Walker big for women

The talk around Pitt women’s basketball is that graduated forward and team leader Cheron… The talk around Pitt women’s basketball is that graduated forward and team leader Cheron Taylor will be sorely missed. But Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato believes she has the experienced players to fill Taylor’s void.

“Cheron brought leadership, grit, heart and spirit to this team,” Berenato said. “But we’ve got [senior guard] Mallorie [Winn] and [junior center] Marcedes [Walker] returning to the starting lineup, and they are ready to be our team leaders.”

The 6-foot-3 Walker made the All-Big East first team, leading Pitt in scoring at 16.8 points per game. The Philadelphia native pulled down 9.1 rebounds and blocked just more than one shot per game.

“Marcedes is going to be big for us again,” Berenato said. “We expect her to play an even bigger role on both ends now that she has an even better team around her.”

The biggest addition to Pitt’s frontcourt is 6-5 freshman Selena Nwude. Nwude comes into the season rated the second-best center in the nation’s 2006 recruiting class by Scout.com.

“Selena is big, huge,” Berenato said. “Her size in and of itself is imposing. But she also gives us an outlet for Marcedes. She’s tough, ready to fight down low and ready to contribute.”

Nwude will see time at both power forward and center, spelling Walker or working the weak side as double teams collapse on Walker. In preparing for the imminent double teams and help defenses, Walker worked on her passing and post awareness all off-season.

“Marcedes has been working on distributing the ball from the post,” Berenato said. “And if we can get her playing as a dangerous passer, that will force teams to play man-to-man against her, and get her more offensive chances.”

According to Berenato, sophomore Sylvie Tafen has made considerable improvements over the off-season. Tafen averaged 7.6 minutes, 1.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game in 26 contests.

“Sylvie is tougher and stronger,” Berenato said. “She is ready to take things to the next level. She will bring some grit to the paint, some strength that will definitely help us out. She is definitely making major strides of improvement.”

Tafen came to the United States from Cameroon in 2004, enrolling in high school at Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy in Wheeling, W.Va. It was the first time she’d ever played basketball.

“She has worked very hard,” Berenato said. “She is going to challenge other players for minutes and certainly make a difference on both ends.”

Senior Danielle Taylor played in 32 of the 33 Pitt games last season, contributing 13.2 minutes, 3.2 points and 1.7 rebounds per game. The 6-foot forward shot 80 percent from the foul line while providing a body to help Walker and Cheron Taylor underneath.

Berenato is looking to energize Pitt’s offense and defense in the 2006-2007 campaign, changing to a more aggressive approach that utilizes speed and pressure. As a result, frontcourt players will be required to shift out of the paint regularly and get back to defend.

“We’re going to bring four players out and one in,” Berenato said. “We’re really looking to rebound and go. We want to get out and run. Getting more baskets in transition and forcing more turnovers will be keys for our team to be successful this year.”

Berenato wants to run the motion offense, which calls for off-the-ball screens and fluid movement on the offensive end. Berenato hopes to create easier looks inside off the quicker passing and constant movement of her offense.

Defensively, the Panthers will run more pressure man-to-man and traps while focusing on a strong help defense in the half-court game.

“We want to pick things up defensively, for sure,” Berenato said. “We are going to pressure people and help out on defense, and really kick things into a higher gear.”

But as Pitt prepares for the season, Berenato just hopes the Panthers can practice with enough players.

“We’ve got a lot of banged up players,” Berenato said. “But they will be healthy and ready to go soon, and then I’ll be able to really see what we can do.”