Being tall is something that the NAIT Ooks women’s basketball team is not accustomed to. But this year’s edition of the Ooks team will not have that luxury for the first time in a long time. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it just means this years Ooks team will have to work harder and will have to play together more if they want to make a playoff push. What this year’s Ooks team lacks in height, they more than make up for it with grit, fundamentals and hard work.
This year’s Ooks team is made of mostly guards, with the average height being five-foot-eight. The Ooks only have two forwards on their roster, but both are over five-foot-10. So you can tell just by those numbers alone, they are lacking height, But you have to look at it from both sides, yes they don’t have the height, but they do have the grit, fundamentals and determination you can only find when you are short and have something to prove. This years Ooks will have to depend on each other throughout the season on the court because of their lack of size. However, this year’s Ooks are among the grittiest in a while, which bodes well with there defensive-minded mentality.
Another area where the Ooks might struggle is rebounding, which is mostly because of their lack of height. This only means that the Ooks should be preparing and practicing team rebounding more than any other years. The Oaks must rely and trust each other when they are rebounding because it will truly be a team effort.
However, the Ooks must focus mostly on defence, where they ranked among the top in all defensive categories last year. Coach Todd Warnick has ingrained in their mind that defence will get them to where they want to go, and where they want to go is back to the playoffs. But not just making it to the playoffs, but a long playoff run. Coach Warnick has the knowledge and know how to lead this team to another banner, just like he did a two years ago.
This year’s NAIT Ooks Women’s basketball team will have to be a cohesive unit with a defensive frame of mind to have a long and a fulfilling season.
– Peter Go
