Kristen McNab’s adjustment from Cochrane High School’s Cobradome to Medicine Hat College’s Snake Pit is slithering along nicely. The 2013 Cobras go-to senior joined the Rattlers this season and was in Calgary Jan. 24 for Alberta Colleges Athletic Association (ACAC) women’s basketball play against the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) Trojans.
Shedding her royal-red Cobras skin for Rattler black and yellow, McNab was right at home on the SAIT floor being cheered on by family and former Cobras teammates who’d made the drive to Calgary for the game. Firing bombs from the field and driving the ball into traffic from her position at shooting forward/wing, it was business as usual – on a college floor.
“Her ability to score sets her apart from a lot of players at our level,” said Rattlers women’s head coach Jason McLester following his team’s 53-47 loss to the Trojans. “We love having her in the game because she’s that X-factor, she can hit shots. She scores in bunches. She did it in high school and she’s going to do it at our level.”
In 15 minutes of play against SAIT, the 5-foot-7 shooter shot 33 per cent from the field, draining three of nine attempts for six points. She’s 10-for-11 from the charity stripe in her ACAC freshman year and has canned a total of 44 points in 14 games.
“It just took some time to get used to,” the eldest daughter of Cobras coach Rob McNab related. “It’s like a big change from high school to college basketball. It’s a lot faster.”
Still, she understands the Rattlers’ scheme and her role in it.
“I’ve been practising a lot of shooting. I like playing out on the wing.”
And she has the full confidence of her college coach.
“She has the green light from me to shoot at any time,” said McLester.
“Because I know she can do it in bunches.”
As for adjusting to the hustle of college ball and first-year science at Medicine Hat College, McNab replies: “I really like it. Our team is a really close group of girls. We hang out together. It’s really nice.”
