Deep, experienced FIU is expecting to improve

Forgive FIU coach Jesyka BurksWiley if she doesn’t pay attention to predictions.

At this point last season, she inherited a team that went 6-23 overall and 3-15 in Conference USA in 2019-20.

Given that, it was no surprise that C-USA coaches didn’t think much about FIU entering last season.

“They picked us dead last, and we finished tied for third,” BurksWiley said. “We don’t give predictions any weight.”

FIU finished last season 15-13 for the Panthers’ first winning year since 2012-13. In the league, FIU went 8-8, which put the Panthers in a three-way tie for sixth in the entire conference and tied for third in the East Division.

The Panthers lost to Rice 77-60 in the C-USA tournament quarterfinals, ending FIU’s dream of making the NCAA field.

This season, the Panthers return four players who started at least 19 games in 2020-21, including a pair of fifth-year 5-foot-11 forwards in Kyla Nelson and Emerald Ekpiteta, both from England.

Nelson is the team’s best shooter, making 43.8 percent of her threepointers. She set FIU’s program record with 74 made three-pointers, leading C-USA. After playing her first three years at Pittsburgh, she averaged 13.9 points for FIU.

Ekpiteta, who played three years at Niagara before landing at FIU last season, is the Panthers’ best rebounder and most-dynamic offensive player. She averaged 11.6 points and 9.0 rebounds.

“We list ‘E’ at 5-11, but she’s probably 5-9,” Burks-Wiley said. “She’s undersized, but she’s a mismatch because of her athleticism. She’s one of the top rebounders in the league.”

The other returning starters are Raquel “Rocky” Ferrer-Bernad, a 5-6 senior from Spain; and Alma Danielsson, a 6-1 senior from Sweden.

“Rocky is one of the most cerebral players I’ve ever coached,” BurksWiley said. “[Danielsson] is steady.”

Neither player, however, is guaranteed to start this season. FerrerBernad, who averaged just 3.6 points, will be challenged by Grace Hunter, a 5-10 junior college transfer from New Zealand. Hunter is the team’s top passer and a tough defender.

“Grace has a chance to be one of the best point guards in our league,” Burks-Wiley said. “She has great size for her position.”

At shooting guard, watch Zaida Gonzalez, a 5-9 true freshman from Palm Beach Lakes who is the fastest player on the team.

“She’s a jet,” Burks-Wiley said. Burks-Wiley is excited about a pair of 5-10 wings who are both new to the program: Olivia Trice and Ariel Colon.

Trice is a transfer from Bowling Green, where she played 27 games last season but averaged just 8.8 minutes. Her father, Travis Trice, is an assistant men’s basketball coach at Wright State.

Colon rivals Gonzalez as the team’s best leaper. Colon started 11 of her 15 games for Elon last season, averaging 7.0 points and shooting 87.5 percent on free throws.

Danielson, who averaged 7.1 points, could lose minutes to newcomers Hope Butera and Maria Torres.

Butera, a 6-3 center, is a native of Rwanda who is raw because she didn’t play until age 13. She played for Rwanda’s senior national team this past summer.

Torres, a 6-1 wing from Spain, is a transfer from Colorado State.

“With her arms up, it looks like Maria is four miles long,” BurksWiley said. “When we practice against our male scout team, we put Maria at the top of our press, and even they struggle to see past her.”

The Panthers also have 5-6 true freshman Tanajah Hayes, a North Carolina flash who has time to develop; and 6-2 center Barbora Tomancova, who is from the

Czech Republic.

“The strength of our team,” Burks-Wiley said, “is our depth and versatility.”