Mother, daughter share bond on, off court

DoBee Plaisance and her daughter Theresa face a unique balancing act every day.

On one hand, the two share a close, mother-daughter bond that is typical of most parents raising a teenage daughter.

“We’re very, very close,” said DoBee Plaisance. “We have a very special relationship.”

But on the other hand, there is basketball. Mother Plaisance is the head basketball coach at Nicholls State, and Theresa is a standout post player at Vandebilt Catholic High School who is headed to LSU to continue her playing career following high school graduation.

That shared love for the sport sometimes causes the elder Plaisance to play the role she calls “Coach Mom”, where she has to balance the loving support of being a mother and the critical eye of being a coach.

“She’s always going to be the first one to tell me I did a good job,” said Theresa Plaisance. “But she will definitely also be the first one to tell me when I’m doing something wrong and correct me. It’s sometimes difficult, but I know she loves me and just wants what’s best for me.”

Theresa Plaisance began to play basketball around the age of 8.

According to her mother, Plaisance was an active and athletic child who enjoyed playing almost every sport as a kid.

“She was extremely active,” DoBee Plaisance said. “She loved soccer, softball and football – football was actually probably her favorite sport. She won the NFL’s Punt, Pass and Kick competition. She loved everything she played.”

Theresa agreed and said sports were a large part of her childhood.

“I played everything,” she said. “I think they probably let me play to wear me down, so I could sleep at night.”

Theresa began showing promise on the hardwood when she was “around 11 or 12” and began developing her game.

After two seasons in high school at Ursuline Academy in New Orleans, Theresa transferred to nearby Vandebilt when her mother accepted the head coaching position at Nicholls.

So far, the transition has been a fairly easy one as she averaged 17.5 points and nine rebounds per game in her junior season for the Lady Terriers, while leading the team to the Class 4A state title game.

The Lady Terriers are off to a strong start again this season and currently hold a 20-1 record. In Vandebilt’s most recent game, a 75-42 victory against Mt. Carmel Academy, the standout scored 23 points, while sitting out the better part of the second half because of the team’s large lead.

Plaisance is rated the No. 8 post player in the country and No. 40 overall by ESPN.

According to her mother, Plaisance was recruited by “every Top 25 team on the board”, before she finally pledged to LSU last fall.

“I just really loved the coaches and the players,” Theresa Plaisance said. “It was just close to home and I’m a big family person, so it meant a lot to me to know they’re going to be able to make as many of my games as possible.”

DoBee Plaisance said academics were also a big draw for her daughter, who plans to be a business student at LSU.

But one of the schools that did not make a run at Plaisance was Nicholls.

DoBee Plaisance said she did not want to subject Theresa to the pressures that some children face when playing for a parent.

“There are just too many distractions in my opinion when a parent coaches a child,” DoBee Plaisance said. “And I did not want that for Theresa. She has too much to offer to the sport of women’s basketball.”

But the Lady Colonels will have to play the Lady Tigers throughout Plaisance’s playing career at LSU – creating a situation that nearly sends DoBee Plaisance into tears when the thought crosses her mind.

“Words can’t explain what I’m going to feel when it happens,” she said. “I’m going to have to do a scout on my daughter? As a mother, I want her to be successful. But on the coaching side, I’m going to be telling my team how to stop my child, who I don’t really want to be stopped? That’s going to be difficult.”

At LSU, Plaisance is projected to serve as a power forward or center.

LSU coach Van Chancellor said Plaisance’s shooting ability will make her both an inside and outside threat at the next level.

“Theresa is a shooting post player,” Chancellor said. “You have never seen a player like her at 6-foot-4 that can shoot the basketball like she can. She is a really good athlete that can run the floor that has a tremendous understanding of the game. Her upside is sky high.”

But Theresa Plaisance said she has room for improvement before she enters LSU’s campus.

“I definitely need to get tougher, both mentally and physically,” she said. “I need to just have an all-around better game, because you can never be too much of a complete player.”

Vandebilt Catholic center Theresa Plaisance (55) jocks for position amidst three Mt. Carmel defenders trying to cover her. Plaisance has led the Terriers to a 20-1 start this season. * Photo by MICHAEL DAVIS