VIDEO: Jai Jai McLaughlin Interview

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – This is the first of a two-part series that analyzes the roster for Carson-Newman women's basketball prior to the 2014-15 campaign. Today's feature focuses on the guard and wing spot with junior guard Jai Jai McLaughlin (Knoxville, Tenn.).

The guard position features seven players with three additional players seeing time on the wing. McLaughlin stuffed the stat sheet in her sophomore year finishing fifth on the team with 8.1 points per game, second on the roster with 5.6 rebounds per contest and first on the squad with 4.8 assists and 1.8 steals per outing.

"I think from the guard position overall, we need to pick up the intensity," McLaughlin said. "The practices this season have been so much more intense than they ever were last season. Since we are practicing at a higher rate of speed, the guards are learning how to control the ball."

Playing alongside McLaughlin in the frontcourt is junior Tatum Burstrom (Maryville, Tenn.), the team's leading scorer a season ago with 10.7 per game. The guard led the team in field goals made (212) and three-point field goals made (70). Burstrom enters the season third on the program's all-time made three-point field goal list with 132. Assistant coach Ashley Tipton's 222 and Kandi Duncan's 180 are the only marks that are higher than Burstrom's tally.

"With Tatum, it's one of those where you can pass it to her and she's an offensive threat from the three-point line, inside the three-point line and dribbling," McLauglin said of Burstrom. "She has increased her dribbling game and her man-to-man offense and she is able to get to the basket and make moves she wasn't doing last year."

Senior guard Lacy Miller (Dandridge, Tenn.) has been one of the most consistent players of the last two seasons. Miller was second on the team a season ago with 51 assists after missing time with a knee injury that kept her out of seven games. The former Jefferson County high school standout played double-digit minutes in 17 of the final 18 contests of the year while leading the team with an 81 percent free throw percentage.

"When Lacy comes in we play off of each other," McLaughlin said of Miller. "We know what the other person is going to do so we don't have to tell each other what to do. It's more of flowing with the game."

One person that expects to see an expanded this role is sophomore guard Kailyn Brooks (Lafayette, Tenn.) who averaged 12 minutes in 25 games in 2013-14. Brooks finished third on the team with 23 made three-pointers. Among players with at least 50 three-point field goal attempts, Brooks had the second highest conversion percentage at .338.

The rest of the returning group of players junior Kianna Sedlacek (Cardington, Ohio), sophomore Carly Pippin (Sevierville, Tenn.) and sophomore Katie Stubblefield (Alcoa, Tenn.) who saw action in 24 contests a year ago.

The lone newcomer to add to the position is freshman Kayla Newman (Alcoa, Tenn.) who was a two-time District 4-AA All-District First Team selection.

"Everybody at the guard position brings different aspects to the game," McLaughlin said. "When you get us in there, we're not just stuck in one spot. So that makes it harder for a defense to be able to guard us."

The position previews continue Thursday with sophomore forward Kaitlyn Cupples (Clinton, Tenn.) and the backcourt.

- CN -