The UConn Huskies women’s basketball team has produced some of the best WNBA talent. Napheesa Collier is on pace to join the likes of Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird as one of the most successful alumni. Unfortunately, she didn’t experience the same NCAA success as those who came before her due to heartbreaking endings. Those shortcomings left a lasting impact on her for many years.
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Napheesa Collier began her collegiate career with a bang by assisting the Huskies to an NCAA championship in the 2015-16 season. That year, she didn’t have as significant a role as she’d have in her later years. Collier only averaged 6.8 points per game while playing 17.2 minutes off the bench.
The following year, head coach Geno Auriemma drastically increased Collier’s role, and she became the team’s star. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to repeat a championship in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. In the Final Four, Mississippi State snapped UConn’s 111-game winning streak on an overtime buzzer-beater by Morgan William.
Many people look at that game as the biggest upset in women’s college basketball history. It only made sense that Collier and the rest of the returning players would enter the following season with a chip on their shoulder.
In 2018, UConn battled back to the Final Four but found themselves in a similar situation. A matchup against Notre Dame was a bit of deja vu for Collier, when Arike Ogunbowale knocked down a game-winner to send the Huskies home once again.
In an appearance on the Bird’s Eye View podcast, Sue Bird revealed a question Geno had for Collier. He wanted to know if the back-to-back buzzer beaters still hurt. Collier gave a candid response.
“Oh my gosh, yes,” Collier quickly said. “I’m not even going to lie. Until the past, I would say two years, three years maybe, every time we got to an end-of-game situation and it was really close, I had PTSD.”
Collier was incredibly young when she suffered those heartbreaking losses. Luckily, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant came to her side to offer advice. Those words molded her into the player she is today.
“That was one of the first times I talked to Kobe Bryant,” Collier revealed. “I asked him, ‘What would you do differently?’ He said, ‘You know the shot clock in your head, and then you count it down. Once you get to like 5 seconds, you can press up more because she doesn’t have time to beat you.'”
Those wise words from Bryant boosted Collier’s confidence and improved her ability to defend in those high-stakes scenarios. Now, she looks to capitalize on everything she has learned from those experiences as she pushes to win her first WNBA championship this season.
