Zoe Duncan got a glimpse of the game that few basketball players ever get.
It didn’t happen in any way she would have wanted, but Duncan is choosing to make the best of a forgettable …
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Zoe Duncan got a glimpse of the game that few basketball players ever get.
It didn’t happen in any way she would have wanted, but Duncan is choosing to make the best of a forgettable situation.
In a loss to St. Charles West on January 9, Duncan suffered a concussion, sidelining her for four games. Still, she took something very valuable from the experience.
“I got the chance to see the game from a different view,” Duncan said. “You can see who doesn’t box out. People think they’re boxing out and that’s not what’s happening sometimes. Watching the game like that helps me be a better leader on the floor and be a better leader.”
Duncan returned from her injury with a vengeance.
In the Warriors’ 51-35 loss at Orchard Farm on January 23, Duncan made up for lost time by draining a trio of 3-pointers on her way to a team-high 17 points.
“I was so ready to be back,” Duncan said. “I was out long enough and I know that my team needs me to be a leader, so I was ready to get back out there.”
Duncan, the 5-foot-7 forward who is averaging 9.5 points per game, has a fire in her belly that Warriors coach Hannah Logan said she appreciates.
The coach said that she knows she can give Duncan that little extra push and her senior will respond.
“She has that passion and she is that vocal leader who is ready to do that (lead),” Logan said. “She sees that the more she attacks, the better it is for our team. It’s good to see that she has that fire. You can get under her skin a little and she’s ready to go.”
Duncan said she appreciates what her coach is doing for her.
While others might shrink from a coach’s challenge, Duncan revels in it.
“I know being a senior, she is harder on me sometimes,” Duncan said. “I can feel that and I take it because that’s what a leader does.”
As her days on a high school basketball court dwindle, Duncan said she is excited to get the chance to stay in the game after high school.
Even though she also played volleyball in high school, staying on the hardwood is where Duncan’s future lies, she said.
“I’m going to go to St. Louis Community College to play basketball, so I’m excited,” Duncan said. “I want to study to become a real estate agent and to study interior design. But to know I get to keep playing means a lot to me.”
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