A pair of strong returning Gold Nugget guards have been identified among the 2026-2027 Southern States Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Players to Watch. 

Senior Jala Williams and junior Shania Swan, who, along with 25-26 seniors Tiarra Tillison and Alician Blanton, constituted the bulk of the Xavier offense a year ago, are expected to take major steps forward in their output this season. 

Williams, a native of Oakland, California, averaged 7.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.9 steals as a junior and shared ball-handling duties with Tillison. 

Swan, a native of Miami Gardens, Florida, emerged as an offensive force as a sophomore and was second to Blanton in scoring with an 11.5 points-per-game average to go along with 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists. 

The full SSAC watch list is available on the conference website. XULA Women's Basketball begins its 26-27 campaign this weekend with a pair of games at the Eagle Classic in Texarkana, Texas. The Gold Nuggets face host team TAMUT at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, then play Florida-based Ave Maria at 4 p.m. on Saturday.