Keltos ready for long-awaited home opener
Sam Keltos’ long wait is over.
After leaving the NCAA Division 1 St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers women’s basketball team in March, the St. Catharines native will get to play on front of a home crowd Saturday night when the Brock Badgers host the Ryerson Rams.
“I am so excited and us collectively as a team, we are so ready to get this thing started,” Keltos said.
She is looking forward to playing meaningful minutes again after averaging only 3.3 minutes a game during her third and final season at St. Francis.
“Last season, I didn’t even play in some games and to go to being a really key player on this team is a very big difference and a transition for me,” Keltos said. “I’m am trying to wrap my head around it, but I know if I make a mistake I won’t be subbed off right away.
“I just have to keep going and so far, so good.”
Keltos admits she’s going to be really nervous before the start of the home opener.
“It’s my first home opener and so many people have told me that they can’t wait to come and watch,” she said. “On social media, there’s posters and things on Instagram and that just builds the excitement.”
Keltos would love to return that love.
“We want to come together as a team and put on a show.”
The former Sir Winston Churchill and Niagara JUEL standout spent plenty of time on the court with her new teammates getting ready for Saturday.
“We practised a lot in the summer which helped me a lot,” she said. “We did a lot of individual work and my shot has gotten a lot better.”
Working through the summer was good for Keltos.
“I would usually take a month or more off from basketball workouts but the continuation going into this season was very helpful.”
The 6-foot-3 post player was little worried about being ready for the home opener after suffering an injury in practice.
“I didn’t see a screen coming and I kind of got whiplash,” she said. “My head wasn’t right for awhile and I missed our first preseason game. A week later, I was fine to go back to classes and stuff.”
Keltos feels fans will see a different side of her on the court this season.
“It’s the same style but I am more mature,” she said. “I am more in control and the systems that (head coach Mike) Rao uses, emphasize everybody’s strengths.
“It’s really simple but it really works for the personnel that we have.”
Rao sees Keltos as an important piece of his team.
“She is going to be a mainstay but she has to be a presence for us,” he said. “And that doesn’t mean she has to score all the time. That means facilitating, that means boarding and that means defending.
Keltos is greeting the season with plenty of optimism
“We are pretty young except for our two fifth-years, but we just want to go, play games, win and have fun with it.”
The Badgers went 11-13 in regular season play, After beating Laurier 54-35 in the first round of the playoffs, Brock was eliminated following an 81-70 loss to McMaster, the eventual national champions.
Rao is looking forward to getting the season started.
“We are ready to play and we are ready to compete again,” he said. “As long as we give some effort, as long as we work hard, I think the results will come.”
This year’s squad look a lot different from the 2018-19 version of the Badgers.
“It’s a very different team and a different makeup with eight new players,” Rao said. “Last year’s team was maybe not as skilled or as athletic but they were intelligent. They thought basketball well and I’m not sure about this team yet.”
This year’s squad has more depth.
“We have more players who can play but we just have to find the right spots for them.”
