Oakland Golden Grizzlies WBB 2024-25 Preview

All eyes will be on the Grizz in a critical season for Tungate

By Giovanni Moceri

The 2024-25 Oakland women’s basketball team will look much different than it did one year ago.

It will see the return of only five players from the 2023-24 roster, losing many key pieces through graduation and the transfer portal.

It will also see the return of their head coach, Jeff Tungate, who returns after a medical emergency took him out for much of the 2023-24 season, leaving the head coaching duties to associate head coach, Dianna Richard.

Tungate’s return to the helm comes with added pressure from fans and the university. He received a one-year extension on his contract, through April 2025, with many clauses regarding the team’s performance this upcoming season.

According to Tony Paul of the Detroit News via X, the clauses of the contract extension state that the team must be over .500, finish in the top four of the Horizon League regular season standings, and raise $40,000 for the program through buy games.

This is a tall order for the Golden Grizzlies. Oakland has only finished top four in the conference regular season twice and has only finished above .500 once in the past 11 years under Tungate.

To make the mountain even tougher to climb, Oakland will be without five of their top six scorers from last year. Brooke Quarles-Daniels, last year’s leading scorer, left for Michigan. Linda van Schaik, Markyia McCormick, and Alexis Johnson graduated as the second, third, and fifth-leading scorers, respectively. Finally, Kennedie Montue left for Arkansas State as the sixth leading scorer. That leaves Maddy Skorupski as the only top-six scorer from last year to return, where she was fourth.

Last season, Oakland finished eighth in the league, 8-12 in conference play, and 12-17 overall. However, Oakland was only two games out of fifth place and three games out of fourth place, as the middle of the league was very close and competitive. A few games could have made all the difference!

At Horizon League Media Day, Tungate said that he knows the team can score, but to climb the ranks of that middle part of the conference, he wants to focus on improving the team’s defense to do so.

Returning Players

While not providing too much detail, Tungate talked about how he’s counting on the returning players to make a big impact this year.

“The five returners we have, we’re expecting a lot from them. We know what they can do, we know what they’re capable of and we want each one of them to take that next step,” the coach said at media day.

Naveyah Damon –Only appearing in nine games during her freshman season, averaging about 6 minutes per game, Damon comes into this season with the opportunity for much more playing time. The Harlem, New York native brings the experience of a state championship victory with Miami Country Day as well as being named MVP during her high school years.

Jasmine Dupree-Hebert – In her time last year as a rotational piece, Dupree-Hebert proved to be a great offensive weapon. Appearing in 25 games and making one start at about 9 minutes per game, she shot 35.4% from the floor and 40.5% from beyond the arc. She also brings great energy to the team, always active and energetic when she sees the court. As one of the five returning players, expect to see her more often on the court.

Maddy Skorupski –Potentially the biggest piece to return this season, the former Michigan State Spartan has proven herself to be lightning in a bottle, in moments. She was a large contributor in their 20-point comeback vs Central Michigan, where she scored 19 points on 50% shooting in 20 minutes with 4 steals and had the game-winning shot against Robert Morris on February 10th. In total, she scored 9.3 points per game, shooting 45.7% and 35.8% from deep while hitting 84.8% from the stripe, which led the team. Skorupski was one of the few players that Tungate mentioned by name on media day.

“I know Maddy Skorupski, one of our returners, really finished the season strong last year and had a really good summer. We’re counting on her for a lot as one of our returners for a lot of things,” Tungate said.

Expect a much bigger role for her this season, potentially being the main offensive engine for the black and gold.

Madison Royal-Davis – After transferring to Oakland from Butler, Royal-Davis was a solid rotational piece providing a defensive boost to the lineup. Last year, playing in 27 games at 17.0 minutes per game, she led the team in blocks, tallying 20 over the season. With Tungate looking to focus more on defense this year, look for Royal-Davis to get more minutes.

Lianna Baxter – Now the most veteran player on the roster, entering her 3rd year with the program, Lianna Baxter looks to have her biggest role on the team yet. Baxter spent most of her previous seasons injured and behind centers Miriam Ibezim and Cam Grant. Coach Tungate mentioned her by name, saying that she will be looking at a larger role as an inside presence.

New Additions

Much is still unclear as to the roles that many of the new players will have this season. When asked about who out of the many newcomers looking to make a great impact this season, Tungate kept things close to the vest.

“With our new players, it’s still too early. From what we saw in the summer, there’s a lot of things I like about our new players,” Tungate said on Media Day. “We’ll see if the new players can, when the lights are on, continue to do what they’ve been doing this summer.”

Danielle Grim –Coming from Division II Mercyhurst University near Erie, PA, Grim brings experience as a full-time starter. She played in and started all 29 games for the Lakers last season, where she was the second leading scorer and led the team in rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks while collecting a PSAC West First Team honor. With nearly all of last year’s starting lineup gone, this gives Grim a great opportunity to bring a veteran presence to the newly assembled team.

Sereniti Roberts-Adams– Coming into her freshman year at Oakland, the 6-3 standout center from Butler College Prep averaged nearly a double-double during her senior year (12.2 points and 9.5 rebounds per game).

Kylie Buckley – After playing in all 30 games for Niagara University as a freshman, Buckley comes to Oakland also bringing much-needed size to the lineup. After losing both Cam Grant and Miriam Ibezim, Buckley’s 6-1 stature will prove to be useful defensively for Oakland, where they struggled against taller opponents last year.

Madilynn Rendall– After being redshirted in her first year at Idaho State, Rendall now looks to Oakland for her first chance to see the court at the college level. At Kamiakin High School in Washington, she was a three-year varsity starter, where she averaged 12.7 points and 6.6 rebounds per game during her senior year, where her team went 22-6 overall.

Jaidyn Elam – A local high school product, from Pontiac, MI, and graduating from Detroit Country Day, Elam gets the chance to stay close to home and play in front of friends and family. She played her junior and senior year, where she averaged 15.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 3.3 steals per game.

Macy Smith –Coming from Utah State, Smith is looking for a fresh start in her senior year after some rough seasons with the Aggies. Starting 19 of her 27 games last season, Smith was a routine contributor, seeing over 20 minutes per game, chipping in 5.2 points and 1.9 rebounds per game.

Maya Mitchell – Jumping up from the DII JUCO level, Mitchell was a centerpiece of the Rock Valley Golden Eagles, who finished last season with a trip to the Fifth-Place Semifinals game of the DII NJCAA National Championship tournament. Last season, she was second on the team in scoring (14.4 points per game) and led the team in FG% (55.7), rebounds per game (5.8), and steals per game (3.1) while starting in all 36 games as a sophomore.

Cali Denson –Denson comes to Oakland after a tough freshman year at Eastern Michigan, where the Eagles finished last in the MAC standings. She saw plenty of minutes, starting in 15 of her 18 games, averaging 26.1 minutes in each. She now has the opportunity to be a bigger contributor to the Golden Grizzlies at the guard position, where they need to fill the shoes of the All-League Second Team and All-Defensive Team member, Brooke Quarles-Daniels.

Leah Bullard –A product of Orlando, Florida, Bullard comes to Oakland with the most stacked high school resume out of all the incoming freshmen this year. Her resume from Dr. Phillips High School includes a McDonald’s All American Nomination, an All-District MVP, and three Florida state titles.

Riley Abney – Just 30 minutes away from home in Ortonville, Michigan, the freshman guard comes to Oakland with high school accolades of her own, including 1,000 points scored and the school scoring record, a Flint-Area Player of the Year, and was a 3-time BCAM First Team All-State honoree.

Outlook

There is a lot unknown about this Golden Grizzlies squad. We know that there is a lot expected of the five returning players and it will be an exciting battle to see which of the ten new faces can win a spot in the starting lineup. If Oakland can hit on their newcomer parlay, then the Golden Grizzlies can be a sleeper team this year, but there is a lot to overcome given what they lost in last year’s roster.