It’s her team now.
Former Bishop Loughlin star Imani Tate will become the de facto leader of the University at Albany women’s basketball team after three years on the roster. It’s a role Tate is determined to perform to perfection — particularly with a handful of major changes facing the Great Danes this winter.
“The goal of the team, always, is to win a championship,” Tate said. “I know a lot of people are going to doubt us this year because of losing [all-time leading scorer] Shereesha Richards and getting a new coaching staff, but I think we can make this work.”
Tate has always been a solid scoring threat for the Danes, but her talents have long been overshadowed by Richards’ ability across the court. Now the focus is entirely on Tate and her jump shot.
“I do see people gunning for me more,” said Tate, who averaged a career-best 18.3 points per season last year. “I think my approach this year just has to be more of poise and patience and seeing what the defense gives me. I know I’m going to be using screens a lot more this year and focusing on shooting off the wing.”
Tate isn’t just focused on her stat line this season. The former Lions star is also working to help the University at Albany program transition after long-time coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson left the program for the University of Central Florida following the squad’s first-ever National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament victory last year.
Now, Tate is working with a brand-new staff — led by head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee — for the first time in her college career, looking to lend her own experience to a group that hasn’t quite hit its stride.
“It’s actually been really different, because this coaching staff has never coached together,” said Tate, who finished with nine points, six rebounds, and four assists in the Great Danes’ season-opening loss to Kentucky on Nov. 11.
“So they don’t know each other tendencies and stuff quite yet, but I think everybody has great input and initiative and stuff like that. I just know I have to be on my A-game.”
That game has evolved since Tate’s time at Bishop Loughlin, and the guard is thankful for that particular change heading into her final season of college hoops.
“In high school I was definitely more of a post player, even though I could shoot and do the little things on the outside perimeter,” Tate said. “I think I’ve developed my outside game in college, I’ve been able to dribble out a lot more, dribble with people on me, and see the court a lot better.”
The expectations for the Great Danes are as high as ever — despite a recently acquired coaching staff and the loss of Richards. After all, the University at Albany clinched an unprecedented fifth-straight America East title last year and wrapped up the season with a 28–5 record. And Tate is determined to make sure that the team doesn’t miss a step this year.
“We’re chasing a championship again,” Tate said. “It’s a new slate, a new year, and we’re all chasing after it, and we’ve got to go after it like we’re hungry every time we go out there.”
