Kelly enjoys Davidson
Brynn Kelly is playing too well these days to worry about the broken heart that is looming on the horizon.
The Ferris grad, a junior at Davidson, is averaging eight points and almost seven rebounds for the deep and balanced Wildcats. She just had her second double-double, the first two weeks ago helping her earn the Southern Conference Player of the Week award.
“I’m having some fun,” she said. “It’s been a great experience; I’ve grown so much as a person. … I’m so glad God has brought me here.”
There are plenty of things to keep Kelly focused. Davidson, 12-10 overall and 8-5 in league after a 76-59 loss to league-leading Chattanooga (19-3, 13-0) Monday night, has the league tournament next month, and in December of next season, coach Annette Watts is bringing her Spokane recruit home for games against Eastern Washington (Dec. 18) and Gonzaga (Dec. 20).
Last year the Wildcats opened against Duke, this year it was North Carolina, now the No. 1 team. Kelly started six games as a freshman and was starting as a sophomore until a broken bone in her left hand cost her nine games. Meanwhile, the south has been everything she hoped it would be.
“I honestly love it,” she said. “One wonderful thing about it is you can actually see blue sky in the winter time. … The south is so sweet, so welcoming. It meets the stereotype. … It’s a completely differently lifestyle and culture. I love Spokane. I have the best of both worlds. My teammates are the best. They make being so far from home seem like it’s nothing.”
And her coach is “awesome” and has the same feelings for Kelly, calling her a quiet leader.
“I’ll take all the Brynn Kellys I can get,” Watts said. “She’s playing so solid. She’s not always the high scorer, but she’s almost always the top rebounder. She does all the little things.”
Kelly stayed in North Carolina last summer to work out.
“I got a lot quicker and stronger; that’s made a ton of difference,” she said. “I have a complete different outlook on basketball. I only have two more years to play, I want to have fun with it. When you’re having fun, everything goes better.”
So what could break her heart?
“My only second thought is I’ve made so many friends here and I have so many friends at home, I think, ‘Why did I do this?’ ” she said. “Wherever I go I’m going to be 3,000 miles from friends.”
Another homecoming
Gonzaga is also playing host to another homecoming next season – the Zags will play Arizona State on Wednesday, Dec. 6. That allows Sun Devils seniors Emily Westerberg (Central Valley) and Aubree Johnson (Post Falls), as well as underclassmen Regan Pariseau (CV) and Briann January (Lewis and Clark) to get even closer to home than their annual trip to Pullman.
As a top-20 team, ASU is insisting the game be played at the Arena, a neutral site, but Gonzaga would like the game to be played at McCarthey Athletic Center.
There is every reason to believe the game will draw a good crowd and it would be much more exciting in McCarthey than the Arena.
Tip-ins
Westerberg earned Pac-10 Player of the Week honors after ASU beat UCLA and USC. … Idaho junior Leilani Mitchell set the school record for steals Thursday, getting three to move pass Christy Van Pelt (287, 1985-89). That also put her on the single-season top 10 for the third time. … GU’s Ashley Anderson had five double-doubles in January to earn the WCC Player of the Month. She also leads the league in shooting percentage (.517). … The Bulldogs won their first road game Saturday at Santa Clara. They are 1-9 on the road, 8-1 at home. … Eastern is 1-9 on the road, losing by an average of 15, and 7-1 at home. At home, four players average more than nine points, on the road only two average more than six.