Nicholls’ Verdin heading to Tigers in SID position
February 19, 2014Vandebilt soccer among locals left in State Playoffs
February 19, 2014
The play of Nicholls State’s “big three” has resulted in some big wins this season.
Led by guards Emani White, KK Babin and Jenny Nash, the Nicholls women’s basketball team entered the week in a three-way tie for third place in Southland Conference play with an 8-5 conference record.
White has placed second in the conference with 17.9 points per game, and Nash is in the top 30 with 11.2 points per game.
Babin, meanwhile, has been her usual consistent self, averaging just less than 10 points a night and ranking third in the conference in assists.
It’s all led to Nicholls (13-11 overall) being one of the hottest teams in the Southland, with wins in six of its last eight games. Despite a setback at Southeastern over the week in which the team fell, 68-66, on a last-second shot just before the buzzer, the Colonels have been one of the best teams in the league over the past month.
“Their ability to play together, their leadership, their ability to comfort, calm, encourage, coach and teach their teammates, those three have really taken that element to another level,” Nicholls coach Dobie Plaisance said of White, Babin and Nash. “I really think that is what’s making us consistent in our play. This team is extremely unselfish.”
They’re also extremely motivated.
After struggling out of the gate by dropping three of its first five games in Southland play, Nicholls was anxious to prove they still had what it takes to compete for conference glory and prove their critics wrong.
Since that rough start, the Colonels have come on strong and proven that any doubters may have fallen asleep on the team too early.
“We hit a rough spot where we didn’t do the things we needed to do or take care of what we needed to take care of, so people were saying we were a fluke and going downhill,” said Babin. “But we got it together and turned it around, and now I think we’re going more toward where we should be versus where we were.”
As for the “big three,” perhaps the most promising of the group has been White, if only because of her youth. Not only does she lead her team in scoring this year, she’s only a sophomore.
All the accolades and high praise she’s received this year wasn’t something she expected coming into the season, White says.
“I was just trying to get myself in shape and ready to play,” said White. “I didn’t think I was going to be leading the league in scoring.”
While it might seem like Babin, the team’s trusted and more experienced senior, is passing the baton off to White, the understudy, neither player insists that’s the case.
Babin says it’s just a case of the two players’ chemistry on the floor.
“I trust Emani’s ability just as much as I trust mine,” said Babin. “I don’t have a problem letting Emani do her thing and vice versa. We’re really in sync with each other when it comes to that aspect. We’re not really selfish at all. I just think it’s really easy to trust each other because we kind of feed off each other on the court.”
That doesn’t mean White hasn’t gained a lot of knowledge from Babin, or doesn’t look up to her.
“I’ve learned a lot from her (like) how to calm myself down and not be so anxious and just run the team, keep everything under control and get everybody else involved before I get myself involved,” White said.
For her part, Plaisance said Babin was too humble to entertain the notion of passing the baton to anyone.
“They’re both guards that can get to the rim and shoot,” she said. “Their chemistry is (great) because, although they’re the same type players, Emani can bring a couple of elements to the game that KK admires, while KK can do some things that Emani might have to work on still. They feed off each other. They want each other on the floor all the time.”
Nicholls will return to the floor this week following a four-game road trip when the Colonels host McNeese State at 1 p.m. Saturday at Stopher Gym. The game will mark the start of a three-game home-stand that will be critical to the team in its effort to secure seeding in the upcoming Southland Conference Tournament.
Nicholls State University junior forward Jenny Nash studies the defense during a game this season. Nash, along with standout guards Emani White and KK Babin make up a three-headed monster for the Colonels – a trio the team heavily relies upon for offense in critical Southland Conference games.
