Heels favored in ACC women's hoops

GREENSBORO -- North Carolina women's basketball coach Sylvia Hatchell can usually predict the preseason order of ACC conference teams with great accuracy -- give or take a few positions.

"This year, I have no clue," said Hatchell, whose team was selected to finish atop the conference by a vote of media members and league coaches.

The Tar Heels, selected to finish in first place for the second season in a row, were picked ahead of Duke, Florida State and Virginia.

But coaches and players gathered for Monday's media day say this season's predicted order of finish is as useful as a three-dollar bill, considering the conference's depth and the departure of marquee players such as North Carolina's Rashanda McCants, Duke's Abby Waner and Maryland's duo of Kristi Toliver and Marissa Coleman.

"It's wide open as far as I'm concerned," said Virginia coach Debbie Ryan, whose senior guard, Monica Wright, was selected the preseason conference player of the year. "I think it's really anybody's game. It's a matter of how your schedule shakes out and how prepared you are when you get to the ACC [schedule]."

Georgia Tech coach MaChelle Joseph, whose team was selected to finish seventh, added: "It's all going to depend on ... who stays healthy."

Hatchell said she's excited by the energy of her young team, which will be led by junior guards Cetera DeGraffenreid and Italee Lucas. She said the team has encouraging potential with what many consider the nation's second-best recruiting class.

"We're going to be up and down the floor as much as we've ever been," said Hatchell, whose freshman guard, Tierra Ruffin-Pratt, was selected the ACC preseason rookie of the year.

The Heels, however, could be without senior forward Jessica Breland, who this summer was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, a cancer of the immune system, and has undergone treatment for the past five months.

Hatchell said Breland received her last chemotherapy treatment Thursday and that her progress will be determined by doctors next week. The coach would not say if Breland would return this season but said there is a chance she could play despite having not worked out in months.

"What they tell me is, 'Coach, it's too early to tell,' " Hatchell said of Breland's status, adding, "If I had to make a decision right this minute, she's probably going to redshirt, but the first of December doctors may say she can go."

Breland, who averaged 14.1 points and 8.5 rebounds last season, was chosen to the preseason All-ACC team. She joined Wright, Florida State senior forward Jacinta Monroe, Boston College junior center Carolyn Swords and Duke guard Jasmine Thomas.

This season, with returning starters Thomas and Bridgette Mitchell, the Devils face nonconference opponents Texas A&M, Marquette, Ohio State, Southern California, Stanford and Connecticut, among others. They were undefeated at home last season.

"I think it's one of the greatest women's basketball schedules ever put together," Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "What I mean by that is the challenge of the schedule, the timing of the schedule and the great teams we will face off with home or away."

McCallie said a challenging schedule can prepare the Devils for the tournaments. After reaching the ACC Tournament final last season, the Devils advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and lost to lower-seeded Michigan State, something that disappointed coaches and players.

Duke senior Joy Cheek said the Devils have come up short the past three seasons. She said to meet their expectations the team has improved its mental toughness.

"This is one of the toughest teams I've ever played on -- mentally and physically," Cheek said. "I just think our team this year is a never-give-up type team."

Many will look at this season as a rebuilding year for N.C. State as the program tries to regroup after the death of coach Kay Yow. Kellie Harper, a former standout at Tennessee, takes over as the Wolfpack's first-year coach.

Her task is to improve a team that finished with a 13-17 record and lacked depth off the bench. The Pack, picked to finish ninth, must move on without guard Shayla Fields, who graduated.

Harper, who has said she is not waiting for later to get better, will call upon senior Nikitta Gartrell and junior Tia Bell. She also has returning sophomore Bonae Holston, who was voted the ACC Sixth Player of the Year last season.

The Pack, which will still face depth issues, will play with a new up-tempo style, one players say they enjoy.

"Last season, we kind of walked the ball upcourt," Gartrell said. "This season it's like, 'Well, just go.' My teammates and I think this is a wonderful thing because we all like to run. We like up-tempo, fast pace because that's how it is in the ACC."