Recap The Court

Jacob Smith

Jenneke Pilling came to Brock Women’s Basketball when coach Rao first started his tenure as head coach, and now she is an OUA champ, U SPORTS silver medalist and looking to build on it alongside coach Rao as the 2021 OUA season gets underway in November. The Windsor transfer 5th year guard has had a tremendous career of growth and success and now as she becomes one of the biggest leaders on the team, all of her progress is showing and will make this upcoming season, an exciting one for anyone following her journey.

The team has gotten significantly younger, and for players like Jenneke, that means teaching a new group the ropes and building chemistry with a much different squad than years past. She has not taken that responsibility lightly and as the team has practiced over the summer and the previous year when they were allowed to, Jenneke has shown the ability to both lead by example and lead vocally, all backed by her desire to improve and her mindset of coming into the gym and getting to work every single day.

Since Jenneke first joined the team, she’s been a player who will put her head down and get to work. During her 2018 season when she sat the year, she was in individual workouts with the coaches multiple times a week working on her shot and other fundamentals, to go along with the regular 5x a week practice schedule. She has shown a desire to get better every single day and she has done just that.

Jenneke was vital to the Badgers run during the 2nd half of the 2019-2020 season, and her hustle and heart didn’t go unnoticed by anyone paying attention. She was the spark for the Badgers coming off the bench and in some cases starting, getting the offence going when we needed scoring and using her agility and toughness to get wherever she wanted on the floor. As she worked in individuals on her shooting, her range increased and she became a player who’s a threat from all over the offensive floor.

Jenneke has become a great all-around guard. She has agility and toughness to take guards to the rim or get by forwards if they’re switched onto her. She can shoot from deep or pull up for a floater and she can distribute the ball and facilitate the offence. Her impact on not only the team but on each game has increased gradually over her time in the program, and now that is taking shape in her ability to teach others.

She’s a very smart player, she understands what the right decision to make on the floor is and she knows when a mistake is made. She has gotten to a point where she can identify and correct herself instead of needing coaches pointing out errors and that recognition has rubbed off on the younger players. Whether its showing a decision that could’ve been made, showing proper form or answering questions about how to play in Rao’s system, Jenneke is always there to answer questions and she is truly an invaluable vet for Brock Women’s Basketball.

She can play all aspects of Rao’s system, she can teach, she can learn and she can lead. The Brock Women’s Basketball program is in good hands with Jenneke leading the charge and Brock fans should be excited to see Jenneke and the Badgers take the floor for the 2021 season as they look to repeat as OUA champions and build on their U SPORTS run from the 2019 season.