Alexandra Sasebes has been with the UEL Women’s Basketball team for three years, however she is only in her second year of playing due to an unfortunate knee injury that prevented her from playing in her first year with the team.
Alexandra plays the point guard position (number 1) which is often seen as the captain’s position or the quarterback of basketball. The point guard is most often the primary ball handler and is responsible for running plays and getting the team involved which is why they are often seen as leaders.
When asked about the women’s team and how it has been coached compared to the men’s team, Alexandra explained how it has gradually improved as they used to be coached by a student. “I don’t personally think he had the proper coaching experience to coach a team in a high-performance programme” said Alexandra.
New Era
A new coach was appointed for the Women’s Basketball team which made Alexandra happy: “In my second year, they brought in a great coach. He came with new ideas and has the coaching experience that I think is required at this level. Since last year, the coaching services have only been improving and I think every player in this team is happy with that.”
Alexandra did state that the Women’s team may not be as high a priority as the men’s team but how that may soon change: “Overall, I do believe the Men’s team is given much more attention but I think we are slowly catching up.”
This is something that has been looked at especially in basketball where they are looking to promote the Women’s league and their talents.
Alexandra believes the Women’s Basketball team could attract more recruits with the scholarships they provide. Doing so would mean new and exciting talent would be joining the programme and how it would be “detrimental to the success of the team.”
Improvements
There is still more work to be done according to Alexandra if the team are to be as successful as last year: “There has to be more punctuality, higher attendance to practices and games and more seriousness when it comes to perceiving the team as a priority.”
Winning the league and cup is no easy task, neither is going a whole season undefeated in the league. It is no question the team has the talent to achieve such goals, however it requires dedication to training and the games themselves. The commitment to the game and team is just as important as the practical skills that are developed.
Alexandra has a good understanding of where she wants this team to go and how to make it successful. One key point Alexandra made was being able to enjoy herself whilst playing the game: “I can say I really like working with our coach because of his passion and devotion to the team.”
