Rutgers-Newark Athletics

By Jim Hague
 
After playing women’s basketball during her freshman year at Rutgers-Newark, Maria Simmons took a year off to concentrate on her academics and to take a respite from the sport.
 
“I decided to work on my schoolwork,” Simmons said. “But I realized I missed it a lot. It hurt me a lot, especially when they lost, because I felt like I could have made a difference.”
 
When Simmons was a senior at Irvington High School in Irvington, N.J., she considered offers to attend Florida International University or Georgian Court in Lakewood down the Jersey Shore.
But Simmons wanted to attend Rutgers-Newark because of the school’s extensive criminal justice program.
 
“I always wanted to be a cop or a detective,” Simmons said. “Or maybe a forensic scientist. I used to watch all those crime shows as a kid, like ‘Forensic Files.’ I found it interesting. I wanted to be able to catch criminals. I always thought that was fascinating.”
 
So when Simmons left the women’s team last year, she gave no thought of transferring to another school just to play.
 
“I definitely knew that I wanted to come back,” Simmons said. “I wanted to come back this year no matter what. I missed playing.”
 
When Bill Zasowski took over the R-N women’s basketball program this season on an interim basis, it opened the door for Simmons’ return.
 
“Maria and I used to work camp together, so we knew each other well,” Zasowski said. “What happened before to her was not a concern of mine. It didn’t happen to me. Everyone came in with a clean slate. Maria is a gym rat who works hard at her game. She’s always in the gym. She’s just naturally there.”
 
Zasowski asked Simmons to take on even a more important role in her return, that being a point guard.
 
“I had to adapt being the point guard,” Simmons said. “I like being the point guard. In high school, I had to do a little bit of everything, but when I came here, I was more of a two (shooting guard). I used to just try to stay out of foul trouble.”
 
Simmons admitted that she wasn’t the most mature of college freshmen.
 
“I was way too immature in a lot of ways,” Simmons said. “I would show up late for practice. I wouldn’t try hard. I didn’t take anything seriously and I regretted that. It was the wrong attitude to have. I reflected on that and knew that I had to become more of a leader. That was my goal coming back. I wanted to get better. It was my drive and determination to get better in everything.”
 
If there’s one aspect to Simmons’ game that needs improvement, it’s her verbal skills.
 
“I’m trying to pull it all out of her,” Zasowski said. “She needs work with her communication, but she understands that it’s part of the process. I think she’s willing to embrace that part of the game.”
 
“I’ve always been quiet,” Simmons said. “I don’t like to talk. Even when I’m home, turn off the lights and like to be alone. I’m really not a people person. I’m trying to be better with that on the court. I’m trying to talk more on the court, because I have to be a leader.”
 
Zasowski said that he is seeing signs of Simmons breaking out of her shell.
 
“There are times when she’s just sitting there and she just starts singing,” Zasowski said. “That’s when I know she’s happy. She will just start singing.”
 
Zasowski said that Simmons has been a godsend to his depleted roster.
 
“She’s playing 38 minutes a game,” Zasowski said. “We need her out there. She’s been very good. She’s averaging seven assists and seven rebounds per game.”
 
In Monday night’s win over Mount St. Mary, Simmons had seven points, 11 assists and six rebounds – and just one turnover.
 
“She fills up the stat line,” Zasowski said. “She’s doing a nice job considering she’s still learning the position. Naturally, she’s going to make some mistakes. I’m willing to accept her mistakes, because she’s playing so hard. She’s going through some growing pains right now, but her upside is tremendous. As she goes, we go. It’s as simple as that.”
 
Zasowski has enjoyed watching the transformation Simmons has enjoyed in her return to basketball, playing a new position.
 
“I really think her better basketball is ahead of her,” Zasowski said. “Right now, she’s learning on the fly, because she has to, good, bad or indifferent, we have no other choice but to roll with it. She plays hard and the others seem to follow that. It’s a no-nonsense kind of thing.”


Simmons knows that she’s a different person than what she was when she first entered R-N two years ago.
 
“I’m a lot better than what I was two years ago,” Simmons said. “My goal was to get better. I think I’m doing that. It was a good thing for me to come back.”


And it was good for the Scarlet Raiders as well, because they now have a legitimate point guard for the rest of this season – and the two years that follow after that.