The Allan Hancock College women’s basketball team likes to have the last shot. Ali Rodriguez took the last shot before halftime on Nov. 19 and nailed a three-pointer at the buzzer.
Nicole De La Guerra skipped a pass across court to Rodriguez. Rodriguez used her legs and followed through to sink the ball in the net.
That satisfying three-pointer contributed to Rodriguez’s 22 points in the first half against Taft College, giving the Bulldogs a commanding lead of 45-20. The sophomore guard totaled 27 points in the Bulldog’s first home game.
“It all came through the offense,” Rodriguez said. “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have scored so much.”
The team’s fluidity started in warm-ups, and the Bulldogs were ready to play as soon as they stepped onto the court. They were all on the same page, and the pass cuts they ran worked out well.
At the end of the game, the Bulldogs had defeated the Cougars 72-54. Rodriguez shot for 50 percent of her three-pointers and had three assists and two steals.
During last season’s opener, Rodriguez scored 36 points against the Cougars.
This season, the Bulldogs have fewer returning players than they had last year, Rodriguez said. There are only four sophomores on the team, so Rodriguez tries to set a good example for the new players, whom she feels somewhat responsible for.
She maintains a good attitude and gives her teammates positive encouragement even when the game isn’t working out in their favor, she said. When players on the other team try to dish out the trash talk, Rodriguez blocks it out.
“If you let them get in your head, then they’ve won,” she said.
Rodriguez played for Pioneer Valley High School, along with three of her current teammates. In her freshman year at PVHS, Rodriguez and her team went to CIF. De La Guerra, Jazmine Cooks, and Leana Araujo also played for PVHS.
Even though the majority of the Bulldogs’ players are freshman, they still have a tight bond, Rodriguez said.
The players build team unity by hanging out off of the court as well, like when they host team dinners and have bonfires at the beach.
“Everybody has a great attitude,” Rodriguez said. “We all click.”
Rodriguez has been playing basketball all of her life, and the game has taught her about hard work and patience.
The 20-year-old has had many coaches throughout her life, but Hancock’s head coach, Cary Nerelli, is the best and easy to respect.
“He doesn’t just teach me about basketball,” she said. “He teaches me about life.”
Rodriguez hopes to play basketball beyond junior college and plans to work on becoming a well-rounded player who is strong both offensively and defensively.
She loves the adrenaline and the pressure. She loves to win, and hates to lose. She also likes being part of a team of women with a common goal, she said.
“Basketball is a part of me,” she said. “I don’t know how to live without it.”
This article appears in Dec 4-11, 2014.