Alabama A&M women’s basketball coach Dawn Brown isn’t dwelling on how last season ended.
She’s focused on what comes next.
The Bulldogs enter the season with 12 new players after two of the most successful seasons in program history. Brown believes the roster turnover will create a different team — but not lower expectations.
The Bulldogs are coming off back-to-back 20-win seasons and SWAC regular season championship.
But AAMU, which went a program-best 17-1 last season, has been unable to advance past the conference tournament to earn an NCAA Tournament berth.
It’s something Brown is hoping to change in 2027.
“I think that it’s going to be a different style of play,” Brown said during SWAC Women’s Basketball Media Day on Tuesday. “I don’t think that you all would see us to be the same.”
Now the Bulldogs are attempting to replace several key contributors, including SWAC Player of the Year Kalia Walker.
“I know everybody is wondering, like, how are they going to get it done without a Kalia Walker, right?” Brown said.
Brown’s answer is a revamped roster that includes eight transfer players.
“We picked up some really big pieces, and they have big shoes to fill,” she said.
Among them are:
The Bulldogs eight new transfers are:
- Addison Howell (Mississippi Valley State)
- Kalea Rainey (Florida Memorial University)
- Shunteria Anmele (University of Houston)
- Miracle Akpotayobo (University of Arizona)
- Janessa Kelley (Bethune-Cookman)
- Skylar White (Virginia State University)
- Logyn McNeil (University of Houston)
- Tazi Harris (Snead State)
- Alisha Murray (Grambling State).
The Bulldogs’ recent success has also helped elevate the program’s national profile, Brown said. She credited Alabama A&M’s administration for supporting the program and helping create an environment that has attracted new players.
“We’ve grown the Alabama A&M women’s basketball brand on a national platform,” Brown said.
The Bulldogs added players Brown described as faster, bigger and more talented, and she said the newcomers understand the expectations that come with joining a program that has established itself as one of the SWAC’s top teams.
Practices have reflected those expectations.
“Our practices are very, very, very intense,” Brown said.
Alabama A&M’s roster changes come after a season that included a strong regular-season run but ended without a SWAC tournament championship.
Brown, however, doesn’t view the postseason ending as something that went wrong.
“We still got a ring, we still cut down nets, and we still have a trophy,” Brown said in reference to the regular season crown.
For Brown, the next step is building on those accomplishments rather than dwelling on what the Bulldogs didn’t accomplish.
That has left Brown confident entering the new season.
Alabama A&M has already established a new standard under Brown. Now the Bulldogs are chasing the next milestone.
“We are hungry for a tournament championship,” Brown said.
