LORMAN &045; Here it is almost a week later, and Alcorn head coach Shirley Walker finally stopped scratching her head at how to get an edge on Michigan State.

Instead, she’s merely tipped her hat.

The veteran coach with her veteran team was no match for a club that’s heading into the Sweet 16 of the Women’s NCAA Tournament this weekend after disposing of the Lady Braves 73-41 in the opening round. It ended Alcorn’s best season in five years and put Walker on the road to start recruiting heading into the 2005-06 season.

&uot;We played an excellent team,&uot; said Walker, who carries a 453-289 career mark into her 28th season. &uot;I watched some of the USC game that Monday night. I critiqued them to try and find a weak spot, and there was no weak spot. They are great.

&uot;We enjoyed it, and it was a great experience for some of the kids. I heard a lot of positive things from the kids. Some things I heard really made me feel good.&uot;

The appearance in the field of 64 was good for the program, one that featured five much-experienced players on the floor and key role players coming off the bench. It may have been Walker’s most balanced team in quite some time &045; how often does a SWAC team pull a quality 6-2 post off the bench to supplants its starters?

But four of the five starters are gone with all their experience. Gone are four-year starters LaToya Johnson, Tnonealyer Powers and Candace Roberts and two-year starter Shikhia Sims at point guard.

Natasha Dennis will be the only starter returning.

&uot;I’m in the process now,&uot; Walker said. &uot;I’m in the process now of seeing where I’m going to go and who I need to pull in. I need some guards. Everybody looks like they’re going across the water (to Hawaii), and that might be what I need to do. It’s going to be some hard shoes to fill, and I don’t know if I’m going to be able to do that.&uot;

The cupboard, however, may not be all that bare for a team that will definitely lack in the experience department next season. The main building block may be the presence of Dennis, who confirmed to Walker she will return for her senior season after considering leaving near the end of this past season.

Dennis blossomed in her small forward role late in the season and upped her numbers significantly from her sophomore season &045; 151 rebounds from 127, 25 3-point attempts after firing up just one, 58 of 95 from the line after going 18 of 30 and 65 assists to 34.

The Woodville native may have had her breakout game against Southern and improved her defense as well.

&uot;That’s one of the greatest things I’ve heard here lately &045; she’s going to be returning,&uot; Walker said. &uot;She’s going to be a big asset. Dennis is a big key. She stepped up a lot this year for us. She stepped her game up. When we got to the SWAC tournament, they were saying, ‘deuce-deuce.’ Then I found out who they were talking about &045; Dennis, No. 22 from Alcorn.&uot;

Powell will step into the starting center spot next season, and the sky is the limit for the Columbia native. Powell demonstrated on the grandest stage &045; 10 points, 10 rebounds against Louisiana Tech by half &045; she can take control in the paint and produce, yet she came off the bench the last month and a half of the season with Roberts and Powers getting the starts.

Powell grabbed double digits in rebounds three times in the team’s last seven games. She averaged just under 10 points a game but was the team’s top rebounder with 201 (6.7 per game).

&uot;I think ‘Saan can do better,&uot; Walker said. &uot;She doesn’t know that I know, but she’s really been saying some things I would love to hear. She wants to get her weight down. She’s been a beautiful person talking about next year and what she needs to do to get this team back there.&uot;

Powell will be joined by Hawaii native LaToya Wily, the 6-0 freshman who served as a defensive specialist in her first season. The Lady Braves will also have Tina Huff, the lanky 6-5 post who sat out this season after suiting up as a freshman in 2003-04.

The Columbus, Ohio, native has a tremendous wingspan but took the red-shirt season to get stronger. She appeared in only 13 games as a freshman and hit two field goals.

The holes left, meanwhile, will be for shooters to step in and pick up the slack. Tanika Nunez could be a candidate for the point guard, but the Lady Braves will need an outside presence next season and could pull in a junior college guard to fill the hole quick.

Signing day is April 13.

&uot;I’m looking at the jucos,&uot; Walker said. &uot;I need some experience in here. Most definitely I am. Recruiting is a funny thing. It just depends on how you are and what you have returning. I always like to start over with freshmen. But I’m going to try to do both.&uot;