Aug. 2, 2017
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's basketball team heads into the 2017-18 season ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" the sixth season under head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" fresh off back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 2008-09.
And Coach Flo's Tigers have received the message from their head coach that postseason play, strong academics, team camaraderie and a program that exudes class in all areas is now the expectation. In a word: Excellence.
"Excellence means greatness ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" the very best," Williams-Flournoy said. "On the court, we will practice with excellence and play with excellence. Off the court, we will display excellence in the classroom and through our interactions with others.
"We will hold each other accountable and uphold our theme and vision for this season. We will be a first-class team, and we will all represent our program, our university, and ourselves with excellence."
Academic Excellence
For the 2016-17 school year, Auburn women's basketball set a program record with 11 student-athletes named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Eight of those players return to the Tigers for 2017-18 ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" seniors Jazmine Jones, Jessica Jones, Bria Johnson, Tiffany Lewis and Sira Toure, and juniors Janiah McKay, Erica Sanders and Justice Wright.
Auburn women's basketball has posted a 995 APR over the most recent four-year period, which included three straight years with a perfect 1000. And Coach Flo continued her trend of a perfect 100-percent graduation rate in her 13 seasons as a head coach.
Two more current student-athletes ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Jazmine and Jessica Jones ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" are set to earn their degrees in summer commencement exercises this weekend, bringing the total graduates from the 2016-17 team to six. Khady Dieng, Katie Frerking, Brandy Montgomery and Tiffany Lewis all earned their undergraduate degrees in May; Lewis will join the Jones twins as graduates on the 2017-18 squad. In addition, former Tiger star Chantel Tremitiere (1987-91) will be officially granted her Ph.D. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" her third degree from Auburn ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" at this weekend's graduation.
"Our student-athletes continue to set the bar academically and exceed expectations in the classroom," Williams-Flournoy said.
Excellence in the Workplace
Three returning seniors ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Jazmine and Jessica Jones, along with Bria Johnson ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" have been absent from summer workouts due to completing required internships toward their degrees.
The Jones twins have been in New York for the summer working at Translation, an advertising agency that boasts such clients as the NBA, the NFL, State Farm, Apple Music and Kaiser Permanente. Jessica has been working on accounts for State Farm and the NBA, and one of Jazmine's main clients has been the tourism department for the Caribbean island of St. Lucia.
"I've always been interested in advertising," Jessica Jones said, "and I wanted to see how much impact my major would have in this industry. I'm able to apply those skills in this job by talking directly to the clients, as well as relaying information to the strategic and creative teams here at Translation."
Johnson, meanwhile, has worked this summer with APM Terminals, an international container company with facilities all over the world. She has worked on the technical and logistical side, helping ensure timely and efficient transport of goods throughout the supply chain.
"This opportunity opened my eyes to so many new things and diverse cultures," Johnson said. "I can't wait to see what's in store for my career!"
Excellence in the Practice Gym
The team began summer workouts and conditioning in late June and will wrap up later this week as summer classes come to a close. In all, the team will have gone through more than 20 on-court workouts and at least that many weights and conditioning sessions.
Perhaps no group has felt a bigger impact from the summer workouts than the Tigers' five newcomers. Four freshmen and one junior transfer enrolled at Auburn for the second summer session in late June and have quickly learned what being part of Auburn women's basketball is all about.
Freshman Kiyae' White: "I've learned how to take care of your body, good recovery, how important it is to sleep right and eat the right things so your body can recover well and be strong."
Freshman Isabella Lopez: "I'm very grateful to be here. I'm learning every day and growing as a point guard. It takes a lot, trying to learn about everyone else, but this is a dream come true for me just to be here."
Freshman Unique Thompson: "I've learned that it's more about the team than it is about self. If you focus on the team, you'll get more things done."
Freshman Abigayle Jackson: "We're just a good team overall. We're learning how to play with each other, we've learned how each other plays, and we know each other's strengths and weaknesses. And we work on it every day."
Junior transfer Crystal Primm: "I've learned that everybody is like a family here. I'm grateful they gave me another opportunity to come here and that they put their trust in me to see what I could do. I'm happy to have such a good family here that's ready to support me."
Recruiting Excellence
With five seniors and five juniors (four eligible) on the roster, Coach Flo and her staff have had a sense of urgency on the recruiting trail this summer. Two week-long evaluation periods in July gave the staff an opportunity to watch numerous prospects around the country as they look toward the 2018 and 2019 signing classes.
"Recruiting has always been and will be the lifeblood of any successful program," Williams-Flournoy said. "We are committed to finding student-athletes that represent excellence on the court, in the classroom, and in the community. Our recent NCAA success has put us on the radar of quality players that have potential to impact Auburn in the years to come."
Size was a priority in the 2017 class, and that need was filled by signing three players at 6-2 or taller in Thompson, Jackson and White. Coach Flo said that the priorities for the next two classes will mostly be on the wings and in the backcourt.
"Because we are a team that thrives on full-court pressure, adding perimeter length will continue to be a priority for us going forward," Williams-Flournoy said. "We are also focused on improving offensively by adding scoring ability and athleticism in the backcourt."