Nov. 21, 2013
By Tyler Feldman, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The one area that head coach Coquese Washington has repetitively stressed as integral to the success of her team this season is the development of her seven freshmen student-athletes.
"The more experience that they get playing, and start to feel comfortable and confident, that is going to be good for us," said Washington.
Penn State may have completed just its fourth game of the season, but thanks to the dazzling play of two of Washington's freshmen, the Lady Lions had no problem breezing past Bucknell, 92-49, in the friendly confines of the Bryce Jordan Center Wednesday evening.
Both Kaliyah Mitchell and Alex Harris impacted the pace of the game substantially to lead the Lady Lions in a lopsided home victory. The two first-year players logged 20 minutes apiece; with each of them appearing more confident and more productive as the game progressed.
"The more playing time they can get, and they can learn from their mistakes in games, it's better for us overall, and it's going to be better for our growth and development," said Washington. "Kaliyah and Alex have been getting better and better as the season goes on. Their confidence is getting better. They're naturally impact players and both of them have a knack for rebounding."
For Harris, a 6-foot-3 forward out of Lorain, Ohio, her night ended with a near double-double. She was a force to be reckoned with as she tallied eight points by shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor, while also corralling a career-best 11 rebounds and adding two blocked shots.
"Alex [Harris] has a knack for blocking shots," said Washington. "I don't even know how she does it. She just taps it. It's barely a block, so I don't even know what you call that. She just has a knack for being around the ball and making plays."
The Lady Lions were able to contain the ball and contest shots consistently due to the play of Harris, whose size was a clear advantage against the Bucknell squad. Not only did Penn State out-rebound the Bison, 56-32, but Washington's squad also managed to hold their opponent's field goal percentage to a season-low 25.5%.
With that being said, the Lady Lions were not just strong on the defensive end. Because of the energized play of 6-foot-2 freshman Kaliyah Mitchell, the Blue and White were extremely active on the offensive end, swinging crisp passes along the perimeter to create open shots and opportunities down on the low post.
The forward/guard from Stone Mountain, Ga. scored a career-best 14 points, while managing to dish out eight assists, too.
"[Kaliyah] is a hustle player; a blue collar player," said Washington. "She brings her lunch pail to work with her everyday, and she does all of the non-glamorous stuff--diving on the floor and deflections. She just has a knack for being around the ball. She contorts her body and makes tough baskets when she drives. She does those things in practice, so I'm not surprised when she does them in games."
After the game, Washington alluded to the fact that each game the freshmen players are progressing and learning to play at the pace she would like to see. With the focus of the team being to get better everyday, for the freshmen, logging minutes and gaining game experience is critical to their development.
"Every game I see a little bit more progress," said Washington. "For us, the focus is just getting better everyday, so that we are playing our best basketball at the end of the year. If we can do that, I like the team that we will be."
Since Penn State now does not play again until Nov. 29, when the team heads down to the Bahamas during Thanksgiving break to take part in the Junkanoo Jam, both Harris and Mitchell will have to find ways to maintain their confidence on the hardwood.
Luckily for them, Washington plans to scrimmage in practice all week to help keep the freshmen confident and in sync with the system.
Though practice can't always simulate real game speed and a trip to the Bahamas may seem like a vacation to some, Washington joked with the media following Wednesday's contest and, in part, made her team aware of what she expected in the week to come.
"They may think this will be a little bit of a vacation," said Washington, "but they haven't seen the itinerary yet."