BY WILL POLADIAN, SPORTS EDITOR
Three faces from last year’s team are looking to be the new shining stars after the departure of Asianae Johnson and Tori Harris.
Leading the charge for this year’s team are graduate guard Nikki Oppenheimer, senior forward I’yanna Lops and junior guard Tianna Johnson.
“Those are the three main people that are coming back that played a ton of minutes with us,” said head coach Jesse Fleming.
Oppenheimer, who played her first season at Syracuse, transferred to St. Bonaventure after three seasons at James Madison. In her first season as a Bonnie, she appeared in 27 games while making two starts. She averaged 3.2 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. She shot 28% from three-point range and 27% from the field.
“The biggest thing was making sure I was in really good shape and perfecting and working on my shot and trying to get quicker and faster,” said Oppenheimer. “So I can be able to play longer and better and defend a little bit more.”
She ranked third on the team in made three pointers with 25 while averaging 15.2 minutes per game. She was selected to the A-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
“Nikki Oppenheimer has done a great job this summer working really hard,” said Fleming. “She is working to really shoot off screens, and her three-point shot is really well. She’s competing defensively for us as well.”
Lops was a big part of last year’s team. She was one of two players to play in all 28 games. She led the Bonnies in rebounding and was third on the team in scoring with 8.2 points and 6 rebounds per game. She ranked second in single season blocks with 44.
“What I felt like I can improve on, it’s just being more of a threat offensively for my team,” said Lops. “Whether that’s outside the perimeter, being more of a threat inside and defensively for my team.”
She scored in double figures 11 times and had two double-doubles. She also tallied eight or more rebounds in twelve games. She tied the single game block record with six against George Washington in the A-10 Tournament.
“I’yanna Lops had an excellent summer and had some really good stretches for us last season, and she’s just gotten a ton of experience,” said Fleming. “She really understands our system and has really gotten comfortable. We feel like we can put her on the other team’s best offensive player in a lot of different positions.”
Johnson had her first competitive season last year as she last played for Seward Community College in the 2019-20 season. She transferred to New Mexico Junior College but never played due to COVID-19. In her first season as a Bonnie, she started 26 of 27 games.
“What I worked on this offseason was just getting stronger,” said Johnson. “My three-point shot and just creative finishes on the basket.”
She averaged 5.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. She averaged 30.2 minutes per game, playing 28 or more minutes in 25 games. She finished second on the team in assists with 67 and assists per game.
“Tiana Johnson played a ton of minutes for us last year and we’re gonna actually move her off the ball,” said Fleming. “I think she really brings some toughness and rebounding in that spot.”
Lops believes trust and communication are a big part of this season.
“Definitely communicating more when we’re on the court with each other building relationships on and off the court,” said Lops. “Just making sure that we trust in each other and trust in our coaches and trust in our program.”
Johnson believes that rebounding is a big emphasis this season.
“I feel like another big thing in practice has been just rebounding and pushing the ball and that’s a big emphasis this year,” said Johnson.
Johnson wants to be the best leader she can.
“For me personally, I think my biggest thing is just being the best leader and making sure everyone else is being successful on the court like a team,” said Johnson. “I think it’s staying the course logging in all seasons. Good and bad.”
Oppenheimer wants to end her career successfully.
“For me, it’s my last year of eligibility,” said Oppenheimer. “So I want to end on a good note. And I believe that with the team we have, we can surprise a lot of people and that we’re going to do good things.”
Johnson believes this team brings a lot more to the floor.
“I would agree with Nikki,” said Johnson. “I think we’re bringing a lot more to the floor this year. I think we just have to stay the course because it’s a little rough right now but we just need to lock in with each other.”
These three and the rest of the Bonnies open up their season at home Nov. 7 at 4:30 p.m. against Bowling Green in the Reilly Center.
“We have kind of an entirely new team,” said Oppenheimer. “So we have a lot of new people and some new coaches. So we’re all like just trying to play to each other’s strengths and get comfortable playing with different people, playing with a different dynamic. I feel like it’s gonna be a different year for us and we’re excited about it.”
poladiwj20@bonaventure.edu
