Coach Doug Bruno and his Blue Demons finished last season on a highly uncharacteristic downturn and had their streak of 17 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances snapped in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
No doubt the excitement level at Wintrust Arena will be cranked up with the first game in front of actual fans since DePaul won the BIG EAST tournament in March of 2020.
Those DePaul faithful making their way to the South Loop will get a sneak preview at one of the most complete rosters Bruno has fielded in recent memory.
With the NCAA granting an additional year of eligibility because of the pandemic, every one of the team's top players returns for that shot at redemption.
Headlining the drive to establish a new NCAA tournament streak are Preseason All-BIG EAST guards Sonya Morris and Lexi Held who were both All-BIG EAST First Team last season.
Morris was the BIG EAST's third-leading scorer at 19.3 points a game while averaging 5.3 rebounds. Her 88.3 percent accuracy from the free throw line was No. 11 in the nation.
Held averaged 16.6 points a game and led DePaul in assists and steals. She finished No. 5 in the country in total steals and eighth in steals per game. The steady senior scored doubles figures in every game except against powerful Connecticut when she had nine points.
Both Morris and Held became 1,000-point career scorers before completing their junior seasons.
BIG EAST All-Freshman Team guard Darrione Rogers returns for her sophomore season and promises to have an even bigger impact after averaging 9.5 points and a team-high 5.5 rebounds.
All BIG EAST Honorable Mention selection Dee Bekelja (12.5 points a game) is now a graduate student and ready as ever to provide spontaneous scoring outbursts and serving as one of the team's better finishers around the basket.
Fifth-year graduate student Deja Church (13.3 points per game) gives Bruno a talented, versatile option as the athletic 5-foot, 11-inch hybrid standout can excel at three of four positions and also defend against taller forwards.
Bruising, physical forward Jorie Allen is back to match up against opponents' front-court threats and also give DePaul one of its best low-post options on offense.
As if having six returning impact players wasn't enough, Bruno and his coaching staff welcomes one of their most talented recruits in years, Chicago's very own Aneesah Morrow from Simeon.
The 6-1 forward averaged 28.4 points and 14.3 rebounds last year and led Simeon to the state title in the 2019-20 season. She was ranked the nation's No. 20 recruit by MaxPreps and No. 45 by Prospects Nation.
Morrow inherited some athletic genes as her mother was an all-conference basketball player at Nebraska while her father played on the Cornhuskers' 1994 national title football team. Older brother Ed Morrow played at Marquette and Nebraska.
Drake transfer and heady point guard Kierra Collier could become eligible by the end of the fall quarter and would immediately upgrade the team with her quickness, ball-handling and shooting. She was an All-MVC Honorable Mention pick last season.
There's more front-court depth with junior forward Hannah Purcell and 6-3 freshman Kaitlyn Ammons who was the No. 1 college prospect in West Virginia last season.
Lewis went 13-9 last season and returns its top four scorers in Kathryn Schmidt (12.9 points a game), Jenna Bedali (12.5 points), Grace Hilber and Taylor Gugliuzza---both at nine points per game.
The Blue Demons open the regular season on Tuesday against Texas Southern at Wintrust Arena where they will celebrate former DePaul honorable mention All-American Allie Quigley who helped lead the Chicago Sky to the WNBA championship scoring 26 points in the clincher.
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Fans Are Back as DePaul Faces Lewis on Thursday - DePaul Blue Demons
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