Although the women’s basketball team’s season ended sooner than expected, plenty was accomplished. Here is a look at the team by the numbers.
Shadeen Samuels: In her final year at Seton Hall, Samuels led the team on multiple statistical fronts and etched her name in program history. Though her time was cut short, Samuels managed to finish her college career ranked 12th on the Pirates' all-time scoring list with 1,270 points and 10th in rebounds with 763. She averaged a team-best 14.3 points per game and 7.7 rebounds per game which were slightly lower than her 18.3 points per game and 8.6 rebounds per game from last year. Her 75 total assists were good enough for second-best amongst her teammates and just one short of equaling her single season best from the 2018-19 season. Despite a slight dip in her three-point efficiency from 35.5% to 32.7%, Samuels improved her field goal percentage from 54.5% to 55.8% and her free throw percentage from 72.2% to 73.6%.
Barbara Johnson: After sitting out the 2018-19 season due to NCAA transfer regulations, Johnson provided the Pirates with a solid offensive presence in her senior year. She averaged 7.9 points per game, shooting 37.4% from the field and 30.7% from beyond the arc. She was efficient from the line, converting 75.5% of her 53 attempted free throws this season, and providing the team with 31 total assists. She scored at least 20 points on two occasions; once against Princeton where she scored 21 and again against Marquette where she knocked down 20 points exactly. Off the board, 58 of Johnson’s 91 total rebounds were in the Pirates’ own end of the court. She averaged 2.8 rebounds per game this season.
Alexis Lewis: Lewis also missed the 2018-19 season due to NCAA transfer regulations but finished the year as the team’s second-best offensive player behind Samuels. She featured in all 31 games this season, starting 28 of them and averaged a team second-best 13.3 points per game. Her 6.0 rebounds per game were good enough for third-best amongst the Pirates as she provided 123 defensive rebounds and 65 offensive rebounds throughout the season. Lewis shot 41.8% from the field and 87.2% from the free throw line. Lewis led Seton Hall and ranked fourth in the Big East with 73 made three-pointers and shot 33.6% from beyond the arc. She also led the team in most 20-point games with eight and had four in a row towards the end of the season against St. John’s, Xavier and Butler.
Desiree Elmore: Elmore blossomed into a key player for Seton Hall this year, playing in all 31 games and starting 28 of them in comparison to the six she started last year in 29 games. Her points per game improved from 10.3 to 13.0 despite her field goal percentage declining from 51.7% to 47.3% this season. Her total rebounds increased from 148 to 224, and she nearly doubled her defensive rebound total from last season with the 160 she collected in 2019-20. Elmore’s 7.2 rebounds per game were good enough to put her second amongst her teammates and her 33 total blocks led the Pirates. Her team best six double-doubles is also a testament to how pivotal Elmore was for the Pirates on both ends of the court this season. One of her double-doubles games against DePaul in the Big East Tournament semifinals where she scored a career-high 26 points and collected a season-high 13 rebounds.
Jasmine Smith: After transferring from Trinity Valley Community College in Texas, Smith played in all 31 games this season and started one game against St. John’s. Off the bench, Smith scored a career high 10 points against Xavier as she went 5 for 7 from the field. She provided the Pirates with 34 total rebounds, 29 assists and 17 steals in her first season with the team.
Alexia Allesch: Allesch started three games in 22 appearances for the Pirates after transferring from the University of Massachusetts. Her three starts came consecutively against DePaul, Marquette and Providence, and she scored 16 points, collected eight rebounds and provided one assist across those games. She averaged relatively good numbers in her shooting efficiency: 47.7% from the field, 38.1% from beyond the arc and 55.6% from the line. She averaged 2.0 rebounds per game and made nine total blocks and five total steals this season.
Femi Funeus: As she continued to recover from the season-ending injury suffered last season, Funeus came back into the side with an appearance off the bench against Lafayette. She made 17 more appearances off the bench this season, averaging 2.7 points, 0.2 assists and 1.6 rebounds per game. Her numbers from this year showed an noticeable decline given that she wasn’t given a preseason to properly come back from her injury, but she did show an incredible improvement in her free throw finishing as she hit 93.3% of her shots as opposed to the 43.8% she finished last season.
Lauren Park-Lane: Park-Lane was the only Seton Hall player to start all 31 of the Pirates’ games this season and averaged 29.4 minutes per game. She led Seton Hall and ranked fourth in the Big East Conference with 129 total assists and 4.2 assists per game and led Seton Hall in assists in 20 games this season. Park-Lane set a career high of 17 points against Butler in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals. She averaged 6.7 points per game while shooting 34.3% from the field and 27.5% from three-point range. She provided a career high eight assists against St. John’s before providing seven assists against Butler and DePaul in the Big East Tournament.
Mya Jackson: Another freshman who stood out in her first season of college basketball, Jackson played 27 games and started five of them while averaging 27.0 minutes per game. Her 10.0 points per game were fourth-best in the Seton Hall team and her 52 made three-point shots were only second in the team to Alexis Lewis’ 73. However, she did lead the Pirates in shooting percentage from three-point range with 40.0%. Jackson averaged 44.2% from the field and 61.3% from the free throw line. She hit a career-high of 25 points against Xavier and scored 21 points when Seton Hall faced off against the University of Connecticut. She averaged 10.4 points per game in her five starts against Saint Joseph’s, Lehigh, Georgetown, DePaul and Marquette.
Justin Sousa can be reached at justin.sousa@student.shu.edu. Find him on Twitter @JustinSousa99.
