There are a lot of reasons to be excited about the Fresno State women’s basketball team.

It enters the 2012-13 season as the newest member of the Mountain West Conference and is the reigning Western Athletic Conference champion. Add to that a school record 28 wins and five consecutive trips to the NCAA Women’s Tournament, all of the cards are in play for a successful first year in a new conference under new head coach, Raegan Pebley.

Perhaps the best thing about Pebley’s team is that she inherits a veteran squad that welcomes back four of five starters and nine players from last year’s conference championship team.

One of those players returning is junior point guard Taylor Thompson, 22, a native of Oklahoma who played a vital role in the Bulldogs’ success last year. A second-team All-WAC selection in 2011-12, Thompson averaged 8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. She also dished out a team-high 124 assists.

Those numbers, along with the highest assist-to-turnover ratio in the WAC last year, make Thompson a key player for the Bulldogs.

With Pebley taking the reins from Adrian Wiggins, Thompson figures there will be some kind of adjustment period learning a new philosophy and system. But as far as her game is concerned, she doesn’t expect much of a change.

“I’m going to try and keep my role and I’m going to try and contribute in other ways,” Thompson said.

She also figures to be more of a vocal leader as well. Thompson said Pebley wants the point guards to be more vocal and outspoken about the teams’ play.

“For me, that’s the biggest change — being more vocal,” she said.

As far as the play of the team is concerned, Thompson expects big things for this season. Despite a new coach taking charge, she said fans could expect much of the same up-tempo style of game that Wiggins emphasized last season. And that bodes well for Thompson and the Bulldogs because it is that style of play that helped lead them to the NCAA Tournament each of the last five years.

“I feel like it’s a bit similar, as in the offense; maybe just a little change in where we go,” Thompson said.

Defensively, Thompson feels like the changes could benefit her and the team. Pebley has inserted more of a zone scheme, which should fit the Bulldogs just fine.

“That’ll be a good switch for us to have because we’re a run-and-gun team,” she said. “That’ll be good to have.”

As for expectations in 2012-13, Thompson has high aspirations for herself and the team. Winning the MWC and beyond is the ultimate goal, but she also realizes that they’ll have to take things one day at a time.