR Payne and her staff will spend the early days of preseason practice going back to some of the basics of the scheme and the game.

There’s more urgency this year, though. Coming off a Sweet 16 appearance last season, the Buffs return four starters and eight rotational players and could be a preseason top-25 team. There are goals of getting back to the Sweet 16, and beyond. Add in the fact that the season begins on Nov. 6 in Las Vegas against the defending national champion LSU Tigers and there’s definitely no easing into things this year.

“We’re kind of getting to a place where, if you know what we’re doing, we’re on the train and we’re moving,” said Payne, entering her eighth season at CU. “And, if you don’t know, you’re gonna have to put in some extra work to find out because we can’t slow down too much for too long.”

That’s why Miller’s work was so vital. While the Buffs do return the core of last year’s team, they also brought in two veteran transfers and five true freshmen.

“We’re trying to balance, we have a lot of veterans trying to move forward but also we have some important newcomers to try to make sure that they’re caught up to speed,” Payne said.

The urgency of getting up to speed is different than in past years, Payne said, because the Buffs have high expectations – plus a showcase game right out of the gates.

“I just think we have so much returning that we just can’t stay in the same place too long,” she said. “We’re trying to make sure that we make some adjustments to how we’re training and what we’re doing and make sure that we’re moving as quickly as we can.

“It’s way more fun for the coaches and the players to be able to sort of hit the ground running, but you also need to make sure that you’re doing things correctly. Moving fast isn’t always (good), unless you’re doing it properly, like pay attention to details.”

Prior to facing LSU, CU will host Adams State in an exhibition on Oct. 28 at 1 p.m.

Promotions

On Thursday, CU announced that staff members Matt Hower and Shelley Sheetz have been promoted to assistant coaches.

A new NCAA rule went into effect on July 1 that allows teams to increase the number of allowable assistant coaches from three to five.

Hower has been CU’s director of basketball operations since December of 2021 and Sheetz, a CU hall of famer, is beginning her second season as the Buffs’ director of player development.

Both will continue in those rules, but the new rule allows Hower and Sheetz to coach and instruct the players on the court. They cannot be involved in off campus recruiting, but adding them as assistants will be beneficial when Payne and her assistants are on the road recruiting.

“We are really excited to have Matt and Shelley back on the court coaching,” Payne said in a press release. “They both have so much to offer from a basketball knowledge standpoint. Both Matt and Shelley have many years of coaching experience and it will be great for our team to be able to utilize them as a resource both on the court and in the film room.”

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Women’s basketball: CU Buffs hit ground running in early days of preseason practice – The Denver Post

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