MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — There is a sort of wait-and-see label attached with Kysre Gondrezick this season.
The West Virginia junior guard certainly understands it.
“I’ve been here since the summer and had the opportunity to travel overseas and be around the team,” Gondrezick said. “I’m a little rusty. There’s a lot of work that I have to do individually.”
A year ago, the potential of teaming Gondrezick — a former Michigan Miss Basketball and all-Big Ten freshman at the University of Michigan — with Tynice Martin had the makings of getting the Mountaineers back to the NCAA tournament.
The game of life, as it is in basketball, is not played out on paper, though, and Gondrezick’s season at WVU was mysteriously cut short almost as soon as it began.
Why? Those inside the woman’s basketball program are cautious not to comment.
WVU head coach Mike Carey — as part of that wait-and-see label — is quick to mention his whole roster of guards when asked about Gondrezick, as a way of detailing that he isn’t expecting the world from her right away after playing in just five games last season and missing the final 26.
“She looks good,” Carey said. “She can make plays off the dribble. It’s just a matter of conditioning and getting to that speed. Other than that, I think she looks good.”
Gondrezick explains last season as a time when her own personal life became bigger than basketball.
“It was just a matter of me taking a timeout for myself,” said Gondrezick, who averaged 13.2 points per game in the five games she appeared in last season. “I had to figure out what was more important to me at the time.
“I just thought it was in my best interest to step away from the team, however I am back and am ready to move forward and implement what I do best with the team.”
She never strayed far, remained enrolled in school, continued to build her relationship with Carey and said she never considered giving up playing for the Mountaineers again.
“I knew this is where I wanted to be. This is my second home,” she said. “I had the support of my coaches and teammates.
“Coach Carey and I have always kept a good relationship. That’s never gone anywhere. He’s like a father figure for me. For us, it’s another stepping stone in the journey and I’m happy for him to be a part of it.”
Gondrezick rejoins a team that faces several questions heading into the season.
How well Gondrezick plays is just one. Another is the status of Martin, who was indefinitely suspended in August for a violation of team rules.
Yet another: How well will a roster that includes eight first-year players at WVU gel together?
Even with all of that, the Mountaineers were selected to finish third in the Big 12 by the league’s coaches last week.
“That’s really good,” Gondrezick said with a smile. “It could have been a lot worse.”
The confidence she displayed as a freshman at Michigan is still there. Gondrezick still has high expectations for herself.
“For me, I feel like I’m back right where I need to be and I fit in perfectly with the team,” Gondrezick said. “The girls are happy I’m here and I’m happy to be here. We’re just moving forward. For them to welcome me back with open arms was definitely a sigh of relief and let me know that I am in the right place and I’m doing the right thing.”
With sophomore Madisen Smith at point guard, expect Gondrezick to play more as a natural shooting guard.
How well will Gondrezick play? It seems her teammates are expecting her to bring an offensive lift to the team.
“Kysre is a really good guard and a really good shooter and a really good ball handler,” WVU forward Kari Niblack said. “She knows how to get the ball to where it needs to go and I really like playing with her.”
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