After a strong start to her collegiate basketball career at University of Louisiana at Monroe, junior transfer Sumar Leslie has continued her scoring ways as she averages 11.5 points per game.

Prior to her injury, the Houma, La. native started 11 consecutive games for the colonels averaging 29 minutes a game. However, Leslie suffered a wrist injury and has been out of the Colonel line-up for 3 weeks.

As a ULM Warhawk, Leslie had a 200-point freshman season, with 79 assists, 58 rebounds, a .400 3-point percentage and a .364 field goal percentage for her best collegiate season thus far.

After just a year and a half at ULM, Leslie decided to transfer closer to home and closer to her family. “It’s good to be away from home to find yourself and your maturity level,” Leslie said. “I learned a lot and experienced a lot on my own, but I am a family person and I felt that being back home my parents would be able to come watch me more.”

But returning to her family wasn’t the only reason Leslie decided to transfer to Nicholls. “I transferred back home because I felt that I could really help the Nicholls program along with the really great teammates I have now,” Leslie said.

Leslie admits that if head coach DoBee Plaisance was the coach at Nicholls when she was making her decision about which college to attend, Nicholls would have been her first option. “Coach Plaisance is a great coach, she really is a great person,” Leslie said. “She’s all about basketball, but at the same time she has a spiritual aspect on things too, and that’s very important in a team.”

Now in her third semester at Nicholls, Leslie feels at home. “My teammates and the people around here are always smiling,” she said. “It’s down to earth, it’s a pleasure just having fun around here. I live one day at a time and I love this school.”

According to Leslie, being a Colonel is significantly different than being a Warhawk. “Colonels take pride in what we do and that’s what I stand for,” Leslie said. “Taking pride in what I do and just being enthused, working hard, being dedicated and committed to what you do; that’s a true Colonel for you. Not a Warhawk, Warhawks just fly.”

Leslie began playing basketball at the age of seven after watching how much her brothers enjoyed playing. “Ever since then I became enthused and started to put my heart into the game,” Leslie said. “I’ve been playing ever since.”

The thought about playing Division 1 basketball did not cross Leslie’s mind until she started playing in high school at Vandebilt Catholic.  “I was just playing the game for the fun of it,” Leslie said. “I never really thought about college until I started progressing to high school. That’s when I figured I’d like to play college ball.”

At Vandebilt Catholic in Houma, Leslie was a two-time all-state performer and was named to the All-Region team her senior year. She was also named to the All-District team in her senior season and holds Vandebilt Catholic’s records in scoring with 2,344 points, assists with 562 and steals with 495.

Being one of eight children, Leslie understands the importance of family. “I’m happy I’m not the only child,” Leslie said. “My siblings keep the momentum and energy going. We love each other; we’re just like a big bowl of gumbo if that’s what you want to call us.”

But according to Leslie, family doesn’t have to be blood related. She says her favorite thing about college basketball is being able to build a lifelong bond with new players. “Being able to meet new players, play with them and build that sisterhood, is not just for a little time, that’s forever,” Leslie said.

As for future plans, Leslie is undecided about which route she wants to take. As a dietetics major, she has many options within the field to explore as far as careers go, but also admits she has considered going overseas to further her basketball career. “I don’t like to say what I’m going to do; I just let God take care of that for me,” Leslie said. “Wherever he takes me, that’s where I’ll go.”