Lady Vols basketball has an entirely new roster for this upcoming season. In the effort to sign 13 transfers and a pair of incoming freshmen, new assistant coach Isoken Uzamere played a big part.
It wasn’t just adding players for the sake of filling the roster, though. The staff was intentional about who it brought in, both from a basketball and personality standpoint. For Uzamere, a defensive-focused coach, she said she wants players who have a ‘screw loose’ and are willing to take pride in their defense.
“You have to be a little crazy,” Uzamere said. “You got to be crazy, you know what I mean? And so when you’re guarding that ball, getting your chest in front of the ball, like, you got to sit, you got to get, I don’t want to curse, but butt to grass, like you got to really sit. You got to have some type of pride, like, you are not getting by me and you have to have some type of pride in that. And so when I say screw loose, that’s what I look for when I go recruiting. I’m looking at the defense and I’m like, yeah, she looks a little crazy. Like, yes, good screw loose, good screw loose.”
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While Uzamere made sure to note that all 15 additions fit the mold, she did name three players who certainly fit the billing. This included a trio of forwards, Georgia’s Zhen Craft, Texas A&M’s Fatmata Janneh and Texas’ Aaliyah Moore.
“I would say Zhen (Craft) for sure. Like most definitely,” Uzamere said. “I think (Fatmata Janneh) has a little bit of a screw loose. Aaliyah (Moore) has a little bit of a screw loose. You guys get me in trouble if I don’t name everybody. I’m just going to name all 15. But like, we got a bunch. We got a bunch.”
Those three are expected to play significant roles for a Lady Vols team with somewhat limited frontcourt depth. Making up for height disadvantage with a gritty and ‘screw loose’ style of play will also be necessary.
