Two. Just two.

That’s how many times the Syracuse women’s basketball team made the NCAA Tournament before an 18-win season propelled it last year to a third NCAA berth.

Six returning letterwinners and a recruiting class that ranked No. 15 in the nation give Syracuse reason to think it can repeat.

‘Eighteen wins last year barely got us into the tournament,’ guard Shannon Perry said. ‘Why not 20, why not 25? That’s how we’re looking at it this year.’

Syracuse returns junior Julie McBride, who led the team last season with 14.9 points per game. She will once again be the main threat.

‘She can’t sneak up on people like she did last year,’ head coach Marianna Freeman said. ‘We’re continuing to ask her to lead by example but also to speak up and be demanding and commanding of her teammates.’

With transfer point guard Krystalyn Ellerbe joining the Orangewomen, McBride will see time at shooting guard as well. McBride drained 61 three-pointers last season and would not rule out sharing the floor with Ellerbe.

‘When I play with other point guards, it’s a lot easier (for them) to take the ball and go,’ McBride said. ‘If (Freeman) wants me to play the No. 2, I’ll play the No. 2. I’ve been in this spot before.’

Junior Shannon Perry, who will play shooting guard after logging minutes in all five positions last year, should start. The junior averaged 11.5 points and 6.6 rebounds, mostly off the bench.

‘Coming off the bench is something I got used to,’ Perry said. ‘There were opportunities where I could’ve started but chose not to. Bench or not, I take pride in winning. I could score none and be fine with it.’

After the two juniors, the remainder of the lineup seems unclear.

‘The starting lineup, as it is every year, is up for grabs,’ Freeman said. ‘(It) depends on who comes through and plays the best.’

Sophomore Rochelle Coleman and junior Chineze Nwagbo may take two of the three remaining positions.

Nwagbo spent the summer rehabbing the ACL she tore in last year’s Big East tournament. The 6-foot center was instrumental in Syracuse’s zone defense, averaging 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds.

‘The knee is doing well,’ Nwagbo said, ‘but I’m still a little sore.’

Coleman played in 25 games last year, averaging 10 minutes. This season, Freeman expects much more from the swing player.

‘I envisioned her being in that starting five (over the summer),’ Freeman said. ‘But I don’t intend to give it to her. She has to earn it.’

The final starting spot is up for grabs between several players. Syracuse’s blue-chip recruiting class gives it more depth and size than in years past.

Key newcomers include center Jill Norton, Ellerbe and forward April Jean.

The 6-foot-2 Norton averaged 16.5 points at Bishop Eustace Prep and has impressed teammates and coaches in practices.

‘We’re such a tall team this year,’ Nwagbo said. ‘A lot of teams are going to try to shoot over us, and a lot of shots are going to be changed.’

Jean played two years at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, averaging 18.5 points while being named one of the top junior-college guards by the All-Star Girls Report.

But starting pales in comparison to winning, Freeman said.

‘Everybody needs to understand and accept their role,’ she said. ‘Everyone making winning their No. 1 priority.’

Winning won’t be easy given the schedule. The Orangewomen host Vanderbilt and Colorado, a pair of teams that advanced to the Elite Eight last season, and travel to Connecticut.

‘Who made that schedule? Fire that person,’ Freeman said. ‘All of them (will be tough games).’

A more pressing question will be if SU can advance further in the postseason.

‘If I could tell the future, I wouldn’t be a basketball coach, I’d be on Wall Street,’ Villanova head coach Harry Perretta said. ‘They had a lot of success last year. They have the capability of doing that this year.’

‘Our main focus is not to stray off the path,’ Nwagbo said. ‘We’ve got to want more. It’s going to be a mental game for us. But we need to be prepared to play.’

Published on November 13, 2002 at 12:00 pm