It all seems to be falling into place for the Lady Topper basketball team.

Check the stats: three returning starters, two preseason All-Americans, the Sun Belt Preseason Player of the Year and its first top-25 preseason ranking in nine years.

Factor in its selection to win a fourth consecutive Sun Belt East Division championship, and it’s hard to argue against success for coach Mary Taylor Cowles’ squad.

“I feel good,” Cowles said. “I just like this basketball team, everything about them.”

During “Hilltopper Hysteria,” the Lady Toppers’ official start of preseason practice on Oct. 14, Cowles was introduced as the one destined to bring the program “back to the promised land.”

Cowles, entering her fourth year as coach, knows about the glory days of Lady Topper basketball.

She played center for Western’s four consecutive NCAA Tournament teams from 1987-1991

“I can’t say that it means any more to me than someone else who didn’t play here,” Cowles said. “But I would find it hard to believe that there would be as deep rooted of a passion as what I have for this program.”

The last time the Lady Toppers reached the Sweet 16 was 1995.

Western enters the season ranked No. 24 by Street and Smith’s. It’s the first time they’ve achieved a season ranking since the 1996-97 season.

“It’s been a while,” associate head coach David Graves said. “It’s taken a lot of hard work and a lot of love for this program.”

Graves is entering his fourth year as an assistant to Cowles. He was also around during the years of Lady Topper prestige as a graduate assistant during Western’s Final Four year of 1992.

“Mary and I know the level of basketball that is played at Western,” he said. “Being in this program and knowing what it was like year in and year out really helps you realize what we’re capable of.”

Among the hype for this year’s team include the return of senior guard Tiffany Porter-Talbert, senior forward Krystal Gardner and sophomore forward Crystal Kelly.

Porter-Talbert and Kelly were both named Preseason All-Americans by the Street and Smith’s publication, as well as first team All-Sun Belt.

Adding to Western’s potent returners is junior center Sarah Shouse. The 6-foot-5 Marquette transfer looks to contribute immediately to the Lady Toppers’ inside game.

“Sarah has been one of the brightest spots on our basketball team so far,” Cowles said. “She brings a presence on the inside that we haven’t had since I’ve coached here.”

The post seems to be a strong point coming into the season with the return of Kelly (6-3), Gardner (6-1), and sophomore forward Cacie Pope (6-1).

Other additions include freshmen forwards Taylor Kopple and Dominique Duck and guard Brianne Brown.

“I like our freshmen,” Cowles said. “This is the most talented class we’ve brought in so far. I definitely see them being on the floor this year.”

Porter-Talbert will remain a force on the perimeter. The backcourt took a serious hit with the loss of guard Leslie Logsdon (16.4 points per game) to eligibility, but will return junior guards Tifany Zaragoza and Shardae Butler.

“We’ve got guards that are gonna push the ball,” Porter-Talbert said. “We take pride in our running game. It should be fun for our fans because we try to get the crowd involved.”

Cowles said nothing should significantly change on either side of the ball, and she expects the same type of transition play as in previous years.

Paul Sanderford, who coached the Lady Toppers for 15 seasons, took the program to three Final Fours.

Cowles played under Sanderford during her years as a Lady Topper. Sanderford said he sees the relationship between her days as a player and her work as a coach.

“I was fortunate to be involved when women’s basketball wasn’t pushed as hard as today,” he said. “What that says is that Mary understands the tradition and has the ambition it takes.”

If the “promised land” is indeed an achievable goal, Cowles said she isn’t too concerned with it.

“What does our future hold?” she said. “I don’t know. But we hope that the improvements we’re seeing is something we can keep going.”

Reach Jake Mitchell
at sports@wkuherald.com.