WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

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Denny Downing

Position: Head Coach

Phone: (903) 886-5575

Denny Downing enters his seventh season as the head coach for Texas A&M University-Commerce, where he has guided the program to unparallel heights.

For the last three years, the A&M-Commerce women’s basketball team has had three straight winning seasons for the first time in school history. Downing has guided the Lions to 25 wins in the last three years against Lone Star Conference North Division foes, which is more than any other school in the division.

In 2006-07, en route to a No. 13 ranking in the final WBCA/USA Today poll, the Lions set 40 school records, won the program’s first-ever LSC North Division Championship, LSC Tournament title and NCAA South Central Regional Championship. In the process, Downing was named the Lone Star Conference North Division Coach of the Year.

Downing led the Lions through a two-year stretch from 2005-06 to 2006-07, where they posted an outstanding home record of 33-1 at the A&M-Commerce Field House.

At Texas A&M University-Commerce under Downing, Hazel Woods and Britney Jordan were named Newcomer of the Year, Katedria Mosley was selected as Freshman of the Year and Kanani Marshal was the first Lion ever to earn Player of the Year honors in 2006-07. In addition, seven Lions have earned all-conference recognition. Both Jordan and Marshal became the first teammates in school history to earn first-team all-LSC honors. Jordan went on to earn LSC Most Valuable Player honors and Marshal became the first All-American in school history following a record-setting senior season. Marshal set the single-season mark for points scored, 3-point field goals made and attempted, 3-point field goal percentage and steals. Furthermore, Marshal also set an all-division NCAA record with 145 3-pointers made in a single season.

Downing came to A&M-Commerce in 2002, after serving one season as the head women’s basketball coach at Colling County Community College. Taking over the CCCC program in September of 2001 near the start of the season, he directed the Lady Express to a two-win improvement from the previous season. The Collin County experience put him back into coaching after a few years of working in the financial field. Prior to his arrival at A&M-Commerce and coaching duties at CCCC, Downing served as the head recruiter for the Drake University men’s basketball program in 1994-96 and was an assistant at Fort Hays University as they laid the groundwork in 1993-94 which culminated in an NCAA Division II Men’s National Championship two years later. He also served as head coach for both the men and women’s basketball teams at Ranger Junior College from 1991-93, posting a record of 31-28 for the women and 33-28 mark on the men’s side. He led the Rangers to the New Mexico/Texas NJCAA playoffs with a record of 19-12 in 1992-93. 80 percent of his sophomore graduated, all of which went on to play Division I basketball.

From 1989-91, Downing served as a graduate assistant at Tarleton State University, aiding both the men and women’s teams.He started his coaching career as a student in 1985 at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, working with the women’s program.

A 1989 graduate of Northwestern Oklahoma State with a bachelor’s in psychology, Downing earned his master’s in 1991 from Tarleton State. Downing is originally from Enid, Okla., is single and currently resides in nearby Campbell.

LaToya Howell

Position: Assistant Coach

Title: Assistant Coach

Email: LaToya_Howell@tamu-commerce.edu

Phone: (903) 468-6098

LaToya Howell is in her third season as an assistant coach at Texas A&M-Commerce. She holds an integral role in the scouting of opponents, recruiting and development of the Lions’ guards.

In just three years, she has been involved in the tutelage of the first two All-Americans in school history - Kanani Marshal and Britney Jordan. Last year, Jordan was a Daktronics All-South Central Region team honoree and a first-team all-Lone Star Conference North Division selection for the second straight year.

Howell was instrumental in the successful 2006-07 season for the Lions. Jordan and Marshal were both first-team all-LSC selections and Jordan was named the LSC North Division Newcomer of the Year. In addition, both were named to the NCAA South Central Region all-Tournament Team.
The Chicago, Illinois native came to Texas A&M-Commerce after a playing career that included two years at the U.S. Air Force Academy and the University of Nebraska, respectively. At both institutions, Howell was successful on and off the court.

As a freshman, she was named the team’s MVP in 2001-02 and as a sophomore, she was selected as team captain and earned Best Offensive Player honors in 2002-03 at Air Force before transferring to the University of Nebraska. As a two-time team captain, she earned Defensive Player of the Year recognition as a senior in 2005-06. Off the court, she was a volunteer mentor at Belmont Elementary, a volunteer speaker during American Education Week and served as vice president of Your Degree First for three years.

Howell concluded her career with the Huskers, starting 31 of 32 games as a senior. She tied for eighth on the Nebraska single-season assist list with 159 assists. The 159 assists also tied for the third most in a senior season in the Nebraska record book. She had a career-high 12 points and seven steals against No. 10 Minnesota and dished out 10 assists twice against Iowa State and Oklahoma State in her final season. As a junior, she appeared in 30 games with six starts. Her defensive tenacity led to 63 steals, including an average of 2.5 in Big 12 Conference games, which ranked second in the conference.

At Air Force, as a sophomore in 2002-03, she averaged a team-high 17.4 points per game and seven assists per game. She also set a pair of Air Force records, scoring a single-game record with 38 points against Minnesota and a single-season record with 119 assists. As a freshman, she was one of the top players in the conference. She led all freshmen and ranked second on the team in scoring with 10.0 points per game. She had a Mountain West Conference record 49 steals in conference play and set a school single season record with 90 steals. Howell also finished an assist shy of the school single-season record, ending the year with 109 assists.

Howell is the daughter of James and Sandra Howell. She has two younger sisters, LaTia (22) and LaTanya (21). She graduated from Nebraska in spring of 2006 with her bachelor’s degree in psychology and has started on her master’s degree at A&M-Commerce.

She was inducted into the Queen of Peace High School Hall of Fame in the fall of 2008.

Sports

Athletic Dept Info

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL


Sports Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Cross Country Football Men's Golf Women's Golf Women's Soccer Track & Field Volleyball Athletic Dept Info Administration A&M-Commerce Campus Athletic Training Calendar Camps Cheerleading Compliance Directions Facilities Hall of Fame In the Community Junior Lions Lion Athletic Club Online Store SAAC Staff Directory Tickets UIL Search Athletics	WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roster \| Schedule/Results \| Statistics \| News \| Coaches Denny Downing Position: Head Coach Email: Denny_Downing@tamu-commerce.edu Phone: (903) 886-5575 Denny Downing enters his seventh season as the head coach for Texas A&M University-Commerce, where he has guided the program to unparallel heights. For the last three years, the A&M-Commerce women’s basketball team has had three straight winning seasons for the first time in school history. Downing has guided the Lions to 25 wins in the last three years against Lone Star Conference North Division foes, which is more than any other school in the division. In 2006-07, en route to a No. 13 ranking in the final WBCA/USA Today poll, the Lions set 40 school records, won the program’s first-ever LSC North Division Championship, LSC Tournament title and NCAA South Central Regional Championship. In the process, Downing was named the Lone Star Conference North Division Coach of the Year. Downing led the Lions through a two-year stretch from 2005-06 to 2006-07, where they posted an outstanding home record of 33-1 at the A&M-Commerce Field House. At Texas A&M University-Commerce under Downing, Hazel Woods and Britney Jordan were named Newcomer of the Year, Katedria Mosley was selected as Freshman of the Year and Kanani Marshal was the first Lion ever to earn Player of the Year honors in 2006-07. In addition, seven Lions have earned all-conference recognition. Both Jordan and Marshal became the first teammates in school history to earn first-team all-LSC honors. Jordan went on to earn LSC Most Valuable Player honors and Marshal became the first All-American in school history following a record-setting senior season. Marshal set the single-season mark for points scored, 3-point field goals made and attempted, 3-point field goal percentage and steals. Furthermore, Marshal also set an all-division NCAA record with 145 3-pointers made in a single season. Downing came to A&M-Commerce in 2002, after serving one season as the head women’s basketball coach at Colling County Community College. Taking over the CCCC program in September of 2001 near the start of the season, he directed the Lady Express to a two-win improvement from the previous season. The Collin County experience put him back into coaching after a few years of working in the financial field. Prior to his arrival at A&M-Commerce and coaching duties at CCCC, Downing served as the head recruiter for the Drake University men’s basketball program in 1994-96 and was an assistant at Fort Hays University as they laid the groundwork in 1993-94 which culminated in an NCAA Division II Men’s National Championship two years later. He also served as head coach for both the men and women’s basketball teams at Ranger Junior College from 1991-93, posting a record of 31-28 for the women and 33-28 mark on the men’s side. He led the Rangers to the New Mexico/Texas NJCAA playoffs with a record of 19-12 in 1992-93. 80 percent of his sophomore graduated, all of which went on to play Division I basketball. From 1989-91, Downing served as a graduate assistant at Tarleton State University, aiding both the men and women’s teams.He started his coaching career as a student in 1985 at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, working with the women’s program. A 1989 graduate of Northwestern Oklahoma State with a bachelor’s in psychology, Downing earned his master’s in 1991 from Tarleton State. Downing is originally from Enid, Okla., is single and currently resides in nearby Campbell. LaToya Howell Position: Assistant Coach Title: Assistant Coach Email: LaToya_Howell@tamu-commerce.edu Phone: (903) 468-6098 LaToya Howell is in her third season as an assistant coach at Texas A&M-Commerce. She holds an integral role in the scouting of opponents, recruiting and development of the Lions’ guards. In just three years, she has been involved in the tutelage of the first two All-Americans in school history - Kanani Marshal and Britney Jordan. Last year, Jordan was a Daktronics All-South Central Region team honoree and a first-team all-Lone Star Conference North Division selection for the second straight year. Howell was instrumental in the successful 2006-07 season for the Lions. Jordan and Marshal were both first-team all-LSC selections and Jordan was named the LSC North Division Newcomer of the Year. In addition, both were named to the NCAA South Central Region all-Tournament Team. The Chicago, Illinois native came to Texas A&M-Commerce after a playing career that included two years at the U.S. Air Force Academy and the University of Nebraska, respectively. At both institutions, Howell was successful on and off the court. As a freshman, she was named the team’s MVP in 2001-02 and as a sophomore, she was selected as team captain and earned Best Offensive Player honors in 2002-03 at Air Force before transferring to the University of Nebraska. As a two-time team captain, she earned Defensive Player of the Year recognition as a senior in 2005-06. Off the court, she was a volunteer mentor at Belmont Elementary, a volunteer speaker during American Education Week and served as vice president of Your Degree First for three years. Howell concluded her career with the Huskers, starting 31 of 32 games as a senior. She tied for eighth on the Nebraska single-season assist list with 159 assists. The 159 assists also tied for the third most in a senior season in the Nebraska record book. She had a career-high 12 points and seven steals against No. 10 Minnesota and dished out 10 assists twice against Iowa State and Oklahoma State in her final season. As a junior, she appeared in 30 games with six starts. Her defensive tenacity led to 63 steals, including an average of 2.5 in Big 12 Conference games, which ranked second in the conference. At Air Force, as a sophomore in 2002-03, she averaged a team-high 17.4 points per game and seven assists per game. She also set a pair of Air Force records, scoring a single-game record with 38 points against Minnesota and a single-season record with 119 assists. As a freshman, she was one of the top players in the conference. She led all freshmen and ranked second on the team in scoring with 10.0 points per game. She had a Mountain West Conference record 49 steals in conference play and set a school single season record with 90 steals. Howell also finished an assist shy of the school single-season record, ending the year with 109 assists. Howell is the daughter of James and Sandra Howell. She has two younger sisters, LaTia (22) and LaTanya (21). She graduated from Nebraska in spring of 2006 with her bachelor’s degree in psychology and has started on her master’s degree at A&M-Commerce. She was inducted into the Queen of Peace High School Hall of Fame in the fall of 2008.
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