The DII women's basketball all-stats starting five for December

While we're all excited to get the New Year and second half of the DII women's basketball season rolling, let's take a look back at some of the hottest starts to the 2023-24 season. 

Here is your monthly reminder. This is the fifth season of the all-stats team, where each month I build a dream team based 100 percent on statistical leaders in DII women’s basketball. Some may be the DII women's basketball leaders in a single category, while others are in the top 10 in several categories. It is important to remember: This is merely a snapshot of the moment, not a list of "the best" players in all DII women's basketball. 

📊 The latest DII women's basketball Power 10 rankings

The December DII women’s basketball All-Stats Starting Five

(Note: All stats through Dec. 31 per )

Guard: Morgan Robinson, Jefferson

Robinson was a regular on the 2022-23 all-stats team as one of the premier assist dishers in DII women's basketball. Coming out of the holiday break, she is at it once again, leading the division with 7.9 assists per game. She also has one of the few triple-doubles recorded this season when she notched 14 points, 14 rebounds, and 12 assists on Dec. 9. She's not a big scorer but doesn't need to be, as she is the key that makes the Rams' engine go.

Guard: Sam Yencha, Jefferson

We have a first in the DII women's basketball all-stats team history, as we see an all-Jefferson backcourt. Yencha plays more of a hybrid guard-forward but is listed at the guard position and makes the cut. She leads DII women's basketball in rebounding with 12.2 per game and is adding 16.4 points per game on 63.9 percent shooting, another top-5 mark. She closed out 2023 with three-straight double-doubles, including a monster 24-rebound, 20-point game on Dec. 9. Jefferson looks tough, and Yencha and Robinson are making them go.

Honorable mention: Asher Cal, Central Washington; Pacious McDaniel, Arkansas Tech; Taylor Hinkle, Holy Family; Caitlyn Ross, UVA Wise; Lauryn Vieira, Eckerd; Sydney Wyatt, Emmanuel (GA)

Forward: Emilee Weakley, Frostburg State

Weakley led DII women's basketball in scoring last year as a freshman, and the sophomore is right back at it in 2023-24. She's already scored 40 points twice this season in just nine games, and after her most recent 31-point output, Weakley is leading DII again with 25.3 points per game. She also recorded her first double-double of the season, something she did with frequency last year. That said, she is still contributing 7.2 rebounds per game. Weakley is much improved from 3-point land and the free throw line, so there seems to be no sophomore slump in sight. 

Forward: Olivia Reed, Colorado Mesa

Reed is off to a sensational start this season, already capturing national player of the week honors back in November. She closed 2023 with a monster 24-point, 16-rebound game, which is pretty indicative of her season. She's in the top 10 with six double-doubles and at the holiday break was tied for the DII women's basketball lead in rebounds with 12.0 per game. Reed also chips in 17.3 points per game on 62.4 percent shooting, a mark that tops the RMAC and was seventh overall in DII at the break. Simply put, if there is a stat, Reed finds a way to get it. 

Honorable mention: Alyssa DeAngelo, Fairmont State; Ta'Quasia Lampkin, Savannah State; Alisha Little, CSU Pueblo; Lexie Schneider, UMary; Katelin Starr, Bloomsburg; Brooke Walling, Western Washington

Center: Lauryn Taylor, Francis Marion

Taylor makes her 2023-24 season debut on the all-stats team but is no stranger to the squad. Taylor found herself in the lineup several times last year amid a monster junior campaign. As the calendar flips to 2024, she is at it again, leading all DII women's basketball centers in rebounding at 11.5 (which is fifth-most overall in the division) and is in the top-5 in double-doubles in DII with seven. She closed 2023 with four straight 20-point games and 59 rebounds over the same span. 

Honorable mention: Madelyn Bragg, Northern State; Kamryn Knight, LeMoyne-Owen