Stephanie Jensen could only think of one word to describe teammate Morgan Murphy.
“She’s a beast,” Jensen, a senior guard, said of the sophomore forward.
Murphy, entering her second year with the Binghamton women’s basketball program, will look to build off an impressive freshman campaign. In her debut season, the forward was named to the America East all-rookie team after averaging seven points and 4.2 rebounds per game and shooting 70.2 percent from the foul line.
The losses of key players like Kara Elofson and Jasbriell Swain will expand Murphy’s role on the team both offensively and defensively.
“I think I’m ready,” Murphy said. “Every year, every Division I team loses something and gains something — players just have to step up and move forward from it the next year.”
Knowing she will be a more integral piece of this year’s team, Murphy has been working hard on the court to improve her game and be ready for her expanded role this season.
“I’ve been working a lot with coach [Leah] Truncale on new post moves and adding that to my skill set,” she said.
“I think that myself, Sherae Swinson [and] some of the other players that we have on the team have been going after it on the boards in practice,” Murphy added.
Two aspects of Murphy’s game that she would like to improve this season are her mid-range jump shot and free throws. Specifically, she said she would like to see the percentages of each rise, and she has been working in practice to improve in both areas.
Head coach Nicole Scholl fully believes in Murphy’s capabilities on the court, calling the sophomore a key piece to the team’s 2013-14 season.
“I think Morgan’s potential is unlimited,” Scholl said. “I think her game is just progressively getting better. This year you’ll see a little bit more inside-out play because we can capitalize a little bit on that, but as far as on the inside, she really is a power on the inside for us.”
Although Murphy has improved during practice, she’ll have to transition to actual game play. Last season, Murphy would occasionally get into foul trouble, and because she’ll be relied on more this season, she will have to play disciplined defense to stay on the floor.
Everyone on the team is confident that Murphy can score, but the sophomore will need to become more of a playmaker in year two. Jensen, for one, said she would like to see Murphy recognize when she is double-teamed and kick the ball back out.
If Murphy is being covered one-on-one in the paint, however, Jensen expects her to score every time.
As much as Murphy would like to see her game progress on the court, she said she cares most about the wins.
“When you win six games one season, the next season you just want to win,” she said. “You put all your individual goals and accomplishments that you want to achieve aside, and you just want to win games.”