Bobcats adapting to new roles as conference play heats up

Bailey Holle hasn’t had to play much point guard this year.

The senior started 19 games at the position last season before turning the reins over to sophomore Kennedy Taylor over the final 12. Holle’s since formed into Texas’ State’s go-to substitute, thriving in a combo guard role off the bench.

Holle functions as a shooting guard when she shares the court with Taylor, spotting up for deep range shots and serving as a secondary playmaker. The Austin native is averaging a career high 4.6 points, 2.5 assists per game and is hitting .356 percent from behind the arc — the second-highest mark on the team behind freshman guard Jessica Paz Y Puente.

But when Taylor was ruled out for Saturday’s game against Arkansas State, Holle had to revert to her old ways. She’s run point at times this year while Taylor’s rested on the bench but hasn’t had to do so full-time since last season. She didn’t look rusty. Holle played all 40 minutes, scoring nine points of three 3-pointers, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out four assists while committing two turnovers.

“(My responsibilities) don't change drastically because I'm still on the floor to communicate and lead and knock down open shots,” Holle said. “But when I'm the point, my role changes slightly in the fact that I need to make sure everyone's in the right position and get everyone where they need to be and focus on getting the ball to the scorers and just running offense to a good shot.”

Holle isn’t the only player who saw her role differentiate as Sun Belt play began. Junior guard Avionne Alexander’s known on the team as a defensive stopper, consistently guarding the opponents’ top perimeter scoring threat. But as opposing defenses key in on leading scorers Da’Nasia Hood and Brooke Holle, Alexander’s found opportunities to contribute on offense as well.

Alexander entered this season with a single-game career high of five points. She topped it on Nov. 16 against UT-Permian Basin with six. She doubled it Dec. 30 against Alcorn State with 12. She one-upped it again against the Red Wolves Saturday, dropping 6-8 from the field for 13.

“I've just been trying to be aggressive and just be another option for my team,” Alexander said after Saturday’s game. “Now that it's conference people scout us and stuff, so scores get a little bit harder. So I've just been trying to be another option for my team and being aggressive for them.”

The Bobcats (7-6, 0-2 Sun Belt) will need players like Holle and Alexander to continue finding comfort in their roles. Texas State will travel this weekend, taking on Coastal Carolina (11-2, 1-1) on Thursday at 5 p.m. in Conway, South Carolina, and Appalachian State (3-10, 0-2) on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Boone, North Carolina.

Head coach Zenarae Antoine considers the Chanticleers as the top team in the league. Coastal Carolina boasts the largest net margin in the conference at plus-20.2. The team’s leading scorer, sophomore forward Aja Blount, comes off the bench. In the school’s last game, a 71-62 road win against South Alabama, Blount scored 38 points, sinking 14-of-14 free throws.

“They truly can score in transition, they can score in the halfcourt, they've got great post play, they've got great exterior as well, they have three potential all-conference kids on their team,” Antoine said. “So I think just our ability to be able to understand that they have some veterans and they've been through it before, us playing with poise is going to be really important. Whether it be us defensively, because they're excellent in transition, or whether it be us offensively finding our looks. Generally, you find with upperclassmen, they stay the course, they're really in tune with what they want to do. And so, we can't play into their hands with the pressure.”

Antoine admitted she hadn’t scouted the Mountaineers much as of Tuesday, but was wary of returning junior forward Lainey Gosnell, guard Pre Stanley and senior 6-foot-4 center Bailey Plummer.

The Bobcats will look for their first Sun Belt win this weekend. Antoine she wants to see the team execute better on defense, which should lead to more fastbreak chances. Bailey Holle agreed.

“We need to improve dramatically on defense. Because right now, when we play good defense, it leads to our offense and when we struggle on defense it puts stress on our offense,” Holle said. “And so I think we just need to get back to what we're good at, which is defending, and then that will just lead to us being relaxed and executing on offense.”