Last season, the Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team finished with a total of seven wins.
With two games left to play in December, the Tigers have already equaled last year's win total with a 7-8 record, although comparing last season to the 2007-08 campaign isn't exactly like comparing apples to oranges.
At this time a year ago, the DWU women were reeling from the resignations of three assistant coaches. In fact, the sudden departures had such an effect on the team that the players contemplated calling it quits on coach Ann Konechne.
Ultimately, Konechne tendered her resignation in March, after a dismal 7-22 season. With no coaching staff and a season that required more than a handful of aspirin, the horizon wasn't exactly bright for DWU.
However, a pair of new faces have helped get the Tigers in position to surpass last season's win total before their 2007 calendars expire.
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Aaron Kahl was hired to replace Konechne, and he came in preaching the positives of playing team basketball. He's said from the first day of practice that he wants his team to function as one on the floor, making the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
The other is transfer guard Allison Johnson. Johnson, a former Daily Republic girls' basketball player of the year, decided to join her sister Ashley on the DWU roster to see if they couldn't conjure up some of the magic that produced back-to-back state titles just a few miles away at Mount Vernon High School.
So far, the results have been positive. The turmoil of last season seems to be a distant memory. The Tigers have bought into Kahl's teamwork ideals, with the biggest and brightest example being starting center Adria Pazour.
Pazour, the best player Konechne left for Kahl, is a returning all-GPAC performer and a deft inside scorer. However, just by looking at her numbers it would be easy to assume she's having a drastically down year.
Not the case. As the team's known commodity, Pazour faces relentless zone defenses and double teams on the block, and rather than look to boost her own stats, the senior has displayed remarkable poise and patience, using the attention on her to create open shots for the Tigers' guards.
The Johnson sisters have been on the receiving end of many of Pazour's kick-outs. Ashley has showcased an incredible amount of touch on her deep rainbow three-pointers, and she's also a threat to make a steal and glide in for a layup on almost any possession.
Allison, who stands three inches taller than her sister, has shown a great deal of versatility from her guard spot as well. She appears to have the complete package -- shooting, ball handling, defense, passing -- but she might be best either driving through traffic or posting up against other guards. She has that rare ability to draw contact and finish her shots, or to fend off multiple defenders on drives to the basket.
However, the skill that both Johnson sisters have showcased that has been the most vital to the Tigers has been their ability to play their best in the clutch.
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Ashley, and her 24 points, was the biggest reason the Tigers were able to open the GPAC with a double-overtime win on Sioux Falls' home floor, and Allison was just as good in another overtime thriller. She scored 23 to help DWU beat Dordt by two points on Nov. 28, and she also had big games in wins over Bethany Lutheran and Presentation.
While seven wins by New Year's Eve is certainly a good feat for the Tigers, they're still a long way from competing for a GPAC title. Kahl will need to recruit several more players like Pazour and the Johnsons if he wants to compete with the likes of Northwestern in a very tough league.
However, considering where the program was just one year ago, the current state of affairs is certainly better than even the most faithful DWU fans could have predicted.
The nice thing about hitting rock bottom is that there's nowhere to go but up, but with the way last season went, it would've been entirely possible for the Tigers to simply stay where they were. Instead, Kahl has DWU moving in the right direction, and waving goodbye to "rock bottom" as the once-dysfunctional program leaves the bad memories of 2006-07 far behind.
