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savannah jones
Bobby McDuffie

JAGUAR WOMEN’S BASKETBALL POSITION PREVIEW – GUARDS

11/21/2020 10:00:00 AM

Date: 11/21
Position: Guards

Returning letterwinners (key stats): Jala Buster (30 games played-19 games started, 5.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 21 asts, 13 blks, 21 stls); Savannah Jones (32 GP-32 GS, 13.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 49 asts, 20 blks, 27 stls, 84-220 3FG); Devyn Lowe (24 GP-1 GS, 3.5 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 22 asts, 17 stls, 22-67 3FG); Jayla Morrow (24 GP-1 GS, 2.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 36 asts, 17 stls); Mahogany Vaught (27 GP-0 GS, 1.8 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 24 asts, 10 stls)

Letterwinners lost (key stats): Emerald Hart (did not appear in a game in 2019-20); Shaforia Kines (32 GP-32 GS, 15.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 94 asts, 42 stls, 75-207 3FG); Damaya Telemaque (30 GP-30 GS, 8.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 64 asts, 13 blks, 23 stls)

Returning redshirts/Squad members (Yr., Hometown, Previous school): none

Newcomers (Yr., Hometown, Previous school): Serin Dunne (Fr., Colorado Springs [Colo.] Mesa Ridge HS); Janelle Jones (Fr., Pensacola [Fla.] Washington HS)

Miscellaneous Notes
-Kines was a first-team all-Sun Belt Conference selection her final season with the program, ending her career 11th in school history with 1,311 points, second with 205 three-point field goals and seventh with 345 assists.
-Savannah Jones was voted first-team preseason all-league after earning third-team honors at the end of last year.
-She begins the campaign as the Jaguars' all-time leader with 247 three-point field goals and a 40.2 three-point field goal percentage, while she stands 10th on the career scoring list with 1,312 points since the start of the 2016-17 season.
-Buster — who set career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks a year ago — will play guard this season after seeing action as a forward last winter.
-Over the last three seasons, Morrow has recorded 140 assists and a 1.25 assist-to-turnover ratio.
-Lowe's 12 assists in South's win over Mobile last year were the most by a Jaguar during the campaign and tied a Mitchell Center record.
-Vaught recorded a career-best 10 points in the Jags' victory at Georgia State.
-The Pensacola News-Journal co-Player of the year as a senior at Washington High, Janelle Jones had career averages of 18.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game during her four-year prep career.
-Dunne was named honorable mention all-state as a senior, capping a career that saw her post 1,337 points, 334 rebounds, 250 assists and 105 steals over a four-year span.

Head Coach Terry Fowler
-On the role the group will play this year: "It's hard to replace a first-team all-conference player like Sha, who was our floor general and our leading scorer.  With this group you are going to have a chance to see the growth and development of Mahogany, playing against Sha every day helped her.  Jayla Morrow has a role on this team, she shot the ball well; we need consistent play out of her, I know she is excited about the upcoming season.  Prior to her injury, Devyn was in the best condition she has been in since she has been here and playing the best we have seen her play.  It's going to take her some time to get back but as she does we expect her to contribute as well.  Savannah is as good as they come in this league, and now we've moved Jala back to her natural position on the perimeter where she is as good an athlete as there is in the league who shot in the high 30s from three last year as well.  We have a good core group of guards and now you mix in Janelle — who just understands how to play the game — and Serin, who needs to get used to the college game but has been pretty good in the last week-and-a-half of practice scoring the basketball; she can really shoot the three and has been able to attack the rim."
-On the challenge in replacing Shaforia Kines: "It has to be by committee.  Sha was steady and showed up every day, and she had the ability to score the basketball.  This group can't score like her, but they can do other things; they are going to be really good on-ball defenders, that's going to help us.  There are challenges, but our team knows there is not one person who is trying to replace her.  We need each person to do what they do well in order to help our program."
-On his expectations for Savannah Jones this season: "We need to get her the ball and let her put it in the basket.  It's going to be interesting to see how teams defend her, but she finds a way to score whether it is from three or getting one-on-one action and getting to the free-throw line.  I think she is going to face some different challenges this year just not having Sha on the floor, now there is going to be more focus on her so she will have to figure out ways to get herself open.  I've challenged her to get to the free-throw line more, hopefully she can have a mindset of getting fouled more and getting to the line to score some easy points that way."

Savannah Jones
-On her expectations going into the season: "Of course it's to win.  We want to win the Sun Belt regular season championship and become a better team every day."
-On what she does well on the floor: "I think I have a good feel for the game.  I can shoot the ball well and help set up plays for my teammates."
-On what area of her game she worked on improving during the offseason: "I've been working on my ball handling and running pick-and-rolls."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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