DALLAS, Texas - The Old Dominion women's basketball program was picked to finish fifth in the C-USA Preseason Poll, league officials announced on Wednesday afternoon. The poll was voted on by all 14 head coaches in the league.
The Monarchs are coming off one of the biggest turnarounds, not only in program history, but in the nation. In Nikki McCray's second season, the Monarchs went 21-11, marking a 13-win improvement from the previous season. The 13+ win mark was the second-best single-season improvement in program history and the sixth-best turnaround in the NCAA last year. With the 21 wins, ODU earned an at-large bid to the WNIT, the program's seventh appearance in the WNIT and first postseason appearance since 2015. In the league, ODU went 10-6 during regular season play. At the 2019 C-USA Tournament, ODU finished 1-1 with a win against Florida Atlantic and a loss in the quarterfinals to Western Kentucky.
McCray returns all but two from her 2018-19 roster, led by 2018-19 Conference USA All-Freshman and All-Defensive team member Ajah Wayne, plus ODU’s leading scorer Victoria Morris and leading the team in assists, Taylor Edwards.
The 2020 Air Force Reserve Conference USA Basketball Championships presented by Baylor Scott & White Sports Performance Center at The Star, March 11-14, in Frisco, Texas. C-USA will host the tournament for the third-straight year with the final scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. CT Saturday, March 14, to be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
2019-20 C-USA Preseason Poll (first-place votes)
1. Rice (11)
2. Middle Tennessee (3)
3. WKU
4. UAB
5. Old Dominion
6. Charlotte
7. North Texas
8. Southern Miss
9. Louisiana Tech
10. Florida Atlantic
11. Marshall
12. UTEP
13. UTSA
14. FIU
2019-20 C-USA Preseason Team
Anastasia Hayes, Middle Tennessee
*Erica Ogwumike, Rice
Nancy Mulkey, Rice
Shonte Hailes, Southern Miss
Rachael Childress, UAB
Miyah Barnes, UAB
Dee Givens, WKU
Raneem Elgedawy, WKU
*Preseason Player of the Year