Texas A&M Corpus Christi women's basketball has the best overall record in the Southland Conference near the end of Jan. in the 2022-23 season, and a lot of the Islanders success stems from their senior leadership.
Islanders' Alecia Westbrook dominates the paint, especially when rebounding.
"Just knowing that somebody else is working just as hard as you and then you have that little extra boost that just gives you the ball, and then you get to finish it," Alecia Westbrook, Islanders senior forward, said.
Westbrook leads the Southland Conference with 181 total rebounds. She's tallied 132 on the defensive end which ranks her 21st in the nation.
"She is the Dennis Rodman of the Southland Conference in that she can get on the boards and get rebounds," Royce Chadwick, Islanders women's basketball head coach, said. "She can tell where the rebound is going to be coming before it comes off."
Westbrook tops the stat sheet, but she also leads by example.
"She's the first one in practice and the last one to leave," Chadwick said. "She's the most vocal player we have in our huddles. Most vocal player we have on the floor."
Her tenacity comes from her mother Jamie Johnson who was recently elected as a State Representative in Missouri.
"I'm very excited for my mom," Westbrook said. "Everything she does, everything she puts her mind to, she always accomplishes."
Westbrook's mom became the first Black representative from her district. A historic moment, but some of her focus was on Alecia.
"We had a game during her inauguration, so she was actually watching the game while she was about to walk on stage," Westbrook said. "So it was kind of cool. She was supporting me and I was supporting her."
"I want somebody in this room to be the next governor. I want somebody in this room to be the next senator, and we talked about Alecia's mother doing exactly that," Chadwick said. "Now the challenge is get somebody out of this locker room to follow in Alecia's mom's footsteps.">
The Islanders (11-7, 6-1) host Nicholls State (4-14, 1-6) on Thursday at the American Bank Center. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. TAMU-CC women's basketball has won the last 5 meetings.
