Kristi Harrower’s reflections on the season that has been and what’s left to give
If Kristi Harrower knows anything, it’s basketball. She is an Australian player who has seen the highs of success and lows of defeat in the basketball world.
When she became the Assistant Coach of the Deakin Melbourne Boomers, she was bringing her years of wins and losses to the table and her years of formidable experience.
Harrower “understands the x’s and o’s” of the game and through her coaching, is in the position to shape the next generation of Australian basketball.
She’s doing exactly that under Head Coach Chris Lucas and has cherished her role at the Deakin Melbourne Boomers being in “a teaching position” for the players.
“I’m teaching that side of things and giving them different eyes on how something should happen or should’ve happened, I’m helping and teaching them in that way.”
“People used to do that with me, so I’m just trying to give back and help them any way I can.”
Harrower and Lucas make an intimidating pair with years of coaching experience between them and Kristi notes that their style of collaboration at the club “are the best way” to coach for an intensive and labouring season of basketball.
“He lets me make a lot of decisions before Game Day about how things could work for the game, and I get a lot of teaching freedom at training, but on Game Day, it’s him.”
This season has been “completely different” for Harrower compared to the last, with an entirely different pool of talent who “have a good time just being with each other” and have built a good inhouse chemistry.
“With the personalities being so different to last year, it is very different. We have had to design our offences that suit our personnel who have less experience than last year’s teams.”
The deftness of Harrower and Lucas’ process has been interrupted due to several injuries, with Kristy Wallace, now returned, Penina Davidson and now Tera Reed, who suffered a concussion at the New Zealand Olympics qualifiers in China.
“Not having Kristy in particular, has made things very challenging at times. You just miss her 15 points a game she was getting last year.”
Harrower has enjoyed getting to experience import and WNBL MVP favourite Jordin Canada and her “amazing IQ” but however laments what could have been with Canada and Wallace playing together on court.
“It would’ve been great to see them play together all season. They would’ve been a tough combination for the other teams to handle.”
Tomorrow afternoon’s game is “do or die” for the Boomers as they fight for a place in the finals in an incredible close competition.
Kristi notes that the team “are currently fighting for [their] lives” going into their match against the UC Capitals tomorrow afternoon and finds their current position “a bit disappointing considering the start of the season being 6-1”.
Harrower maintains that a big challenge for the upcoming match will be “containing Jade Melbourne” and beating a team that “has nothing to lose”.
“They’re a group, doesn’t matter if they’re winning or losing, that is going to come out and play hard. Jade leads them in that area, she leads them with all that intensity and knows how to play with confidence.”
Harrower still has confidence in her Boomers team and knows the win rests on “the mindset [they] bring in on Game Day” and attempt to “not feel the pressure to win”.
“When we’ve had great games, we’ve really come out to play and that’s definitely what we have to do this weekend.”
Catch the Deakin Melbourne Boomers’ last match on 9Now this Saturday, February 24 at 2:30pm!