CHESTER – As a basketball scout settled in to observe a particular player’s talents, he wound up being more impressed with someone he’d never seen or even heard of.
“Who the hell is this?” Kieran Quinn has been quoted saying to himself. “I’m like, ‘This kid can move.’”
A liaison advisor for Irish basketball players looking to come to America, his connections eventually led to that 6-foot-6 girl leaving her hometown of Limerick.
His connections eventually led to Gill-St. Bernard’s School, and then to the University of Connecticut.
Gandy Malou-Mamel took it from there.
Now a senior at Gill, this time next year she’ll be a freshman at UConn, playing for Geno Auriemma and the Huskies.
“Everybody knows about UConn, even in Ireland,” she said on an afternoon last week while taking a break from practice. “It was my dream school. I have a lot of work to do but I’m excited to go.”
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Her parents, Giselle and Yves, know all about dreams. As refugees, they would flee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo for a better life. Her mother is Greek; her father Irish. They would do the same for their daughter, fully supporting her chance at a better life.
Since arriving here in August of her sophomore year, Gandy has lived with a host family 10 minutes from campus.
“Not many kids could do what she did, leaving her family,’’ head coach Mark Gnapp said. “Her host family have embraced her; they have children who call her their sister. It’s really nice. They drive her to school, sometimes her teammates will as well and also drive her home.
“She’s an unbelievable kid. Really special. Really mature. And extremely coachable. A hard worker. She is the kid who comes along maybe once every decade, or once in your coaching career.”
This season she is averaging 19 points and 10.5 rebounds a game. Sometime next month she will reach 1,000 points and 600 rebounds in her three-year career, and possibly 200 blocks.
“She’s awesome to play with, obviously,” said senior Tessa Lozner, who will play at Tufts next season. “She’s such a presence on offense and defense. She’s always there when you’re not playing well, always there encouraging us. She’s so funny, too, just fun to be around.”
“(She can) rebound over us, shoot over us, she’s stronger than all of us.,” said senior Sidney Quinn, who will play for the Naval Academy. “But we never let her forget we’re still trying, even if we’re fouling her. She’s getting better.”
“Such a high-energy player,” said senior Maya Abramson, who will take her basketball skills to Stevens Tech. “We can rely on her for everything. We rely on her a lot. She creates so many opportunities for everyone else. She’s amazing. She’s one of the sweetest, genuine people I’ve ever met. Whenever you’re having a bad day, go to Gandy and she’ll make you smile all the time. She just wants everybody to be happy. She’s very uplifting, very cheerful. Just a great personality to be around.
“I can’t imagine doing what she did, leaving home for another country. It’s insanely hard,” she said, “but she has such a great support system here, and we all love her and make her feel comfortable. We all brought her in just like family. So, I think that’s helped a lot. She talks to her mom a lot; we have a great relationship with her family. I’m happy for her.”
Malou-Mamel began playing the game at age 12, going from kicking a soccer ball to shooting a basketball. She often took a bus to a local basketball court.
Last summer, she competed for Ireland in the Europe U20 tournament, having returned to spend the summer at home. This summer she’s staying here, prepping for college.
And staying in touch with her Jersey friends.
For now, it’s staying focused on the rest of the regular season, including the Skyland Conference Delaware Division race, the Somerset County Tournament and States.
For now, it’s still about improving.
“In practice I have people doubling, fouling. But it’s something I appreciate. They go out of their way to box me out,” she said. “In games, I have great players playing against me inside the post.
“I didn’t think basketball was a contact sport, but I definitely think it is now,” she said, breaking into a laugh. “People are pushing me and hurting me, but it’s something I think is a compliment. I can’t complain if I get fouled every play. If I get fouled every play I’ll still try and make the shot I have to work on my speed and lateral movement.”
There were also adjustments coming to America.
“When I first came here, I just did not know where I was at the time. Because it’s such a big country. New Jersey has the same population as the whole country of Ireland. It messes up my head,” she said, breaking into a laugh. “The United States is so big and I’m just in one state of it. I’ll be driving around and I’m not able to take it in, not remember anything when I’m looking out the car’s window.”
Making friends wasn’t as difficult.
“Making friends was easy with this team like this,” she said. “People were looking out for me at school, especially the juniors and seniors. That part wasn’t hard. It was the geographical aspect.”
And now she’s a leader on the team.
“I feel I do by example. When I first came here, I was definitely more shy. Now I feel if I don’t use my voice, I’m wasting it.”
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ Girls basketball: Gill St. Bernard’s Gandy Malou-Mamel to UConn
