As an incoming freshman, KK Babin was told by head women’s basketball coach, DoBee Plaisance that she was recruited to help lay the foundation for the future of Nicholls women’s basketball, and her stats say exactly that.In just over half a season, Babin has already proved to be an instrumental part in the re-building of the women’s basketball team. This past Saturday, she led the colonels to their first conference win of the season against the Southeastern University Lions with 15 points. Not only is Babin excelling in the offensive category, but she is also ranked third in the Southland Conference in steals per game average, and is ranked 50th nationally overall in the same category.
The 5’4″ Gonzales native claims she is “the worst loser ever.” It was this attitude that caught women’s basketball head coach DoBee Plaisance’s eye years ago. “I’ve had my eye on KK for years. She’s been a winner her whole life and she’s miserable at losing. Bringing that mentality in here was essential for me taking this job,” Plaisance said.
Plaisance was the former coach at Loyola and says she didn’t think she would get Babin to play for her at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) level she was previously coaching at Loyola, so she took the division 1 coaching job at Nicholls. “That’s how much I have invested in her and how much I believe in her,” Plaisance said. “She is a strong piece of the puzzle in terms of us putting this women’s basketball program on the map and sustaining success around here.”
Babin reciprocates the belief in her coach as well. “Coach DoBee really made me believe in the dream to turn the program around,” Babin said. “She’s a great coach and we have the same passion for the game,” she said.
Having started every game so far this season, Babin says the amount of play time she’s seen as a freshman has made her mature a lot. In part, “it’s because Coach Plaisance told me I couldn’t come in here and act like a freshman,” she says with a laugh, but also because she looks up to her older teammates. One senior guard in particular, stands out to Babin. “Shakey, (Ricshanda Bickham) came in here two years ago and she really believes in Coach and works hard every day,” Babin said. “If one of us is down, she really tries to get us going. She’s just in it for the right reasons.”
Babin doesn’t just look up to Bickham. She says the women’s basketball team as a whole is her favorite thing about college basketball. She says the team is a good group of girls who are coming together more every game. She also enjoys the increased level of play at the college level and said the competition is one of the biggest transitions from high school ball.
But the transition seems to be easy for Babin. She leads the Colonels in steals, minutes played and three-point field goals made.
Both Coach Plaisance and Babin agree that her biggest assets to the Colonels are the will to get other people involved and do whatever it takes to help her team win. “Coach always says you have to win as a team so really that’s my job, it’s not really about myself it’s just whatever I have to do to help us win,” Babin said. Coach Plaisance added, “KK will get her teammates open in distributing the ball, she makes people around her better.”
Babin plans on becoming a nurse, but she admits that she will probably end up becoming a coach and following in the footsteps of Plaisance.
