ORLANDO, Fla. – The awards are piling up for senior Sharee Shepherd, but she doesn’t pay attention. She says her biggest contribution to the team is keeping them loose.
“It’s just goofy, some of the things I do,” Shepherd said.
But the hardware piling up for the forward from Houston is quite serious.
Thursday she was named the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year. It’s the first time any SMU women’s basketball player has been given that award, regardless of conference affiliations.
On Wednesday, Shepherd became the fourth player in the program’s history to be named to an all-conference defensive team.
The awards will come when you have a season like Shepherd did: a career-high 27 blocked shots and a team-high 85 steals. She’ll finish her career with the third most steals in the program’s history, 237.
But Shepherd was all smiles when recounting a story that involved some of her trademark humor. At a practice late in the season the coaching staff said the players could avoid running if they could answer a question about the meaning of grace.
Shepherd organized a short play that featured all of the players in different roles so they could act out their answer. But it wasn’t a normal play, according to Shepherd. It was over the top and filled with singing – and it was wild enough and on the point, so the team got out of the running drills.
The play they acted out? The parable of the prodigal son.
“That’s probably one of my favorites,” Shepherd said. “We gave the freshmen smaller roles and all of the best ones went to the seniors.”
That same leadership from Shepherd extends to the court, where she said it’s her job to bring energy when she is playing. She does it because it sets a good example for the younger players on the team and it creates an environment in which everyone can play their best.
“You’ve got to come out strong and not scared,” Shepherd said. “Confident.”
That confidence will be needed headed into today’s quarterfinal match-up against conference rival Tulsa. SMU lost two heartbreakers to the team during the regular season and faces them for a third time.
Shepherd said it doesn’t matter who they play now, because they are taking it one game at a time. It just happens to be the first team the Mustangs face is one they have struggled against.
“As long as we focus and get on the same page we will be fine,” Shepherd said.
But in the back of her mind is the thought that any loss during the tournament could mean the end of her playing days. That’s not her main motivation, but Shepherd wants to make her last conference tournament one to remember.
“I want to be able to say we left it all on the floor.”
