I Don't Think We're Done Yet With The 2026-27 Roster

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SFCALBear72
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8:01a, 4/16/26
With the two additions yesterday, that brings the roster total to 12 (11 scholarships plus Sofia Bowes).

That leaves a few more (2 or 3) roster spots open. The fact that they were pursuing Ryann Bennett of UC Davis (she signed with u$c yesterday) leads me to believe that they still want to add another shooting guard. Or perhaps an experienced point guard.

It also remains to be seen as to what Lola decides. She's still in the portal. She could add depth.

Thoughts?
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ethan0l
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8:17a, 4/16/26
Yes,
I'm quite certain that we are pursuing 1-2 more PGs/SGs. Even with Lola, our depth at that spot is thin and very reliant on unproven international players.
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Calbear73
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8:21a, 4/16/26
My understanding is that the Women's BB program is allowed to have 16 scholarshipped players each season, that's one more than the men who are limited to 15.

So my question is, if we have 11 players on scholarship, does that leave Charmin with 5 more scholarships to award to incoming players? If that's the case, why wouldn't she utilize all the scholarships available to her?

It may be that there is not enough NIL dollars available to attract players to the program, but I'm not sure. Can Charmin use the unallocated scholarship money for other purposes like NIL support or to support the program in other ways.

Hoping someone in the know can help explain that situation as I can't understand why she wouldn't use every scholarship available to her. Having enough bodies to practice and play would seem to be a key to success and protect from injuries and overplaying your starters.

GO BEARS!
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ethan0l
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In reply to ethan0l • 8:25a, 4/16/26
In trying to draw up our rotational depth, here is what I got:

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

Who am I missing?
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Calbear73
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8:34a, 4/16/26
It was announced last week that Greek forward Anna Lagonikaki has committed to play for Cal next year and I believe that is who you're missing.
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mbBear
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In reply to ethan0l • 8:34a, 4/16/26
ethan0l said:
In trying to draw up our rotational depth, here is what I got:

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

Who am I missing?


There isn't a thread yet arguing why Syla and
Jevtovic need to be on the court at the same??!
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SFCALBear72
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In reply to ethan0l • 8:34a, 4/16/26
ethan0l said:
In trying to draw up our rotational depth, here is what I got:

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

Who am I missing?

Anna Lagonikaki from Greece. 6'3 F
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CalFanatic
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In reply to mbBear • 8:45a, 4/16/26
mbBear said:
ethan0l said:
In trying to draw up our rotational depth, here is what I got:

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

Who am I missing?


There isn't a thread yet arguing why Syla and
Jevtovic need to be on the court at the same??!


Imagine a (very possible) rotation with Russell at the 3, Jevtovic at the 4 and Syla at the 5
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Schroeder71
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10:19a, 4/16/26
I believe that Cal needs another reliable ball-handler (PG) & another scoring guard. The shooting guard could either be a three-point specialist or pull-up jump shooter. On multiple occasions, top defensive opponents were able to shut down our guards (Lulu, Miracle & Gisella). IMO, the Bears need another reliable guard that can pick up the slack when this happens. Miracle Sheppard was decent at point guard but struggled on occasion. It really depends upon the strengths of Aussie PG Ruby Perkins. She stands 5-8 and supposedly is a good distributor. How good is she at the college Div I level on offense?

Why not pick up one of both? GO BEARS!
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CalWSportsFan
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10:24a, 4/16/26
I started be thread but this is a great addition!
https://instagr.am/p/DXM1WhxFK73
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CalFanatic
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10:30a, 4/16/26


Woohooooo!
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ethan0l
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10:30a, 4/16/26
YES on Dowell!! OK, here's what we got now...

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
Dowell
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Anna Lagonikaki
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

So, yeah, probably one more guard ... probably a PG who can shoot the 3?
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Woodacre
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11:01a, 4/16/26
There has been talk of Anna L redshirting. As to "why not" go for 16 instead of 15…it will be hard enough giving all 15 the playing time they think they deserve…
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stu
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In reply to ethan0l • 11:23a, 4/16/26
ethan0l said:
YES on Dowell!! OK, here's what we got now...

PG:
Perkins
Sheppard

SG:
Lulu
Dowell
(Donez)

Wing:
Maul
Russell
Drousini

Wing:
Taylor
Anna Lagonikaki
Naya

5:
Albina Syla
Jovana Jevtovic

So, yeah, probably one more guard ... probably a PG who can shoot the 3?

I haven't seen Perkins play so I'd pencil in Sheppard as the starter at PG. Also Dowell might be able to play point, though her 70 assists to 106 turnovers last season is concerning. We could terrorize other teams by playing Sheppard and Dowell together for defense.

I think Drosouni could play SG as well as Wing. I'd like to see her work on speed and strength.

Again I haven't seen Russell or Lagonikaki so I don't know if they should be classified as wings or forwards. I think Maul and Barnes are definitely wings and Ojukwu is definitely a forward. I'd love to see Ojukwu extend her game a little farther from the basket.
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CalFanatic
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11:25a, 4/16/26
And another! From Stanford

https://www.instagram.com/p/DXM8qjhGc6W/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
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kc1121
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In reply to CalFanatic • 11:30a, 4/16/26
lol.. was hoping it'd be Nunu when i clicked you're link..
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ethan0l
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11:38a, 4/16/26
The goal now, truly, is a double bye in the ACC tournament. This team has the skill and with Lulu coming back we have the star power.
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ethan0l
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11:39a, 4/16/26
Also, seeing this news, I get why Puff, Grace and Isis transferred elsewhere. And why Lola is in the portal.
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CalFanatic
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In reply to ethan0l • 11:51a, 4/16/26
ethan0l said:
Also, seeing this news, I get why Puff, Grace and Isis transferred elsewhere. And why Lola is in the portal.


We upgraded our roster with every departure… you've got to give some credit to the staff!
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annarborbear
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12:10p, 4/16/26
Would also now like to see us play a longer bench and keep key players fresh for later in the season. Seems like enough talent now to do that.
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ethan0l
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12:14p, 4/16/26
I will never not wonder what would have happened this past season if Abigor had played. (and if Taylor hadn't gotten injured).
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SFCALBear72
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12:42p, 4/16/26
I guess I was right about not being done yet with the roster. Lol.

Two more great gets! Today it was depth at the guard spot. Shooters too!

Roll on you Bears (New and Old)!!
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RedlessWardrobe
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11:21a, 4/17/26
I've watched the you tube video on Ruby Perkins. She can shoot from the outside and has good lateral movement driving to the basket. What the video didn't show was how quick she is handling the ball and how she handles it in the half court facing tight pressure. Based on the other players we've picked up I would hope Charmin uses one more spot on a quick ballhandling guard. We have plenty of wings and have gathered some tall players. A backup point guard through the portal would be a good thing at this point.

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stu
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In reply to RedlessWardrobe • 11:52a, 4/17/26
Can Shannon Dowell play point?
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RedlessWardrobe
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In reply to stu • 12:30p, 4/17/26
stu said:
Can Shannon Dowell play point?

Based on her turnover ratio, my guess is she's better suited as an off guard. But getting her is a big deal. Anyone who averaged 15 points per game in the SEC is certainly proven. And with her on the squad, a great advantage will be that there won't be the necessity to play Lulu and Gisella the enormous minutes that had to play last year. The depth of our team will be much better. But please, just one more point guard.

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annarborbear
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2:27p, 4/17/26
Here is the description of Perkins issued by Calbears.com when we signed her:

"Perkins, a 5-foot-8 guard out of East Killara, Australia, has been a longtime member of Australia's youth national teams at multiple levels. She most recently played for the U20 NSW (New South Wales) women's basketball team, considered the state's top team for athletes under 20. In February, Perkins guided her team to a gold medal at the 2025 Footlocker Under 20 National Championships and was named the tournament MVP after scoring 25 points in the championship game. In July, she also played on the U19 Australian GEMS basketball team at the U19 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, held in the Czech Republic. She helped her team to a silver medal and averaged 4.2 points, 3.7 assists and 2.2 rebounds over the course of the tournament.

"Ruby is a quick guard who plays with tenacity on both ends of the floor," Smith said. "She does a great job of setting up her teammates for easy buckets and can create opportunities for herself as well. She is a menace on the defensive end of the floor and will pick up 94 feet. I love the competitive energy that she brings every time she steps on the court."

This sounds like she could be a good back-up point guard this year. And we will certainly want to give her some minutes to develop her.
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RedlessWardrobe
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2:33p, 4/17/26
No doubt she's part of the plan. But like this season that just went by, if one of the point guards' suffer an injury, it's nice to have a third option as a backup.
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annarborbear
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In reply to RedlessWardrobe • 2:40p, 4/17/26
RedlessWardrobe said:
No doubt she's part of the plan. But like this season that just went by, if one of the point guards' suffer an injury, it's nice to have a third option as a backup.

That would be ideal. But I doubt that we can find a good player who will want to sit on the bench for much of the game. I do think that if problems do develop, Dowell passes and handles the ball well enough that she could serve in that role if necessary. It wasn't great, but she did lead Missouri in assists last year with 2.3 apg. And she came up with 5 assists and 4 assists against two good teams - Mississippi State and Alabama.

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RedlessWardrobe
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In reply to annarborbear • 2:56p, 4/17/26
annarborbear said:
RedlessWardrobe said:
No doubt she's part of the plan. But like this season that just went by, if one of the point guards' suffer an injury, it's nice to have a third option as a backup.

That would be ideal. But I doubt that we can find a good player who will want to sit on the bench for much of the game. I do think that if problems do develop, Dowell passes and handles the ball well enough that she could serve in that role if necessary. It wasn't great, but she did lead Missouri in assists last year with 2.3 apg. And she came up with 5 assists and 4 assists against two good teams - Mississippi State and Alabama.


You're probably right. Dowell may see some time at the point. And for all we know, Ruby may have the ability to handle pressure well. We've got a lot of new players coming in with high expectations.
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annarborbear
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In reply to RedlessWardrobe • 3:11p, 4/17/26
RedlessWardrobe said:
annarborbear said:
RedlessWardrobe said:
No doubt she's part of the plan. But like this season that just went by, if one of the point guards' suffer an injury, it's nice to have a third option as a backup.

That would be ideal. But I doubt that we can find a good player who will want to sit on the bench for much of the game. I do think that if problems do develop, Dowell passes and handles the ball well enough that she could serve in that role if necessary. It wasn't great, but she did lead Missouri in assists last year with 2.3 apg. And she came up with 5 assists and 4 assists against two good teams - Mississippi State and Alabama.


You're probably right. Dowell may see some time at the point. And for all we know, Ruby may have the ability to handle pressure well. We've got a lot of new players coming in with high expectations.

I haven't seen Perkins play, so you could also be right. But my fingers are crossed that she will be ready since that could also help reinforce our new international pipeline.
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smh
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8:10p, 4/17/26
lottsa names, above, but (just in case) might wanna go easy on the kool-aid, since things can change between now and then. umm, and not always for the better.
signed, stuck at home fingers crossed perma-bear
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RedlessWardrobe
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In reply to smh • 7:20a, 4/18/26
smh said:
lottsa names, above, but (just in case) might wanna go easy on the kool-aid, since things can change between now and then. umm, and not always for the better.
signed, stuck at home fingers crossed perma-bear

Understood. But still my gut feeling is that in the upcoming season Charmin will be using more than 7 in her playing rotation that she used this year. My hope is that some of those games when we would be run down in the 4th quarter won't be happening this upcoming season.
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ClayK
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8:51a, 4/18/26
It's pretty hard to have a rotation of more than eight in big games. A lot of your team success comes from on-court familiarity, and with the transfer portal, that's even harder to come by.

The prime example, of course, is UCLA, which only used six players to win the national title.

Games are really not that long. There are a lot of breaks (time outs, etc.), and though elite 20-year-old athletes do need some rest, they don't need much.

Having too many talented players is sometimes more of a problem than a solution, as those not playing are unhappy and can be disruptive.

Or look at it this way: There are 200 player/minutes to go around. Let's say your five starters each play 28 minutes. That's 140. You now have 60 minutes left. Your next three in the rotation will get about 12 minutes each, which is not a lot in a two-hour game. That's 176.

You've got 24 minutes left -- for the rest of the roster. And if your five through eight play 15 minutes each, you only have 15 left for nine through 11.

The classic high school roster was always this: The eight best players and the four nicest people.
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RedlessWardrobe
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9:16a, 4/18/26
I hear what you say Clay. It's just that after the season we just watched when so many times it felt like the team just wore down by the fourth quarter, it's nice to know we'll have some depth for a change.
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HoopDreams
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In reply to RedlessWardrobe • 9:36a, 4/18/26
Agree either Lulu or G needed to be on the court at all times and when only one of them were on the court we had a hard time scoring

Now it seems that 2 of 3 of them should be on the court at one time which will be much easier to manage the minutes and keep our starters fresh

RedlessWardrobe said:
stu said:
Can Shannon Dowell play point?

Based on her turnover ratio, my guess is she's better suited as an off guard. But getting her is a big deal. Anyone who averaged 15 points per game in the SEC is certainly proven. And with her on the squad, a great advantage will be that there won't be the necessity to play Lulu and Gisella the enormous minutes that had to play last year. The depth of our team will be much better. But please, just one more point guard.

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