A long way from home, Diop thrives
There’s a lot to catch the eye of those walking into the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. For starters, there’s the funky, bright-colored seats. There’s the ‘Aggie Ice Cream’ concession stand, where the school’s trademark treat tempts the taste buds of all who cheer on the Blue and White. And of course, there are the banners hanging on the south side of the Spectrum, paying tribute to the Aggie greats who have left their mark on the basketball programs in years past.
But follow those banners through the white-pillared portals and those funky, bright-colored seats. Walk down to the hardwood, and you might just find the women’s team holding yet another practice, captained by eight-year head coach Raegan Pebley.
There stands another, equally impressive, sight. It’s that of a 23-year-old filling the key down low on defense, blocking two shots in one possession. She leaves her domain on one side of the floor only to purposely trail her teammates on offense, receiving a pass from one of her guards, and, despite being the tallest player on the floor, smoothly knocks down a three-pointer from the top of the key. After another defensive stop by her squad on the other end of the floor, she promptly takes another dish from outside the arc – this time, behind the white line indicating the men’s three-point distance. She hits nothing but the bottom of the twine.
This all happens in a four-possession sequence, while Banna Diop (pronounced Bawna Jop) suddenly yells “nice pass” in a French accent thicker than double chocolate mousse to her teammate, senior guard Alice Coddington. At 6-foot-6, Diop is the tallest of the Aggie players.
If there is anything eye-catching on this and many other afternoons in the Spectrum, it’s Diop – the multilingual, globe-trotting sophomore center whose stellar play will be sorely needed by her team this season. That she’d one day rise to prominence as a star player in the Utah State program wasn’t exactly the path one might have expected of her while she was growing up, especially considering this Dakar, Senegal native didn’t even pick up a basketball until the age of 12.
Not that she wasn’t already standing out in her previous sport.
“People used to make fun of me for playing handball,” Diop said. “Most people, when they (would) see me, are like, ‘You should play basketball.'”
It was advice not heeded until her good friend, Sali Diallo – now a professional player in Italy – invited Diop to attend her competitive team’s basketball practice. From that point, it didn’t take long for another professional hopeful to be born.
From that point, recruitment began early for Diop. Recognizing her talent, Diop left home to play high school basketball in Japan. It was there Pebley found and recruited her to USU.
Despite her unusual height, Diop didn’t have many dating troubles. While she clung to early dreams of becoming a professional basketball player – something she thought would keep her from taking the vows across the altar – Diop married Racine Guisse at age 16. The two currently live in Logan.
“I love him so much. He helps me with everything,” she said. “He only wants me to succeed.”
Diop keeps her family close to her heart. Her dream of playing professional basketball after her Aggie career is largely motivated by a promise to one day provide her mother, still living in Senegal, with a house. Until that time comes, Diop looks forward to seeing her 3-year-old daughter again. Diarra Diop is expected to arrive in Utah from Senegal this February.
An important bridge for that time gap, Diop said, is the opportunity to use Skype to communicate with Diarra.
“When I talk to her (on Skype), I say to myself, ‘Wow, this is the baby I left at eight months old?'” she says, reflecting back to two years ago, when she arrived in Logan for a redshirt 2008-09 season.
In the meantime, her teammates at USU provide constant love and support. It’s something Diop especially needed when she first arrived in Logan with no knowledge of English, despite previously speaking Japanese, French and two native African languages.
Despite an accent that one teammate, sophomore guard Pua Furtado, called “cute,” concern soon decreased for the post player who averaged 16.7 minutes minutes played, 5.7 points and 4.9 rebounds in ast season, all while starting eight games late in conference play.
Diop credits USU courses, but primarily help from her teammates, as the reason she can now fluently speak a fifth language.
Learning a new language wasn’t the only hurdle Diop faced when coming to USU. Partially because of her height, Diop’s knees were especially unstable, and she found herself dealing with ACL problems as a true freshman. That gave her more time to take the required online English courses before enrolling in formal USU classes, but not without help from her teammates, especially senior guard LaCale Pringle-Buchanan.
Buchanan and other returning teammates are looking forward to seeing what Diop can bring to the team’s success once the season gets underway this Friday in an exhibition game at home against the University of Mary.
“She understands the system more than when she first came here, and offensively what we expect of her,” Coddington, an Australia native, said. “And that’s the key, knowing the structures.”
“She’s improved on everything, especially with second effort,” Furtado said. “Shot selection, basketball IQ, shooting. She’s gotten a lot stronger in the post.”
Devyn Christensen, a sophomore guard who comes off the bench with Furtado, said she appreciates Diop for being able to provide a bailout when things break down on offense.
“It’s awesome because if you’re in trouble in traffic, you can throw it up to her, and she can make a play. I’ve never played with anyone that big before. Plus, she can score the ball with that long wingspan, so it’s nice to know she’s back there.”
The team’s coaches have emphasized feeding Diop the ball high with no-bounce passes, putting her in the best possible position to finish strong around the rim.
“It’s hard for her to go from 6-foot-6 all the way to her knees,” Christensen said. “So it’s just about putting the ball in the place where she can score.”
Reyneisha Mays provided a unique perspective on the asset Diop can be on the floor. As a junior college transfer from Moorpark College in California, Mays said Diop’s size and array of moves are not seen at the JUCO level, something she deals with as they often defend one another in practice.
“It’s difficult because I’m not used to having someone taller than me,” said Mays, 6-foot-3. “(Players in junior college) are not as active as she is.”
Diop is particularly strong on defense, having averaged more than a block per game last season.
“She forces you to get better,” Mays said. “Against her, you can’t settle for the mediocre one-move stuff.”
These are challenges the Aggies love to have on their side, and Diop doesn’t mind bringing them to the table – even if it involves being thousands of miles and oceans from home, learning yet another language, and winning every height competition.
“My name is Banna, the tallest woman on campus,” she said. “I truly want to be a big woman, tall and big. You might say I’m joking, but I’m really not.”
– rhett.wilkinson@aggiemail.usu.edu