By Whitney Spencer

After senior center and third leading scorer and rebounder Chauntise Wright went down during the second week of practice with an ACL tear in her right knee, the University of Louisville women’s basketball team knew they needed a spark from the younger posts players. The biggest spark this season has been sophomore center Keisha Hines.
University of Louisville women’s basketball coach Jeff Walz knows what type of spark Hines can provide.
“She is going to play important minutes in the post,” Walz said. “She made the most improvement last season and I can tell she is excited.”
Hines, who started playing organized basketball in the seventh grade, has been a big lift for the team. Starting 11 games this season, Hines has averaged right at twenty minutes per game and shooting almost sixty percent from the field. She has understood what was now going to be expected of her in Wright’s absence.
“I guess this is my time to shine,” Hines said. “I have to bring my game throughout the year. Just step up basically.”
Hines, who says that basketball just came natural to her, has shown that natural ability on the court this season. Her mother, who played basketball at Eastern Michigan University, inspired her to put that natural ability to work. As the third leading scorer and rebounder averaging 8.3 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, what she gives on the floor does not always show up on the stat sheet.
Taking charges, running the floor, and “getting stops on defense” are just a few of the attributes Keisha has brought to the team this season. Though she said she loves playing in the post, the player that she admires the most is Denver Nuggets guard Chauncey Billups.
“He was the leader of the team and I really liked that,” she said.
    In this new role Keisha does not feel any pressure because it’s something that she has learned to do every night. She says nothing has changed except for the amount of time she puts in at the gym. Though all her hard work has led her to a starting job, she would much rather come off the bench and make her presence felt. Coach Walz knows how important Keisha’s presence can be.
“Keisha is going to be a vital component to this team,” Walz said.
Wright said her injury is doing much better and healing correctly. She hopes to return for the 2009-2010 season. In the meantime, she has been cheering Hines’ efforts. Though she would much rather be on the floor this season, she thinks Hines has done very well so far this season.
“I don’t think she was prepared to start this season,” Wright said. “She is a lot more comfortable off the bench and knew what she had to do. She has done that.”
Wright says that Hines brings a good personality on and off the court which is a large part of what is making her so successful in this role this season. She said she has seen much improvement from Hines and only gave her one piece of advice.
“Keisha is much stronger in the post this season,” Wright said. “She was always good at getting up and down the floor. I told her just to play her game.”