Vanier College guard transfers to Brandon

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This article was published 10/03/2021 (1883 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Few Canada West rookie recruits come with the experience Andrea Taruc-Montero will bring to the Brandon University Bobcats women’s basketball team this fall.

The five-foot-four point guard from Montreal is transferring to BU after three years with Vanier College at the CEGEP Division 1 level.

“I’m really excited,” Taruc-Montero told the Sun. “I’ve always wanted to get a university degree and wanted to continue playing basketball.”

CEGEP is a similar level to other college leagues in Canada, however, athletes who only spend two years of eligibility before joining U Sports teams are treated as first-years. (If they play a third before switching, they’d be a fourth-year.)

Taruc-Montero joined the team in 2018 and had her 2020-21 season cancelled due to COVID-19, so she will have up to five years to spend in Brandon.

“Three years post high school at the CEGEP level equates to experience. To have someone with three years of post-secondary experience coming in as a first-year is super beneficial for us,” said Novell Thomas, Bobcats head coach.

“We’re going to rely on her for her experience and she’s used to playing with some athletic players at the CEGEP level so that should bode well for us here.”

Taruc-Montero started playing basketball at age six, since her older brother Mark did, and never looked back.

She hit a stumbling block in Grade 12 when she suffered a concussion during her provincial semifinal and was off the court for three or four months.

“It was hard for me to come back and come with full force. I was a little skeptical with my skills and everything,” she said, adding the transition to college was tough but rewarding.

“… In high school I was always the best player. Being able to play with better girls with more talent, it was an eye-opener. And seeing how much effort my teammates put in, it pushes me to get better every day.”

The point guard considers herself a pass-first player and works to slow the game down and control the tempo offensively. She averaged 4.4 points per game in 2019-20, with 1.6 assists per game on 17.8 minutes per contest as Vanier posted a 5-11 record.

Thomas said she’s a good fit for his group.

“She’s not really known for her scoring. It’s her IQ, her ability to make other players better. She’ll play the point guard position for us and add to our depth at that position,” Thomas said. “But she can shoot it, she can distribute and at that point guard position you need players that are going to make other players better.

“I’ve always said I’m not afraid to play two point guards or three point guards because if the ball is moving and good decisions are being made, obviously those players should receive playing time.”

Taruc-Montero started her post-secondary studies in nursing, but slowly adjusted and actually plans to take business classes at BU. She was planning to make the jump to U Sports somewhere and said Thomas sold her on the Bobcat community, which she’ll join along with Team Manitoba forward Beth Dueck and Spanish import Noah Garcia in the rookie class.

“When I talked to coach Thomas, he talked about how the school and the program is like a little community or a big family,” she said.

“The sense of belonging there, and he showed me some videos on how the team bonded over the years and how it’s really close. I really like that. Coach Thomas said the team has a lot of potential and I’m also ready for a challenge.”

» tfriesen@brandonsun.com

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