The RoundHouse | 1/29/2021 5:09:00 PM
Women's basketball coach
Keitha Adams practiced with 10 Shockers on Friday morning. Five Shockers on one team. Five on the other.
Quite a sight.
Guard
Seraphine Bastin couldn't remember when she last practiced with a full team. Adams guessed September, maybe early October. She made all the jokes about the overwhelming numbers in uniform after COVID-19 protocols and injuries kept the Shockers short-handed for months.
"I didn't know how to behave," she said.
The Shockers persevered through the past four months with team managers stepping in to run drills or scrimmage. Wichita State (4-6, 1-4 American Athletic Conference) defeated Cincinnati 60-52 on Wednesday with eight in uniform. Nine (twice) is the most suited up for a game this season.
"It's been amazing to practice five on five," Bastin said. "As a team, we would like to have a chemistry together. If you're not playing against each other and with each other, it's different."
The Shockers are also adding in two additions this semester. Forward
Carla Budane, a freshman from Portugal, played in the past two games. Junior guard
Mariah McKinney, a walk-on from Wichita, has played in four.
"It feels great," McKinney said. "We're able to see a lot of things, move the ball around, get different feels on the court."
Wichita State practiced Friday with plans to play UCF (9-2, 7-1) on Saturday. Those plans changed Friday afternoon when UCF's COVID-19 issues postponed the game.
Regardless, Friday's practice offered some light during a difficult season full of postponements and pauses.
"It felt great for the girls who have been playing and haven't had any subs," Adams said. "Just to have 10 back. Fabulous."
The Shockers are scheduled to play Tulane on Wednesday (3 p.m. ESPN-plus) at Koch Arena. They are optimistic that Wednesday's win and Friday's practice represent a turn toward better times. The Shockers snapped a six-game losing streak with the win at Cincinnati.
"It's in a good way, but we still need to practice hard," Bastin said. "It's been a tough time for everybody. We need to stay positive, try to help each other out."
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
