Jumping Toward Success in College Hoops

In a Jan. 24, 1998, article, CAMILLE NORWOOD, then a senior at Washington Preparatory High School, lamented that inner-city girl basketball players are ignored by local universities, which fear that the girls lack discipline. Recruiters from USC came to Norwood’s game the week after her piece appeared; she is now a USC freshman on a basketball scholarship. MARY REESE BOYKIN spoke with Norwood.

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I like being a student at USC. Of course, college is a leap, and it is much harder than high school. But I have my schedule down to a routine. My goal is to do well academically; I plan to become a physical therapist and to contribute anywhere I am needed on the basketball team, even if it means sitting on the bench and cheering.

In basketball, I had to get used to more conditioning, more work, more games. At first, I was struggling with the conditioning, especially the running. I was required to run a mile in 12 minutes in high school. I must now run 1.5 miles in 10 minutes.

In high school, I played better than most of my opponents. Now so many others play at my level or better. I knew it would be like this; my high school coaches had prepared me.

But I am taking it one day at a time. I am getting some playing time. I expect my time to increase with my effort. I am working hard and doing whatever it takes. I am just happy about how things turned out for me.