Join ORU Athletics every Friday in a weekly series featuring interviews with coaches and staff members.
10 Questions with Misti Cussen, Head Women's Basketball Coach at Oral Roberts University:
- How are you and your family adjusting to the constantly changing phases of COVID-19?
Really well! After the initial "weirdness" of realizing our daughters weren't going back to school for the rest of the year, and our college players were finishing the semester online, we settled into a routine enjoying a lot of family time and home-cooked meals! With my husband also coaching college sports, family time can be a rare occurrence for us at certain times of the year. So, we have really taken advantage of just being together.
- Your players recently came back to campus. What precautions are they following?
ORU has done an amazing job of moving forward through the pandemic in a positive and creative way. Early on, the university developed a joint task force that spelled out how we would phase our faculty, staff, and student-athletes back into life here on campus. Our team works out in smaller groups than we normally would, we follow a lot of spacing and sanitizing procedures around our facilities, and the girls each stay in private rooms during these summer weeks. But, we're TOGETHER, and that is such a blessing and encouragement to all of us!
- Has communication with the players improved now that you can visit with them in person, even while following coronavirus precautions?
It's just so good to see faces in person – even six feet apart! We really look at these summer workout weeks as a "transition" phase, building our foundation for what is coming this next season. But doing it in person makes a tremendous difference. Team sports require COMMUNITY, and as a coach I have really missed that aspect over the quarantine period.
- What kind of shape do the players appear to be in after the long layoff?
Just like every year, we have some strengths already showing up along with some areas we will need to improve. We're coming off a much less active period than athletes are normally use to, but there is also a craving by our girls to be back in a gym and working out again. That combination will have us right where we need to be by the end of our summer schedule.
- What activities will the players be able to perform with coronavirus restrictions in place?
As a team, they're able to lift weights, condition, get shots up, and workout on the basketball court in small groups right now. We don't scrimmage in order to keep our workout participant numbers low, which should provide an additional layer of protection for all of them.
- With such a huge recruiting class, where do you start when it comes to evaluating them for the upcoming season?
For the most part, the evaluation is already completed before they ever step on campus. As coaches, we normally have a very good feel for what each individual is bringing to the table. The unknown yet exciting part is how those parts will turn into a whole. You can predict shooters, defenders, rebounders, ball-handlers, speed, strength, etc. But seeing all of that come together is the joy of coaching. The intangibles of their heart, courage, toughness, aggression, etc., get thrown into the mix as well. So, every team is unique!
- How important will the few returning players be with such a large group of newcomers?
They set the standard and the baseline for everyone else to follow from the start. There's an old coaching joke that "the best day in a freshman's life is when they become a sophomore". Sophomores have now "been there - done that", and their maturity shows up in a lot of ways. Nena Taylor and Gem Summers are already showing evidence of that growth as returning sophomores. Then, our two senior captains, Keni Jo Lippe and Regan Schumacher, could not be better leaders for this new team. Keni and Regan are so relational in everything that they do, and they lead by example on and off of the playing court. We will give them a lot of responsibility this year, and their voices will be vital to our season.
- How exciting is it for you to have some many new players?
It's always rejuvenating as coaches to bring new blood into a program, and it's the same with this group. Especially after such a strange ending to this past season with championships being canceled due to COVID, it's as if there was a massive "reset" button hit on everything. For us, the timing is really ideal to reestablish our program with new personnel on the roster and within our staff. This is foundational building in its truest form.
- What will be the biggest challenges preparing for the upcoming season?
Simply the number of new faces and names. We know we have the talent to be very successful this season, but we are lacking experience right now. We will play to the strength of this team's character, talent, and hunger for success, which we seem to have an abundance of.
- What will surprise the fans the most about this year's team?
I believe they will see a big difference in our pace of play and aggression. We have a lot of depth going into this season, which should enable us to keep the accelerator pressed down.
10 Questions with....
March 27, 2020 – Mike Carter
April 3, 2020 – Ryan Bush
April 10, 2020 – Mark Milner
April 17, 2020 – Joe Dial
April 24, 2020 – Lance Watson
May 1, 2020 – Roger Bush
May 8, 2020 – Ashtin Meerpohl
May 15, 2020 – Tim Johnson
May 22, 2020 – Adam Hildebrandt
May 29, 2020 – Paul Mills
June 5, 2020 – Scott Williams
June 12, 2020 – Steve Upshaw
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