BIRMINGHAM – Southern University was picked to win the 2014-15 Southwestern Athletic Conference women’s basketball title in a preseason poll of the league’s head coaches and sports information directors. The announcement was made by the Southwestern Athletic Conference on Wednesday, October 15, 2014.
The Lady Jaguars, last year’s SWAC Regular Season Champion, has won three regular season conference championships in the last five years. Texas Southern was selected to finish second, followed by Prairie View, Jackson State and Alabama State rounding out the top five.
Alabama A&M was picked to finish sixth, followed by Mississippi Valley State, Grambling State, Alcorn State, and Arkansas Pine Bluff completing the predicted order of finish.
2014-15 All-SWAC Preseason Women’s Basketball Team
Prairie View A&M racked in two top preseason honors. Jeannette Jackson was selected as the SWAC Preseason Player of the Year and Larissa Scott earned the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Jackson, the starting point guard for PVAMU started in all 32 games last season. She led the SWAC in scoring at 18.8 points per game, finished fourth in the league with 3.8 assists per contest while also scoring in double-figures on 27 different outings. Jackson capped of the 2013-14 season earning a spot as a member of the All-SWAC First Team.
Scott, a versatile forward started for the Lady Panthers in their NCAA Tournament game against UCONN and averaged 9.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in 10 contest against SWAC opponents (regular season and SWAC tournament). Scott also recorded five consecutive double-doubles last season.
The preseason first team also features guard, Jazzmin Parker (Texas Southern), forwards Jasmine Jefferson (Southern), and Ayanna – Hardy Fuller (Jackson State), along with center Morgan Simmons (Texas Southern) rounding out the squad list.
The second team includes: guards Brittney Strickland (Alabama A&M) and Sarah Williams (Texas Southern), forwards Alexus Johnson (Texas Southern) and Ashley Beals (Southern), with Larissa Scott (Prairie View) closing the selections.
| TEAM | POINTS (FIRST Place Votes) |
| Southern | 136 |
| Texas Southern | 131 |
| Prairie View | 130 |
| Jackson State | 102 |
| Alabama State | 98 |
| Alabama A&M | 68 |
| Mississippi Valley State | 65 |
| Grambling State | 63 |
| Alcorn State | 52 |
| Arkansas Pine Bluff | 35 |
2014-15 Preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Team
(Selected by SWAC Head Basketball Coaches and SID’s)
Preseason SWAC Player of the Year: Jeanette Jackson – Prairie View
Preseason SWAC Defensive Player of the Year: Larissa Scott – Prairie View
| FIRST TEAM | ||
| Position | Player | School |
| Guard | Jazzmin Parker | Texas Southern |
| Guard | Jeanette Jackson | Prairie View A&M |
| Forward | Jasmine Jefferson | Southern |
| Forward | Ayanna – Hardy Fuller | Jackson State |
| Center | Morgan Simmons | Texas Southern |
| SECOND TEAM | ||
| Position | Player | School |
| Guard | Brittney Strickland | Alabama A&M |
| Guard | Sarah Williams | Texas Southern |
| Forward | Alexus Johnson | Texas Southern |
| Forward | Ashley Beals | Mississippi Valley State |
| Center | Larissa Scott | Prairie View |
Courtesy: SWAC.org
