Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Ariana took a final warm-up shot then walked towards the New York bench. Cameron was waiting to give her a high five.
“Your crush is not hard to look at,” she said.
“What?” Ariana asked. “You don’t look at her, you listen to her.”
“No, Ari,” Cameron said. “Look!”
Ariana followed Cameron’s gaze. Nicole Neal was standing in front of the table.
She was wearing black pants and a white button down with wide cuffs turned up affixed with cuff links.
Instead of a blazer she was wearing a black vest that was fitted at the waist. Her high heeled shoes made her legs look long and lean.
“My God,” Ari gasped. She didn’t think she’d ever seen such a sexy woman.
She continued to watch Nicole walk around the long table to her seat.
With each confident step, Ariana watched and thought, that is a woman in command of herself and anyone who crossed her path.
She couldn’t take her eyes off Nicole as her thick reddish-brown hair fell just to her shoulders with a slight curl at the ends.
It swung in rhythm with every step, giving her the appearance of refined grace.
Ariana shook her head and couldn’t believe she was having these thoughts when she was about to play such an important game to begin the season.
A ball whizzed by her head, bringing her out of the trance Nicole Neal had just put her in.
Ariana blinked and brought her focus back to where it should be.
“You okay, captain?” Cameron asked.
“What? Of course I’m okay,” Ariana replied. “I’m ready to go.”
Cameron gave her a slow smile. “It’s okay, Ari. She’s hot. There’s nothing wrong with appreciating the beauty of a woman.”
Ariana furrowed her brow. “Since when do you appreciate the beauty of a woman?” she said, using Cameron’s words. “You’re practically married to Terrance.”
Cameron smiled. “He’s my man, but that doesn’t mean I’m not on the lookout for a woman for you.”
Ariana dropped her head and looked at the floor. This was not the conversation they should be having with the game about to start.
“Cam, we’re about to be introduced. Get your head in the game!”
“Sorry,” Cameron said. “We’ll talk about this later.”
Ariana smirked.
“Yes, ma’am.” She gave Ariana an exaggerated salute and winked.
Ariana laughed. Only Cam could lighten up such an anxious moment. Nicole Neal was forgotten and they were once again focused on the game they loved. Well, maybe Nicole wasn’t forgotten. Ariana would file that image and knowledge away for later.
While LA was being introduced, Ariana reached for a quick sip of water. She sat down along with the other starters on the bench as the rest of the team lined up facing each other to give them a makeshift runway.
After LA was introduced, the lights dimmed and music began to filter through the arena.
A highlight reel played on the big screens and the crowd cheered louder and louder.
As each of them were introduced they hopped up, giving their teammates high fives, low fives, or rehearsed elaborate handshakes.
This was a playful way to lessen the stress leading up to tip-off.
Ariana was the first to be introduced and had a special word of encouragement for each of her teammates as they joined her in a huddle on the floor.
She always preferred to lead through example, but planned to be more vocal this season.
Her leadership would be centered around encouragement and lifting up every player, whether they were starters or came off the bench during the game.
When all the starters were in the huddle Ariana looked each of them in the eye. “New season. We are a team and we win together. Every one of you has special talents. Let’s go out and show the world!”
Her teammates began to jump up and down, obviously inspired by the moment. They ran back to the bench for last minute instructions from their coaches.
As Ariana started to walk out to take her place on the court her coach, Misty Bell, put an arm around her and quietly said, “They’re your team, Ari. Lead them like only you can.”
Ariana nodded.
“And don’t forget to shoot!” Misty nodded at her and winked.
Ariana decided right then if the opportunity arose for her to get a good shot, she wouldn’t automatically pass the ball like the defense expected her to do. She’d shoot and it had better go in the hoop!
The players lined up around the half court circle preparing for the jump ball that would start the game.
Ariana was facing her basket because she expected her center, Nia Stevens, to win the ball.
She glanced over to the scorer’s table, waiting for the referees to take the court.
Her attention was drawn to Nicole Neal whose lips were moving as she spoke into her headset.
Nicole was looking right at her and Ariana gave her a slight smile, thinking, could she be talking about me?
The referee blew her whistle and tossed the ball in the air.
Just like Ariana suspected Nia won the ball and tapped it to Ariana.
The players ran down the court to set up and that’s when Ariana noticed her defender was playing at least two steps back from her, expecting her to pass.
Ariana took the opening, stopped, and shot from behind the three-point line.
She was rewarded with a whoosh as the ball slipped through the basket, never touching the rim.
The crowd went wild. Cameron gave her the biggest smile and a high five as she ran by to play defense on the other end of the court. Ariana winked at her, thinking, if Nicole Neal wasn’t talking about me before, she is now.
A couple of minutes later, after Ariana had scored another three point shot, LA began to guard her more closely. This opened the passing lanes and she fed her other teammates perfect passes for easy layups. LA called a time out to readjust their defense.
Coach Bell met Ariana as she hurried to the bench and gave her a high five. “That’s what I’m talking about! Great job, Villa.”
Ariana smiled and grabbed her water bottle before sitting down to hear the adjustments they needed to make as well.
The game began to flow and LA kept it close because New York’s defense was not what it should be. Ariana encouraged her teammates to communicate and as they went into halftime, New York led by four points.
Ariana had scored two more baskets as she drove the lane and pulled up to shoot when the defense collapsed near the basket. She had ten points and six assists in the first half which was a bit unusual for her. She was known for her assists but didn’t usually score more than ten points a game.
As she left the court the sideline reporter stopped her to do a quick interview.
“Ariana, it looks like you’ll be shooting more this season,” she said. “Is that part of the new look offense?”
“We’ll see,” Ariana said humbly. “My shots are going in and I’m happy with that, but we’ve got to defend better when they have the ball.”
“What adjustments are you expecting at halftime?”
Ariana smiled and looked at the reporter. “Now, Keeley, I can’t tell you that or LA will be ready for it.” She chuckled. “As I said, our defense needs to step up.”
“Thanks, Ariana, for taking the time to talk to us,” Keeley said with a smile.
“Anytime.” Ariana smiled into the camera and jogged off the court into the tunnel to join her team.
Cameron met Ariana at the locker room door with a big smile. “Who’s the star now?”
Ariana smirked. “This will last a couple of games and then the other teams’ defenses will catch on. Besides, making them guard me sure does leave you and Nia wide open. I love it!”
“Okay, let’s talk defense,” Coach Li said, standing at the white board. Emerson Li had been the defensive player of the year three times during her career. She’d joined Coach Bell’s staff this season and the team was still learning her system.
Ariana took the hydration drink the trainer handed her and listened intently.
She knew their communication was still lacking, but it was better during the second quarter.
Ariana had also had two steals during the first half that led to easy layups as Cameron sprinted down the court.
She was able to bat the ball away because her teammates were making it hard for the opposing player to pass the ball.
If they all stayed with their assignments then the system worked.
Recharged and ready for the second half, the team left the locker room and went back onto the court. They did a short warmup, shooting a few balls before the whistle to begin the second half.
Ariana felt confident that if they stayed with the plan that they could control the second half and pull away for the win. She went around to each player with encouraging words and fist bumps.
She glanced toward the media table and watched Nicole and Shealyn as the camera was on them before play started.
Ariana tilted her head as she watched them, it reminded Ariana of her and Cam.
They had played together for years and knew what the other was going to do on the court.
In much the same way, Nicole and Shealyn were teammates in their part of the sport and their experience together was evident in how seamlessly they commentated during games.
The referee blew the whistle to call the players onto the court and the second half began. New York’s team played defense with a renewed intensity and they quickly increased their lead.
Ariana played most of the game. She had a short rest period at the end of the third quarter and was ready to go back in when the fourth started.
As the game began to wind down in the middle of the fourth quarter, Ariana was substituted out as New York enjoyed a ten point lead.
She drank plenty of water with electrolytes to keep her hydration level steady for the final push at the end of the game. Ariana had prided herself on keeping fit even in the offseason. She came into training camp ready to go whereas some of the other veterans had to play themselves into shape.
“Villa,” Coach Bell called and pointed at her. “You and Benson check back in.”
Ariana and Cameron ran to the scorer’s table, ready to go back in with the next whistle stopping play. They crouched down on the floor so the officials at the table could see.
Her gaze was drawn across the court where Nicole and Shealyn were. In the past the commentators had sat on the same side as the players and the scorer’s table. She could remember how some players would try and throw the commentators off their game by messing with them during the broadcast.
She could see Nicole and Shealyn following the game as their heads turned to watch the movements of the players. Their lips were moving with every bounce, pass, and shot of the ball.
The ball went out of bounds and the referee blew the whistle to stop play. She motioned for Ariana and Cameron to enter the game.
The ball had rolled to the other side of the court so Ariana jogged over to retrieve it. She could hear Nicole’s commentary and that smooth, silky voice drifted over her like honey. Even in all the noise and excitement of the game Nicole’s voice rose above the rest.
As she turned to give the ball to the ref she heard Nicole laugh at something Shealyn said. Ariana knew Nicole had a beautiful voice, but that laugh might be even better.
“Is everything okay on that side of the court?” Cameron said as she got ready to throw the ball in to Ariana.
Ariana shrugged. She was relaxed and loved it when she could play like this, enjoying the game as she had as a kid. It didn’t always happen this way, especially if they were losing, but not today. It had been a good afternoon and she was playing well.
They were ahead by twelve points when Ariana once again batted the ball away from the opposing player. She hustled after it, trying to keep it in bounds so she could pass it to one of her teammates.
As the ball bounced then flew towards the media table, Ariana leaped and reached as far as she could. She swatted the ball back into the court. All she could see as she flew through the air was the fear on people’s faces as they moved back. This is going to hurt.