The NCAA allocates WBB programs 15 scholarships. Some programs use all, some not.
Obviously, depth is nice. Illness, injury, foul trouble, defections, etc. can make depth necessary.
Realistically, 15 players could not receive meaningful playing time. On the other hand, depth to rest starters during blowouts is a huge plus. Helps to avoid injuries and to have fresh legs in the post season. Many times fans focus solely on minutes in a particular game and ignore cumulative impact. Cumulative impact is real. It is the reason almost every NBA rookie has a significant decline in statistical output after the All Star break.
While teams practice against one another pre-season and early season to build conditioning, after a few games practices are almost always against a Dream Team thereafter to help save legs. That said, fewer players can mean more reps [especially for odd numbered rosters like 9 or 11].
Right now the WBB roster looks like it is close to reaching 9 [4 interior, 5 perimeter.....using those labels in the most general sense]. One more perimeter player would be REALLY nice. 200 minutes per game divides nicely. Ideally we can keep starters around 1,000 minutes for season.
Obviously, depth is nice. Illness, injury, foul trouble, defections, etc. can make depth necessary.
Realistically, 15 players could not receive meaningful playing time. On the other hand, depth to rest starters during blowouts is a huge plus. Helps to avoid injuries and to have fresh legs in the post season. Many times fans focus solely on minutes in a particular game and ignore cumulative impact. Cumulative impact is real. It is the reason almost every NBA rookie has a significant decline in statistical output after the All Star break.
While teams practice against one another pre-season and early season to build conditioning, after a few games practices are almost always against a Dream Team thereafter to help save legs. That said, fewer players can mean more reps [especially for odd numbered rosters like 9 or 11].
Right now the WBB roster looks like it is close to reaching 9 [4 interior, 5 perimeter.....using those labels in the most general sense]. One more perimeter player would be REALLY nice. 200 minutes per game divides nicely. Ideally we can keep starters around 1,000 minutes for season.