Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Growing up with five brothers, all older than her, Utah freshman Gianna Kneepkens had to learn to survive.
Really, there was no other way to do it in a family of competitive siblings who played the same sport of basketball. If you know anything about brothers, there's always a competition alive and well among them, even if there's nothing to be competitive about at the moment.
"I bet you probably imagine there's a little bit of chaos. Chaos is a lot of fun, though," Kneepkens said. "It was a lot of fun. They definitely gave me a little bit of my toughness."
If Kneepkens wanted to survive on the court, she had to prove it first to her brothers. As such, competitive basketball games on the family's driveway were commonplace. That's where Kneepkens honed her talent on the court, eventually averaging 41.9 points per game to lead the state of Minnesota her senior season at Duluth Marshall High.
Kneepkens led her high school to its first state tournament in 20 years and is primed to lead the University of Utah to its first NCAA Tournament since 2011 in her freshman season with the program. And if that's not enough, she's considered the favorite to win the Pac-12 Freshman of the Season award for her dynamic play as a guard.
Already, Kneepkens leads Utah in scoring with 12.3 points per game. She's also the league's 12th best scorer and ranks in the top 15 in the league in field goal percentage (45.4%) and 3-point field goal percentage (38.6%).
"Yeah, she's been phenomenal," Utah head coach Lynne Roberts said, "and the one thing I would say about her is that she's just consistently steady. Like, she just — you look up and you think, 'Wow, she's got 15 (points). When did that happen?' She just kind of is steady and fearless, is never scared of the moment."
Roberts knew Kneepkens could score — she finished with more than 3,700 career points in high school and set a state tournament record for points (67) in a game her senior season — but how quickly that translated to college was always a guessing game, especially in the Pac-12 where there's a multitude of talented programs and athletes.
But Roberts said it's that consistency and the daily grind that Kneepkens brings to the game that has allowed her to translate her natural skills to score at a high rate to the collegiate game.
"I think it's been a surprise to how consistent she's been. Like, that's not typical of a freshman," Roberts said. "I didn't know how it would translate, and it translated really quickly, but she's been consistent. And even the games where she didn't maybe shoot a stellar shooting percentage, she's still doing other things that maybe don't show up.
"It's been awesome to see her just settle in, and she's such a humble kid that there's no worry of her getting overconfident or getting too smooth. She's just steady, which is cool. I think the sky's the limit for her and if she wants to be a professional, she can."
For Kneepkens, the transition to Division I basketball was certainly difficult, but she credits her success — if her humble nature can really claim personal success — to the hard work she puts in on a daily basis. With a week left in the regular season, it's not time to slow down just yet.
"I just knew that coming in, I had to come in and give everything I have: work hard, giving extra, as much as I can," Kneepkens said. "I mean, you can get in the gym whenever you want, so might as well take advantage of that. I honestly wasn't exactly sure what to expect, but I knew if I worked hard things would go well. And so far, I've just had a great time with my teammates and learning."
Roberts, who admits to the cliche, said Kneepkens is "in the gym every day," but it's the characteristic that defines her freshman and leading scorer. All of that hard work has given Roberts the latitude to trust Kneepkens in key situations of a game, in a season where Utah is expected to make its first NCAA Tournament berth in the Pac-12 era.
"She wants the ball in situations; and everybody can't say that, like, 'Yeah, I want to take that shot.' But in the game, you can see her — it's genuine, and the confidence is genuine, which is rare for freshmen," Roberts said. "We'll take it. I've had so many coaches in our conference just talk about what a player she is and a future pro. So if she can stay with her head screwed on straight, as she has so far, I think the sky truly is the limit for her."
But for now, it's about closing out the season with wins against an Oregon State team fighting for postseason life and an Oregon team ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 looking to maintain its strong footing. Then it's the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas and the work to secure a coveted postseason destination — and maybe even a win if they get there.
The sky may be the limit, in time, but there are some things Kneepkens wants to check off first along the way, and that starts with her "dream" of getting to the Big Dance.
"Yeah, that's a goal, and we're gonna work as hard as we can to get that, but we need to focus on just getting our job done this Thursday, and then the next game — so just focusing on now," Kneepkens said. "But that would be, that'd be a dream."
Maybe, if they're lucky, Kneepkens will thank her brothers for helping her get to where she is today.
