Jacie Hoyt says she has never coached a more talented roster, but Oklahoma State's expectations go beyond talent. With Liv McGill setting the tone, Stailee Heard embracing leadership and a loaded group of newcomers, Hoyt sees a team defined by its competitive edge.
STILLWATER — Expectations surrounding Oklahoma State women's basketball have changed considerably entering Jacie Hoyt's fifth season.
So has the talent on the floor. Coming off consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and with a highly regarded transfer class joining the program, Hoyt isn't shying away from what she believes the Cowgirls have assembled.
"I've never been more excited about a team," Hoyt said. "Never in my career had the talent we have on this roster."
For a team with only one returning player, Oklahoma State isn't talking like a group that expects to need months to figure things out.
That lone returner is Stailee Heard, a three-time All-Big 12 performer who has quickly found herself in a different role. With an almost entirely new group around her, Heard has become the connection between what Oklahoma State has built and what Hoyt believes it can become.
"I had to take on that role of being the leader because I was the only returner," Heard said. "Being that voice for everyone and helping once they got on campus."
Heard expected developing chemistry with so many newcomers to be difficult. Instead, she said it came "fairly easily," crediting teammates for being receptive to feedback and willing to learn about one another.
Part of that chemistry has been built through competition. Hoyt specifically pointed to Liv McGill, who arrived after starring at Florida, as someone who has already changed the atmosphere inside practice.
"Stailee talked about Liv and how she's never seen a kid create an aura in the room or a practice the way Liv does," Hoyt said. "She's surrounded by others with a killer instinct as well, who want to follow her and are not intimidated by that."
Rather than McGill's intensity overwhelming her teammates, Hoyt believes it has elevated them. That includes Heard.
"I said it this summer, but I've seen the best version of Stailee, and that's saying a lot," Hoyt said. "Liv really sets the tone for us."
And McGill and Heard are far from Oklahoma State's only weapons. Audi Crooks headlines the newcomers after becoming one of the country's most productive post players at Iowa State. Ellie Brueggemann, a Tulsa native who transferred from Purdue Fort Wayne, is another piece of a roster that Hoyt believes has benefited from competing against itself every day.
"The competitiveness we bring every day has made me a lot better," Brueggemann said.
It's a roster that has also changed Hoyt. She said her approach to a season hasn't fundamentally changed during her time in Stillwater, but experience has brought greater confidence. Having more talent hasn't made her feel like the work is finished, either. Quite the opposite.
"I've never wanted to work harder," Hoyt said. "I've never wanted to have more answers for my players, help put them in positions to be successful."
Oklahoma State won't have to wait long to discover how its revamped roster measures up nationally.
The Cowgirls travel to Columbia on Dec. 6 to face Dawn Staley and South Carolina, which Hoyt said has a "high probability" of being the No. 1 team when the matchup arrives.
"You can't ask for a better measuring stick," Hoyt said. "For us to find out what we're made of that early in the season will be really, really crucial and helpful for us."
Before Oklahoma State gets there, Hoyt wants a particular identity established. Not one built around preseason rankings or the names accumulated through the transfer portal.
"One thing fans can count on every game is a group of players who love to win but hate to lose," Hoyt said.
For the most talented roster Hoyt says she has ever coached, that competitive edge may determine just how high the ceiling becomes.
