Nicholls bass thrives at final event
July 15, 2015What would you do for a title?
July 15, 2015
The Tulsa Shock are the feel-good story of the 2015 WNBA season. After finishing in a tie for the worst record in the league in 2014, the Shock have a glistening 9-4 record at press-time, making them one of the top teams in the 12-team WNBA.
As Tulsa’s chemistry and hopes grow, so, too is local post player Theresa Plaisance, who is proving to be heavily involved in the team’s plans. In the past few weeks, the 6-foot, 5-inch Vandebilt Catholic All-American and LSU graduate has started to earn her place in the Shock’s playing rotation, garnering some of the biggest minutes of her young professional career.
In a brief interview with The Times this week, Plaisance said that her second pro season is going well, and that she’s anxious for the rest of the season – one that she hopes is filled with high-stakes WNBA playoff games.
“I love Tulsa. I love this team, my teammates and the whole city and organization,” Plaisance said. “Last year, we had a lot of learning to do and we took some tough losses, but this year, we’ve grown and I think we’re off to a great start. It’s an exciting time and we’re happy with where we are.”
For Tulsa, the 2015 season was one in which the team has had to prove that it can overcome adversity and the loss of star players.
It all started in the weeks leading up to the season when WNBA All-Star post player Glory Johnson announced through social media that she would miss the entire 2015 season because she was pregnant.
Johnson’s loss was a huge blow on paper to the Shock. The dominant post player averaged 14.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game in 2014.
But even with the departure, the Shock thrived. Tulsa lost its first game of 2015, but responded by winning a franchise-record eight-straight games to solidify their position as a force in the WNBA’s Western Conference.
“We just were loose and played really good basketball,” Plaisance said. “To do something that our franchise had never done before was pretty awesome. It was a special feeling.”
Then Tulsa’s All-Star point guard got hurt, too.
After the winning streak, the Shock’s All-Star point guard Skylar Diggins went down with a torn ACL – an injury she suffered in the final seconds of a game.
Diggins will miss the remainder of the season. She averaged 17 points per game at the time of her injury.
But even with the second starter out of the lineup, Tulsa has stayed afloat, despite a lengthy road trip, which has positioned the team to chase postseason play.
“We’ve dealt with so much adversity already this year,” Plaisance said. “And we’re still trying to figure some things out. But I think we have pieces here that can succeed and that can keep us going strong.”
Plaisance is one of those pieces.
In the past few weeks, the former Vandebilt Catholic standout’s role has grown, and she’s gotten more minutes than at any other time in her career.
On July 2, Plaisance played 13 minutes and scored seven points. She followed that up one night later with eight minutes and three points – sinking the only shot that she took in that game.
Plaisance said that being a reserve player is not something that she’s used to, but it’s something that she’s learned to appreciate.
The post player said that her No. 1 job is to play as hard as she can when her number is called, and to support her teammates when she’s on the sidelines.
“As long as we’re winning and as long as we’re improving, it doesn’t matter who’s scoring the points or who’s starting or who’s playing the most minutes,” Plaisance said. “My focus is on us sticking together as a team and winning as a team and everyone has their own role and their own part in us doing that.”
Plaisance talked about improvement and growth. She’s said that she’s done a lot of that in the past several months. A trip to Turkey had a lot to do with that.
Before rejoining Tulsa this summer, Plaisance spent several months in Turkey playing overseas for Botas – a squad in the premier league of the basketball-rich nation.
With Botas, Plaisance said she spent countless hours in the gym to perfect her craft and to be the best center that she can be.
Plaisance noticeably is more muscular than she’s ever been, touting that she’s gained weight, but lost fat. In Turkey, she averaged 8.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, playing 18.9 minutes per game. She said that the experience was one that helped her career.
“I actually liked it there,” Plaisance said. “My teammates spoke English for the most part, and I enjoyed the food and the culture. I worked hard when I was in Turkey. My team was counting on me and they needed me to play well. I hit the gym hard and got a lot stronger. I think that’s helping me here in Tulsa, as well.”
Plaisance said she never felt tension in Turkey, despite in-fighting and ISIS factions being not too far away. She said the only person who informed her about the possible dangers was her mother, Nicholls women’s basketball coach DoBee Plaisance.
“I didn’t know about any of that, but my mom was freaking out about it daily,” Plaisance said with a laugh. “They shielded us from it. We were safe. We didn’t have to deal with anything negative or anything dangerous.”
Now home, stronger, more confident, and back on a winning team, it’s time to keep the momentum going.
Plaisance said the next few weeks will be huge for Tulsa as they attempt to keep winning, despite all of the injuries.
She said that she’ll keep working hard with her coaches daily to do her part when asked to compete.
Be it as a teammate or as a stretch post player who can sink 3-pointers, Plaisance said she’d do anything to see the Shock shine.
“We’re in a good position,” Plaisance said. “Now, we just want to stay there.”
