Apr. 3—GRAND FORKS — Walker Demers has played at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center many times in her basketball career — in state tournaments during her time at Grafton High School and in her first two college seasons at South Dakota.
Now, the Betty will be her home court.
Demers, who
entered the transfer portal the day it opened
March 18, joined UND women’s basketball Friday.
She opted to play her final two years of eligibility closer to home, and with a coaching staff in which she’s built a relationship.
“I didn’t come in knowing them,” Demers said of South Dakota’s staff, led by coach Kayla Karius. “I wasn’t recruited by them, so I didn’t really gain that as much as I wanted to. That was a huge thing for me coming out of high school in my recruiting process. So just not having that and not growing that really impacted my decision to (transfer).”
UND coach Mallory Bernhard and her staff recruited Demers out of high school. At the time, Demers wanted to play at the more established program, so she committed to play under Dawn Plitzuweit, who led South Dakota to three straight Summit League tournament titles in her final three seasons in Vermillion.
But Plitzuweit left the Coyotes before Demers played a game there, and Demers watched as Bernhard established herself and her program in the Summit League.
“At the time, it wasn’t really the right fit for me,” Demers said, “but now, I’ve watched them grow. I’ve watched coach Bernhard transform teams. I know that she obviously has seen me play. She’s played against me, so I know that she believes in me and what I’m capable of. I was really looking for that at my next school.”
Demers, a 6-foot-1 center, is a physical presence in the paint. She shot 50.7% this season and averaged 6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
She started 30 of South Dakota’s 32 games this season.
“If the ball’s on the floor, I’m definitely the first one diving to go get it,” she said. “I am super competitive, so if somebody has ever watched me or been a part of a practice, you could just see that. Hopefully, you could see that on the court, too.”
Demers is joining a program that finished sixth in the Summit League this season, going 9-21 overall and 5-11 in conference play.
She’s the first transfer addition for Bernhard this spring. Demers is the sixth junior on the current roster for next season, which doesn’t have a senior listed.
“Hopefully, I can impact the program as much as the rest of my teammates,” she said. “I really want to come out of college knowing that I made the program better because I want to see it better in the future. I want it to keep growing.”
