SEATTLE — Ask sophomore Sara Mosiman about her new role as a two guard on the University of Washington women’s basketball team and she gets a gleam in her eye, like Ralphie Parker when he got that Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas.
Last year, Mosiman, who starred in basketball, volleyball and track at King’s in Shoreline, served as one of the backup point guards under coach June Daugherty, who was fired after the season and is now at Washington State.
New Husky coach Tia Jackson decided to switch Mosiman to shooting guard this season.
“She’s a much better two guard just because she has a scorer’s mentality,” said Jackson, who is using Monroe grad Sarah Morton as a backup point guard.
Mosiman averages 6.0 points per game and is second on the Huskies in shooting, making 48.7 percent of her shots from the floor.
“I feel like she saw that I should be a two-three guard and that’s how I was going to help the team. And that’s how I saw it too. I’m just glad she recognized that,” Mosiman said. “It’s definitely how I wanted to be used, how I’m being used now. When I came in I wasn’t really expecting to play point guard that’s just where I went. That’s where they needed me to be so that’s what I learned last year. I knew personally I could be more effective in the two-three spot.”
Jackson, who is fine-tuning the combinations of players she wants out on the floor, elected to start Mosiman for the third time this season in a 61-46 win over Washington State Jan. 4. Washington (6-9, 1-2 Pac-10) hosts UCLA (7-8, 2-2) at 7 p.m. tonight at Hec Edmundson Pavilion.
“The players that have shown they should be out there to kind of be the catalysts for us to start the game are the five that started the game against Washington State,” said Jackson. “Mo has been very good at coming in and being a firestarter out there. She’s just an Energizer bunny that’s kind of the best way to describe her. Between her and Emily (Florence) I don’t know who has the most energy.”
Mosiman had a breakout game in the Huskies’ thrilling 66-65 comeback win over Purdue on Dec. 21. She scored a career-high 14 points and made 7 of 12 field goals. She made back-to-back layins with less than two minutes to play to cut the lead to one. Then the Huskies went to Mosiman trying to get her to exploit a mismatch with a post on her, but her shot rimmed out with 23 seconds left. She was the first option on the next possession but as it turned out Redmon hit the game-winner with three seconds to go, and Mosiman stole the inbounds pass to clinch it.
“I love playing with Mo, she’s such an athletic, aggressive guard,” Florence said. “And it’s fun to play with her when she’s at the two spot and I’m at the one, because she looks to penetrate and then get her teammates open. And she’s aggressive going to the basket. She can finish with anybody on her, she’s really strong.”
Mosiman’s athleticism allows her to beat almost anyone off the dribble, but what Jackson wants her to do now is make the right decisions.
“I want her to make the right read so that’s going to be scoring or making that dish,” Jackson said. “Right now I’m trying to get her to understand when the right time is to do either.”
Jackson also said Mosiman is “very good at making things happen defensively.”
Doctors operated on Mosiman’s left leg in August to repair multiple stress fractures and inserted a titanium rod into her left tibia. She wasn’t expected back until late December, but after doing three hours of daily rehabilitation her flexibility improved. She made the trip to Kansas State and played a few minutes Nov. 10, despite not having participated in a full practice.
Now that her health is improved, it’s becoming clear that Mosiman is a player Jackson wants out on the floor in key moments.
“Right now I think we’re getting in a good place to start identifying what our rhythm is, what our best unit is out there on the floor,” Jackson said.
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