Spencer ready to tip off hoops career at Southwest

Keira Spencer, a standout shooter, is primed for a big year with Southwest Academy — while fielding college scholarship offers. Plus, notes from around the basketball world.

(Photo courtesy Southwest Academy).

Keira Spencer has already notched a win even before her career at Southwest Academy has tipped off.

This summer, the Grade 11 shooting standout received her first offer to play hoops at the next level from powerhouse Iowa State. (The Cyclones are also the alma mater of London Ramblers alumna and current Minnesota Wild forward Bridget Carleton.) It’s a wild way to start a career that, well, hasn’t exactly started yet.

Spencer transferred to Southwest from Saunders Secondary School last year for Grade 10. After the pandemic wiped out competition outside their team bubble, she, along with her Southwest Academy Girls Prep basketball teammates, are training for an upcoming season that will hopefully look a whole lot different.

“It feels like all my work is starting to pay off,” Spencer said of the Cyclones’ offer. “With the help of my dad, my coaches, and all the things we did with the program, it seems like hard work gets you places.”

Spencer took her first shots at age 3, and while playing volleyball and softball in elementary school, she has been on the court ever since. The London Ramblers alumna has always been drawn to the teamwork part of the game, and that remains at Southwest.

Spencer is one of two London natives on the Southwest roster, along with Lena Stinebrickner.

“My team is basically like a second family,” Spencer said. “It’s amazing. We’re so close. I’m kind of shy when you first get to know me. But my new teammates brought me in as a sister last year and it was amazing because even though I didn’t really talk a lot, and I never really met them before, we were immediately close.”

This season, Spencer looks forward to competition outside her home gym’s four walls, traveling to play the best, including south of the border against competition in the United States. Those tournaments will also expose her play to other university programs with other potential offers.

Those are bound to come, her coaches say, as her court skills are beyond question.

Spencer is a natural shooting guard who has shot up to 6-foot-2-inches. She always stands among the tallest on her teams – no surprise for the daughter of a 5-foot-7 mom and 6-foot-8 dad. Her height, combined with a deadly outside shot, make her a matchup nightmare for opponents.

(Photo courtesy Southwest Academy).

That potential drives her to be better.

“I always want to work on everything. I am a shooter, yes, but I want to work on my all-around game,” she said.

That kind of response is not unexpected from a player like Spencer, her coaches say.

“One of the big things we’ve strived for at Southwest Academy, never compromised on, is a culture of respect, hard work, not cutting corners, doing things the right way. That’s Keira,” said Rob Angione, Founding Partner, President and Girls Head Coach at Southwest Academy.

“She’s a detail-oriented individual and that’s what’s going to help her get to the highest levels of the game. Obviously, she’s gifted physically in terms of being 6-foot-2 and being an unbelievable shooter, but she’s also the kid who will put in the time on areas that don’t come as naturally ­– whether that’s building size in the weight room or foot speed on the ladders or learning multiple positions on the floor.”

She’s a quiet leader in her voice, but her work ethic shouts across the gym, Angione explained. She’s that player who shows up early, leaves late, takes care of her controllables, and is a great ambassador for the school and the game.

Beyond the court, Spencer is looking to be a bigger – more vocal – presence on the team. That’s not a natural role for the admittedly shy young woman who didn’t always throw her hand up to speak in class.

“This season, I hope to take on more of a leadership role. I want to use my voice more. I don’t want to be the quiet kid in the corner. I want to be someone my teammates can look to, someone who builds their teammates up,” she said. “I need to come out of my shell more to do that. It takes courage to say, ‘I got this.’  But it’s part of the job. It’s what I have to do. And if I have the right mindset, I can do anything.”

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AROUND THE PERIMETER

NBLC Board approves Edge sale

Last week, the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC) Board of Directors agreed to a deal, in principle, that will see Deacon Sports and Entertainment purchase the rights of the St. John's Edge Basketball Club from Atlantic Sport Enterprises Ltd.

“We are ecstatic to officially share the exciting news that Edge Basketball will return to the region,” said Dean MacDonald, Chair of Deacon Sports and Entertainment. “The support and passion that Edge fans have expressed to me over the last couple of months about their team has truly been amazing, their dedication is one of the main reasons why we are so committed for the future of this franchise.”

In July, the Edge was booted from its home in the Mile One Centre in favour of another team from another league, the U.S.-based American Basketball Association (ABA), starting this fall. The Edge remain homeless, but at least remain in the league.

The same cannot be said for the Moncton Magic, who announced last month that the team will be leaving the NBLC to “explore options for future play.” The defending champions remain on the league website, but neither the team nor the league has further elaborated on the post. The Moncton Magic joined the NBLC in 2017, replacing the Moncton Miracles.

The league has been largely silent on its future for months after canceling its 2020-21 season on March 5. But with the Edge announcement, the league also said planning for its 10th season “continues to take place and further announcements on the season structure will be made at a later date.”  

Beyond my byline

Been thinking all day about Sonali Karnick’s piece, Canada's women's soccer team is more popular than ever — so where's the merch? Wonderful story that exposes total lack of vision by Team Canada, Canada Soccer, and their corporate partners. This is an issue that goes beyond soccer. I wouldn't mind a women's hoops team shirt with Ayim or Carleton on the back either. … Great piece from Ben Roberts of the Lexington Herald-Leader on the University of Kentucky Wildcats landing Forest City hoops standout Shaedon Sharpe. Sharpe, 18, played basketball for H.B. Beal Secondary and led the team to the OFSAA AAA title in 2019. … I just finished reading Leigh Montville’s Tall Men, Short Shorts: The 1969 NBA Finals: Wilt, Russ, Lakers, Celtics, and a Very Young Sports Reporter. Old school NBA stories are the absolute best. … Picked up The O-Pee-Chee Hockey Card Story by Richard Scott. I have been a trading cards guy since I was a kid, so loved this slim tome’s dive into the history of the company and its roots in London, Ont. Love to do an oral history of the company from a London perspective. Shoot me a note to Jason.a.winders@gmail.com if you, or anyone you know, worked for O-Pee-Chee in any role in London.