With 11 of 15 student-athletes on their roster from Manitoba, many of whom played together at one point in club, high school or on the provincial team, the chemistry for the Bisons women's basketball team is off the charts.
 
Included in that group are five alumni of the Dakota Lancers, in Emily Mandamin, Kyu Fust, Darya Rom, Hope Larocque and Taylor Schepp, who all played with at least one other member of the Lancers crew during their time in high school.
 
Mandamin and Fust suited up together in 2019-20, while Fust was a teammate of Rom's in 2021-22, and 2022-23 when Dakota won provincial gold. Larocque was on the 2022-23 team with the group, and Schepp was a member of the 2023-24 provincial championship squad with Rom and Larocque.
 
Additionally, senior Ayva Khan, along with third-year Anna Miko and sophomore Paige Schatkowsky all played together on the 2022 U18 Canada Games team. Meanwhile, redshirt freshman Halley Cruz (who averaged over 25 points per game as a senior with Garden City) competed many times against the Dakota cohort, including multiple provincial finals, while versatile forces Treyah Paquette and Samantha Onyebuchi's relationship to their fellow Manitobans is also extremely strong.
 
"Dakota for sure, but I would say even more broadly, the club Evolve and the provincial team. They probably played more with each other on that, and more of them. Provincial team you can play together anywhere from one to five years but there's also the training part of that. Every year there's 50 some odd girls that will train in the various provincial team skill development programs that they've had," noted head coach Michele Sung.
 
"That group that won at Dakota, they added Paige and they won various club provincials at Evolve and they went on and were very competitive at nationals. That group is probably the closest, so Kyu, Paige, Darya and Hope and I think Taylor was on the tail end of that."
 
Manitoba's local flair is complemented by some of the best out of province talent around, in two-way difference maker Mar Tomas Arbos (Spain), lock-down guard Sydnee Harris (Ontario) and strong, consistent forwards Alexis Hart (BC) and Sera Bartsch (Alberta).
 
Suffice to say, the Bisons have the depth and talent to make a serious run in 2025-26.
 
"I can just tell how bought in they all are to next person up. Whoever's day it is, it's their day," added Sung. "They're so jacked for them. If we can really own that, and live it, and be it, then now we can take a step up in Canada West. And there's as much parity in the league as ever to be successful."
 
 
Multiple No. 1 ranked players bolster an already loaded squad
Schepp, the daughter of men's basketball head coach Kirby, was the number one recruit out of Manitoba this year, and one of the best players overall in the country.
 
A true point guard, she sees the game extremely well, is consistent on both ends of the floor and has taken tons of reps in practice and in game. She's coming off a 14 point, four assist, two steal and two block showing against Winnipeg in an 83-76 pre-season win, and her confidence will only rise as more games are played.
 
"She might be a generational or career player for me. I don't know if I'll coach a player like her, just because of her work ethic, her love for the game and the standard she holds herself to," said Sung.
 
"It puts her into a really different category. Her willingness to learn, and the questions she asks, she's up there with some of the best athletes I've had the opportunity to coach here, and nationally as well. I think she is so determined to earn everything, which to itself puts a great addition into the foundation of the culture of the team."
 
Fust – who was the No. 1 ranked played in Manitoba in 2023 – has multiple years of starting experience, transferring from Regina (and eligible to play to play right away). Standing at 6'0", she can play and guard a variety of positions, and gives Sung the flexibility to run a variety of lineups based on the opponent.
 
The Winnipeg native played in all 40 regular season games in her two seasons for the U of R, starting 16 times. She averaged 4.5 points and and 3.6 rebounds in 16.9 minutes played as a true freshman, including a season-high 13 points against Brandon on December 1st.


 
"It's been so fun to put her in different roles and different lineups and teach her the game from my perspective. Like any coach, I'm not the coach for everyone, but I was really confident that I could be a really good coach for her, teaching some details of the game but letting her use her natural athlete instinct, so that's been fun," Sung said.
 
"I'm also big believer that things happen for a reason, and I think having gone away and come back has already really given her an understanding and empathy for her leadership role. She is just naturally a really good leader. She knows how tough it is for out of town athletes to adjust and find a role. That's been really cool to see. It was not at all prompted, she just naturally gravitated towards that, because she knew, so knew how hard that is. It's been great to see."
 
Meanwhile, the 6'1" Miko was listed as Manitoba's Player to Watch in the conference preview, one season after leading the team in points per game, at 11.8, and rebounds per game, at 7.3. She added four double-doubles, and has increased her strength and durability during the off-season. Against Winnipeg, Miko went off for 24 points, 14 rebounds and two steals.
 
"How good can Anna Miko get this year? Anna is insane at times. You just sit back and watch and go how did you do that," smiled Sung.
 
"I've been trying to coach her a bit harder so that she develops as a leader and she's responded really well. She again, might be a once in a lifetime coaching opportunity for me. So how do we get the most out of her and enjoy it? I have a front row seat to it."
 
Ten different players saw minutes for the Bisons in their most recent pre-season tilt against the Wesmen, and their depth will surely take them places.
 
Along with those already mentioned, Mandamin, Khan, Tomas Arbos, Paquette, Schatkowsky, Rom and Harris have all started games during their time with the Herd, and rest assured, every member of the roster will play a key role.
 
In order for Manitoba to be successful, regardless of who's on the court, Sung sees the difference coming down to two stats.
 
"Turnovers and rebounding," she said matter of factly.
 
"We lost multiple games, and this was a big piece of our staff's job in the off-season, we literally single handedly lost games to giving up offensive rebounds. Not many teams can look at a stat in the off-season and say we've pinpointed it and figured it out. We actually did. Offensive rebounding and taking care of the ball. If we can figure out how to do those two things consistently we're going to give ourselves a chance to be successful in Canada West."
 
The Herd were strong in that area leading into the season, scooping up 59 boards, while forcing eight steals against the Wesmen. They'll aim to continue that momentum this weekend when they open their season on the road against Brandon.
 
"I felt our defensive intensity, because we spent so much time in it in the pre-season, was really good. We've had people take ownership at what they're not great at on the defensive end and really try to work at it. That's been really good. It was nice to see them play and have success with in in-game," added Sung.
 
"We will probably see the least amount of threes that we've ever had in my career here. We averaged six a game, which is very low for us. I think that's an indicator of the buy-in of this idea that they have to be able to win and lose as a team, as opposed to one off performances."