Alexander finds a home with Eagles
To Jaia Alexander, “bully” is a term of affection.
Since joining the Coppin State women’s basketball program in the summer, coach Laura Alexander has called Alexander, a Baltimore resident and Roland Park graduate, “The B-more Bully.” The nickname, which pays homage to Alexander’s hometown and her fearless habit of driving to the rim, has been embraced by Alexander.
“I love to play in the paint,” Alexander said. “I can usually play on the outside, but I’m more of an inside-outside player. I definitely would rather rebound the ball and get layups and and-ones. That’s my type of game. … I think [the nickname] is funny and a compliment.”
Lately, Alexander is the one who has been drawing praise for her contributions to the Eagles (3-3). In six starts, the graduate student shooting guard leads the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game, is tied for the team lead in rebounding at 6.2 per game, and is tied for third in total assists with seven.
Harper said Alexander, 23, has grown since the first time she scouted her at Roland Park.
“She is multi-dimensional positionally,” the former Maryland standout said. “I remember seeing her as a point guard, and now she’s gotten bigger and gotten stronger, and she’s a phenomenal rebounder. For me, there were holes on our team last year that we definitely needed to fill, and that was scoring and rebounding. I thought she perfectly fit both of those roles. She has already helped and left her imprint in those areas.”
Alexander’s path to this stage in her career has been well-traveled. After a successful high school career at Roland Park, where she was named first team All-Metro by The Baltimore Sun as a junior in 2015 and was rated the 25th best guard in the 2016 class, she accepted an offer to play at Clemson.
Alexander averaged 7.1 points and 3.9 rebounds as a freshman and 9.3 points and 4.6 rebounds as a sophomore, but her playing time dipped from 30 to 16 games. She elected to transfer to Butler and sat out the 2018-19 season per NCAA rules.
During the summer before what was supposed to be her first season with the Bulldogs, Alexander jumped for a rebound and felt pain in her right knee after landing. The knee swelled, and doctors told Alexander she would need to undergo microfracture surgery to repair what they described as a “pothole” at the end of her femur bone.
“That was a pretty tough injury because the recovery time and rehab was eight to 10 months,” said Alexander, who missed the 2019-20 campaign. “That was very difficult because that was the first time in my life that I couldn’t play because of an injury.”
Last winter, Alexander returned to average 9.4 points and a team-high 7.2 rebounds in 12 games, including 11 starts. And she played despite a torn meniscus in the same right knee on which doctors had operated.
“After dealing with the [coronavirus] pandemic, it was difficult, and no one knew if games were guaranteed,” she said. “I tore the meniscus a week before games started, and in my mind, I didn’t want to sit out anymore. I felt like nothing else could stop me and that all I wanted to do was play.”
Citing philosophical differences with the Butler coaches, Alexander chose to transfer again and picked the Eagles over UTEP and New Orleans to, in part, play games that her parents Reginald and Sharon Alexander, older brothers Ra’Son Alexander and Jordan Lee — the latter a former Coppin State guard — and three nephews and one niece could attend together as a family.
Alexander’s impact was immediate. She dropped a career-best 30 points in a 73-70 win at La Salle on Nov. 9, 19 more in a 73-56 victory against William & Mary on Nov. 11 and 23 points and 10 rebounds in a 74-45 loss at Rhode Island on Nov. 14.
Redshirt junior point guard Aliyah Lawson said Alexander’s ability to play different positions has been a calming influence on the floor.
“One thing I learned from her is just how versatile our team can be with her on the floor,” she said. “The great thing about having Jaia on our team is she is not necessarily set to play one role. She can play on the perimeter and inside for us. She can create a lot of different options for us offensively.”
But in her last three starts, Alexander has totaled just 12 points. Harper said opponents have assigned bigger players to neutralize her inside play, but Alexander said the onus is on her to adapt.
“I don’t think anybody can stop me,” she said. “I don’t think any defense can stop me. I think the only one who can stop me is me, and that’s the reason why my numbers have been low.”
Alexander continues to deal with her knee, which was operated on again in March and tends to swell after games. Harper said she has tried to give Alexander more time to rest, but Alexander said she does not intend to sit out games. If anything, she said she has adjusted her playing style to accommodate her knee.
“My father and I spent a lot of time in the summer on my jump shot, and I’m seeing the game,” she said. “I’m learning how to read defenses to not crash into people when I have to. I’m basically protecting myself while still being effective, and I think that has made me an overall better player. I definitely think I’m not as one-dimensional.”
Harper said Alexander has the skills to become a professional and enjoy a career overseas. For now, she has faith that Alexander can help her turn around a program that went just 2-13 overall and 2-10 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference last season and is seeking its first league title of any kind since the 2007-08 squad captured the tournament championship.
“I think she gives us a good chance to compete in every single game,” she said. “I don’t know if I felt as confident before with being able to score the basketball at a high clip. Now I feel like we can actually score.”
Due to the knee injury and pandemic, Alexander has another year of eligibility. But her focus is on propelling Coppin State to success this winter.
“That’s what I came here for,” she said. “You want to make an immediate impact, and it would be selfish of me to pace myself and pace this team along when we can do it now. We can win now. That’s the one page that all of us are on. We have such a sense of urgency to win now because we know we can do it, and that’s where I am.”