Colorado State University Athletics
Rams predicted to finish first in MW preseason poll
10/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Coming off the heels of back-to-back Mountain West regular season titles, the target for the Colorado State women’s basketball team won’t be any smaller in 2015-16 as the Rams were selected to finish in first place in the Mountain West’s preseason poll released Wednesday morning.
“We don’t put a lot of stock into those preseason rankings,” Head Coach Ryun Williams said. “This is an entirely different team with an entirely different identity; we are going to have to prove ourselves, so that’s our mentality.”
CSU, which returns three starters and seven letterwinners from last year’s 23-win team, garnered 12 first-place votes and 237 total points in the poll. The Rams were followed by New Mexico with seven first-place votes (221) and Boise State with six first-place votes (215). Fresno State finished with 182 points to round out the top four programs most expected to contend for a title this year. UNLV (138), San Diego State (135) and Border War rival Wyoming (125) sit in fifth through seventh, respectively, followed by San José State (93), Utah State (79), Nevada (78) and Air Force (26).
“The league is going to be good,” Williams said. “It’s been getting better ever since we showed up here, so we know it’s going to be a tremendous battle every single night. The fact that we do have some experience back is always helpful in league play. We have some good leadership, and that will help when you have to win tough games on the road. We are still figuring out a lot of things about this team, but hopefully by the time the end of the year rolls around, we will be pretty good.”
This marks just the third time, and second in a row, that Colorado State was predicted to win the Mountain West League title. In both instances, 2013-14 and 2001-02, the Rams lived up to the projection and won the regular season title. Colorado State is seeking to become the first school in the Mountain West’s 16-year history to win three-consecutive regular season titles.
Preseason Awards
The conference also released its Preseason All-Mountain West team and individual award winners. Rams’ versatile junior guard Ellen Nystrom was among the five players selected to the preseason all-conference squad, joining Boise State guard Brooke Pahukoa, New Mexico forward Khadijah Shumpert, Utah State guard Funda Nakkasoglu and Wyoming guard Marquelle Dent.
“That is an awesome honor, but it’s not really something I focus on,” Nystrom said of her preseason recognition. “I just want to make sure I do everything I can to help the team reach our goals.”
Nystrom is no stranger when it comes to conference accolades and recognition. Already one of CSU’s most decorated players in history, Nystrom returns to the Rams for her junior campaign as a two-time all-conference honoree as well as a two-time member of the league’s all-defensive team. The Lulea, Sweden native averaged 9.2 points per game, while leading the team as a guard with 6.8 rebounds per game and finishing second on the team with 113 assists (3.6 per game). Defensively, Nystrom was tasked with shutting down the opposing team’s most dangerous perimeter scorer, and held five of the league’s top scorers in 2014-15 to a combined 24-of-100 from the field.
Dent was tabbed as the Preseason Player of the Year, while Nevada guard Stephanie Schmid and San José State guard Dezz Ramos were picked as Preseason Co-Newcomers of the Year and New Mexico guard Jannon Otto was named the Preseason Freshman of the Year.
2015-16 Mountain West Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll
Rank Team (1st-Place Votes) Points
1 Colorado State (12) 237
2 New Mexico (7) 221
3 Boise State (6) 215
4 Fresno State 182
5 UNLV 138
6 San Diego State 135
7 Wyoming 125
8 San José State 93
9 Utah State 79
10 Nevada 78
11 Air Force 26
Preseason All-Mountain West
Brooke Pahukoa, Jr., G, Boise State
Ellen Nystrom, Jr., G, Colorado State
Khadijah Shumpert, Sr., F, New Mexico
Funda Nakkasoglu, So., G, Utah State
Marquelle Dent, Sr., G, Wyoming
Preseason Player of the Year
Marquelle Dent, Sr., G, Wyoming
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Jannon Otto, Fr., G, New Mexico
Preseason Co-Newcomers of the Year
Steaphanie Schmid, Jr., G, Nevada
Dezz Ramos, Jr., G, San José State