Oct. 18, 1999

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV women's basketball team became the nation's most improved Division I college basketball team following the 1998-99 season.

Head Coach Regina Miller, who was in her first year last season, led the team to a 17-11 record with a freshman sensation in Linda Fr?hlich and a cast of seven seniors.

How one year can make a difference.

This season, UNLV returns Fr?hlich, who was named national Freshman of the Year by the Women's Basketball Journal and the United States Basketball Writers Association, along with only three others who played for the Lady Rebels last season.

With eight newcomers, the Lady Rebels style of play will certainly change to a much faster pace for the 1999-2000 season. By the look of things, this team might want to call itself, the "Runnin' Lady Rebels."

"We are going to play a much more up-tempo game this year," Miller said. "Last year we weren't able to run much because we were big and were not quite fast enough. We were okay though, because we were able to take up a lot of space on the court with our size.

"This year we can now adjust to the personnel we have coming in. Our guards are very quick and athletic and we will be able to score off the dribble and shoot the three-pointer which will enhance the excitement of Lady Rebel basketball."

With seven seniors on last year's team, the one thing it did not lack was experience. However, this year, one of Miller's concerns is the lack of Division I college basketball experience by her players.

"We do lack that experience, however, this year we have what I consider to be outstanding guard play," Miller said. "And all these new players come from winning programs. We still will have to take it one step at a time, but I am excited to see what our guards can do."

Last year, with players who had played for three other coaches before Miller, she had to find the quickest solution to fix the problems that resulted in three consecutive seasons of only four wins.

Now, with what, for the most part, are Miller's players that she recruited, she feels like it is the real beginning of building a program the city of Las Vegas can be proud of.

"I think that as a program, we are now at the point where we are actually starting to build the Lady Rebels to eventually be a national contender," Miller said. "I feel that we can take this program to that level, but I know it won't happen in a day. Last year was more of a quick fix and now we are really starting the constructing phase."

Last year the team was able to utilize Fr?hlich as the center of things. It worked, as Fr?hlich earned numerous accolades and received national attention. She was first in the WAC and first in the nation among all freshman in scoring with 23.5 ppg. She was selected First-Team All-WAC for the Mountain Division, Freshman of the Year for the WAC's Mountain Division and named to the WAC Mountain Division's All-Newcomer team. She was also selected to the All-WAC Tournament team.

This year and for the future, Fr?hlich will still be the go-to player for the Lady Rebels and that excites Miller. "Linda still has three more years of collegiate play, which is fantastic. Our long term goal is to get the team competing at the national level and she has the ability to lead us in that direction."

Returning for the Rebels, along with Fr?hlich, a 6-2 sophomore forward from Oldendorf, Germany, are Erin Johansson, Brooke Ingalls and Courtney Swanson.

Johansson, a 6-0 sophomore guard from Enumclaw, Wash., led the Lady Rebels in three-point percentage last year at .377. She also set the single-game Lady Rebel record for made three-pointers last year with seven at Air Force.

Ingalls, a 6-0 junior forward from Redmond, Wash., and Swanson, a 5-11 sophomore forward from San Diego, Calif., both saw limited action last year, averaging 10.3 and 4.9 minutes per game, respectively.

"Linda is going to be looked to as one of the scorers and leaders on our team again and I anticipate Brooke coming in and giving us some minutes after being in the program a year," Miller said. "We know what Erin is capable of and she has gotten stronger and has learned to put the ball on the floor, which will enhance her game. Courtney should contribute at both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor and we are looking for her to hit the three-pointer."

Kinesha Davis, a 5-9 redshirt sophomore guard, sat out last season after transferring from Western Illinois. Davis set the school record at WIU for freshman scoring as well as the record for the Mid-Continent Conference. She will play the two spot this year.

"Kinesha has two years in my system behind her and is a utility-type guard who will post and can shoot."

Complementing Davis at the off-guard spot will be the point guards. UNLV signed three point players during the offseason, which is a position that Miller felt the team was lacking at in depth last year.

The point guards will be Dayna Gambill, Constance Jinks and Talisha Mitchell. Gambill, a 5-6 junior guard from Kamuela, Hawai'i, transferred from Lassen Junior College in Susanville, Calif.

Jinks, a 5-6 freshman guard from Chicago, Ill., went to Morgan Park High School and Talisha Mitchell, a 5-8 freshman guard from Stockton, Calif., went to Edison HS.

"At the point guard spot, we have some experience with a junior college player in Dayna," Miller said. "She is able to see the floor very well and is a great passer. With Constance, we get a great scorer and a player who can create off the dribble. Talisha can also score and is a floor leader with a lot of athleticism. I am excited to have a lot of depth at the point spot."

Other guards for the Lady Rebels will be Thyr? Brooks, a 5-7 senior from Alta Loma, Calif., and Tiana Sanders, a 5-10 junior from Duarte, Calif., who transferred from Pasadena City College. Brooks was on the squad last year and didn't play.

"Thyr? provides us with quickness at the defensive end and she will help us with our up-tempo style of play this year," Miller said. "Tiana was one of the top scorers in California last year and defends and rebounds very well. She should contribute right away because of her experience playing on a national championship team her freshman year for Central Arizona College."

In addition to Fr?hlich at forward for UNLV will be Dishawn McCracklin, a 6-2 freshman from Country Club Hills, Ill., Marenna Nyffeler, a 6-1 junior from Price, Utah who transferred from Utah Valley State College, Carlesa Dixon, a 6-0 freshman from Dallas, Texas, and Viveca L?f, a 6-3 junior from Stockholm, Sweden, who transferred from Cal State Northridge and will have to sit out this season.

"Dishawn will be able to run up and down the floor with us and will be looked to for rebounding," Miller said. "Marenna is a strong player that can defend taller players and has good fundamentals. Carlesa will contribute with rebounding and on the defensive end with her athleticism, while Viveca will be a great addition a year from now. She brings NCAA Tournament and international national team experience to us."

This year's schedule looks to be a challenging one for the Lady Rebels. UNLV opens up at UCSB in the Preseason WNIT on Nov. 15. The tournament includes national powers and 1999 Final Four participants in Duke and Georgia. The Rebels will host the Cox Communications/Lady Rebel Shootout Nov. 27-28 and that includes 1999 Final Four participant Louisiana Tech.

"On this year's schedule there is the opportunity for us to face three final four teams from last year plus some other NCAA Tournament teams," Miller said. "It will be a great opportunity for us to see where we are at early in the season against some talented opponents."

In addition, this season will mark UNLV's first in the new Mountain West Conference. "The Mountain West will be a very good conference," Miller said. "I will be very surprised if we don't get two or three teams in the NCAA Tournament. Overall, we have a nice balanced schedule this year. We will have the opportunity to compete, yet not destroy our players' confidence because we will be playing against some teams with seniors that have three years of NCAA Tournament experience, which we don't have.

The 1999-2000 Lady Rebels, with virtually a new team and a new style of play should provide the Thomas & Mack Center with plenty of excitement this year.