Brown to be focal point of women's hoops' offense

"You can't miss me in a crowd."

Meet Becky Brown. Too shy? Let her introduce herself. She's more than happy to do it. The six-foot, three-inch sophomore post is accustomed to being the center of attention.

"She's somebody who walks into a room and strikes up a conversation with anyone she meets," head coach Richard Barron said.

While Brown's self-described "loud and vocal" nature draws notice off the court, she makes her presence felt more forcefully on it. With a game that matches her persona, she's a force in the paint, bulling her way past defenders en route to easy buckets.

"I sort of muscle my way in," she said. "I don't know how finesse I am — I think I'm kind of gawky."

Graceful or not, on a 9-19 team that often had trouble filling the hoop, any offensive firepower was greatly appreciated. Brown burst onto the Ivy League scene, playing her way onto the All-Rookie Team.

She led the Tigers in scoring and rebounding, averaging 14.9 points and 6.2 boards a game. By the end of the year, defenses could only hope to contain her — she dropped 31 on Columbia and 27 on Penn.

Not too shabby, considering that she didn't even intend to play college basketball. Although she was named Tennessee's Ms. Basketball her senior year, Brown was more interested in academics than athletics when it came time to choosing a university. Eventually, however, experiencing the best of both worlds at Princeton was an offer she couldn't refuse.

These days, it's hard to imagine where the Tigers would be without Brown. Undoubtedly, she'll be the offensive focal point again this season, especially given the loss of the Tigers' next three highest scorers. But Brown isn't content to be a rare bright spot on an otherwise disappointing team once again.

"My big focus is just really improving with the team," she said. "I don't want to be a good player on a bad team, but [rather] a good player on a good team."

Whether she'll prove to be the former or the latter will depend on the support of her teammates. Don't be surprised if opponents collapse their defense to double Brown every time she gets the ball in the paint, at least until other players prove they can pick up the scoring slack.

Barron is confident they'll do so. Thanks to another strong recruiting class, and the continued improvement of the sophomores, Princeton has a much deeper team this year, which should relieve the pressure on Brown.

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"I don't think its going to take but five minutes for other teams to figure it out [that other players can score]," Barron said. "It's a different challenge [for Becky this year], in terms of finding when to assert herself and when to look for others.

With that in mind, Brown spent the summer and preseason striving to add versatility. Specifically, she's aimed to improve her ball handling, passing and shooting range — skills all required of Princeton's center.

The Tigers run a motion offense similar to the famous Pete Carril-crafted system of the men's team. Frequently, plays are initiated by the center at the top of the key, which opens up the floor for quick cuts. Thus, the ideal Princeton center thrives thanks to the skills that Brown has been working on.

"She's getting more and more comfortable each day [with the new skills], but it's a gradual process," said Barron. "It will be interesting to see if it makes her better and if she can make her teammates better."

Beyond just delivering precision passes, Brown will lift the Tigers with her leadership abilities. Not surprisingly, her personality lends itself to strong leadership skills. With just three upperclassmen on the roster, Brown often takes it upon herself to speak up, whether the situation calls for wisdom or wit.

"She can be serious when she needs to be," senior captain Mary Cate Opila said. "But she can also crack a joke and make everyone laugh."

A proud Southerner, Brown's Tennessee roots often provide her best comic material. If the rest of the Tigers — described by Brown as a team full of "Yankees and Cali-girls" — chuckle at her expense, it's fine with her.

After all, Brown's used to being in the spotlight.