HOOVER, Ala. — Everything is new this season for the University of Mississippi women’s basketball team.

A new attitude, a new group of players, a new hunger to play. Coach Renee Ladner sees all of those elements on display.

More importantly, Ladner hopes her team has a clean bill of health.

Last season, injuries played a key role in a 10-19 finish that saw the team lose its final eight games and six Southeastern Conference games by 10 points or less.

Buoyed by the return of sophomore point guard Valencia McFarland and senior guard Whitney Hameth and the addition of five freshmen, Ladner feels Ole Miss can make believers out of people who picked the team 12th in the SEC preseason poll.

“We just hope we can stay healthy because once again we’re going to have to rely on a bunch of young players,” Ladner said. “But we have more depth than we did last year. We didn’t have but nine kids who could play last year.”

Ole Miss lost senior leader Kayla Melson (concussion symptoms) for 27 days last season. It also played without Hameth, a 5-foot-10 wing player, third-leading scorer Shae Nelson (7.8 points per game) for five games, and fourth-leading scorer Pa’Sonna Hope (7.7 ppg.) for four games.

Without Melson, who led the team in scoring (15.1 ppg.) in 23 games, Ole Miss will look to McFarland, a 5-4 sophomore point guard from Raymond High School. McFarland was second on the team in scoring (13.3 ppg.) and 3-pointers (42) and led the team in assists (123) and steals (42).

Last month, McFarland honed her skills as a member of Team USA at the Pan American Games. McFarland averaged 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 14.3 minutes per game. She had four assists and eight steals in three games. The team went 2-2 on the trip.

“I expect Valencia to bring her game,” Ladner said. “Valencia is a very talented young lady. I think she is the best open-court guard in our conference. She can just play her game. I believe she will have a whole new outlook after participating (in the Pan American Games). Anytime you’re out of your comfort level and you’re not with your team it makes you better.”

Ole Miss also had a chance to bond as a team on a trip to Canada. The seven-day, four-game trip in August was the program’s first foreign trip since 2006-07 when it went to the Bahamas. Ole Miss went 3-1 on the trip and had a number of players contribute, including Hameth, who had 14 and 21 points in the final two games, and Byrd, a 6-4 senior center, who had 18 and 15 points in the first two games.

Ladner also was impressed with the contributions of freshmen Danielle McCray, Tia Faleru, and Amber Singletary, and said the other freshmen in the class — Gracie Frizzell, and Monique Jackson — all will be counted on to play key roles.

“We’re going to have to make this happen as a group,” Ladner said.

Ladner hopes Byrd can provide a consistent post presence to make things easier. Byrd averaged 7.3 ppg. and 5.3 rebounds per game last season.

“A double-double. Is that asking too much?” Ladner said when asked what she expects from Byrd this season. “I think it is her turn and her time. Nikki is her own worst enemy. She puts more pressure on herself than anybody could put on her. She has preconceived notions about what she is should to do, and when she doesn’t, she fights within herself.

“I just want her to bring great effort. When she plays with consistent effort she is a very good post player.”

Byrd hopes to be the leader Ladner wants. She said the team benefited from the trip to Canada and is out to prove that its preseason ranking is off base.

“The trip to Canada was the way of seeing what we had and how we will build on it,” Byrd said. “Now that we have gotten that experience everything is coming together. We’re building on what we had and trying to regroup from the tough season we had last year.”

Byrd admitted last season was tough, but she said Ole Miss plans on “turning a lot of heads” this season. She said it is natural for the team to be picked to finish 12th after the season it had in 2010-11. Like Ladner, though, she said injuries played a big part in the finish, and she hopes everyone will be healthier this season.

If so, Byrd and Ladner feel Ole Miss has the pieces to make some noise. Ladner said the vocal leader will be junior forward Courtney Marbra. She also feels a deeper and more athletic lineup will allow the team to play tougher on defense and to score faster and easier. Ole Miss was 11th in the league in scoring last season (58.4 ppg.).

“This team has a lot to prove, so we need to continue like we have been,” Byrd said. “The team effort is what is going to turn some heads.”

Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.