By Jonah Bronstein
Niagara Gazette
NIAGARA FALLS —
It’s not quite a homecoming, but it’s close enough to get Destiny Harrison excited. The Niagara Falls native will be in Olean tonight when her Robert Morris team meets St. Bonaventure in the first round of the women’s National Invitation Tournament.
“My mom, two little cousins, brothers, nieces, nephews, uncles are all coming,” Harrison said by phone Tuesday. “And I’m excited because it gives us a chance to redeem ourselves.”
In her junior year, Harrison was developed into a rotation player for coach Sal Buscaglia, a Buffalo native. In the final 10 games of the regular season, she averaged more than 18 minutes and six points as the Colonials won the Northeast Conference championship on were on their way to a third NCAA berth in four years before losing to host St. Francis in the semifinals of the conference tournament.
“When I got in there I played hard and I think I gave the coach confidence,” Harrison said.
“She comes off the bench most games and really provides a spark for us, especially when she is hitting her shots,” Buscaglia said.
Buscaglia was the only Division I coach to offer a scholarship to Harrison after she scored a district-record 1,578 points in her career at Niagara Falls.
“We saw a kid that knew the game of basketball, loves to play and was a good athlete,” Buscaglia said. “We saw her not as an instant impact player, but someone who can grow as a player, and by the time her junior year comes around, she can be a significant player on our team.
“And that’s basically how it’s played out.”
Harrison is also on her way to earning a degree in information sciences with a minor in forensics.
“She’s definitely a girl we are going to use as an example for the girls in our program,” said Sal Constantino, the current Niagara Falls girls basketball coach.
Robert Morris (23-8) will have its hands full with the Bonnies (22-9), who are in the WNIT for the second year in a row and expecting a good crowd at the Reilley Center.
“We have a very young team. Our starters are all first-year players, and no one on this team has more than three years of Division I experience,” Buscaglia said. “We are really considered with Bonaventure having all that experience.”
“We’ve never won a postseason game before,” Harrison said. “So we have a chance to do something special.”
Contact reporter Jonah Bronstein at 282-2311, ext. 2258.
