Former Miami Suns and LSU Freshman Raigyne Moncrief poured in 24 points with nine steals in her debut for the 17th-ranked LSU women’s basketball team. The Tigers won the content 95-24 over Tennessee Temple.

The Miami Suns organization wishes Raigyne Moncrief and the rest of the LSU women’s basketball team good luck this season.

 

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LSU has high hopes for freshman Raigyne Moncrief: Notebook

By James Moran

Raigyne Moncrief has high expectations to live up to. Before she has even played in a regular-season game for LSU, Nikki Caldwell said Moncrief has the physical ability to be one of the best Lady Tigers of all time.

Caldwell raved about her athleticism on the court, lauding her as the fastest baseline-to-baseline player she’d seen in a long time. The true freshman can play a number of positions and brings explosiveness to any one of them.

“She could be one of the best players to ever wear the purple and gold, but that’s going to be left up to her,” Caldwell said. “She’s going to have all the resources to succeed with our fine facilities and practice gym, and I’ve got the best coaching staff in America.”

Moncrief believes Caldwell’s words, but she tries not to view them as a source of pressure. Instead, she chooses to work with the coaches in order to make herself the kind of player Caldwell said she can be.

The biggest thing Caldwell has worked on with Moncrief so far is the mental aspect of the game.

“She’s definitely got me thinking on the court,” Moncrief said. “In high school or travel ball, you usually just play off talent, but she has me thinking about how to attack off certain screens and stuff like that.”

Caldwell said Moncrief had done everything the coaches asked of her so far, and overall was pleased with her development heading into the season. She wasn’t ready to name Moncrief a starter, but only because she reserved the right to change her starting backcourt based on practice and scouting reports specific to each opponent.

After Moncrief led the team in scoring during its exhibition trip to Spain in August, Caldwell felt something had clicked offensively for her lately. “We’re really thrilled that she has turned a corner, not only in terms of learning to score for herself, but learning how to get great scoring opportunities for her teammates,” Caldwell said.

In addition to fellow freshman guards Rina Hill and Jasmine Rhodes, Moncrief will give Caldwell the ability to go deep at the guard position and play her up-tempo style of basketball.

If Moncrief puts in the hard work with the coaches, or “sweat equity” as Caldwell calls it, than the sky could be the limit for the highly recruited Florida product. Her coach certainly believes in her.

“When you bring her skill and her will together, nothing but greatness exists in her,” Caldwell said.