Thrilla in Camilla
Though minus star twin sister, Lakewood forward put on a show
The mirroring of Lakewood’s identical twin basketball players, Camilla and Kira Emsbo, only became more pronounced during their senior season — by on-court achievement, by college choice, by accolades.
Camilla, a Yale commit, led the Tigers back to the Class 5A Final Four en route to earning the 2018 Denver Post Ms. Basketball and Gatorade player of the year honors. Kira, meanwhile, chose a different Ivy League destination (Princeton) but missed the entire basketball season due to an ACL tear suffered in a summer game.
Despite the differences in how their respective prep careers turned out — Kira was also limited as a junior due to an elbow injury — you can’t consider one 6-foot-5 forward without the other, as Kira’s influence is a central reason for Camilla’s growth as one of the state’s brightest talents.
“Kira’s my biggest motivator — she doesn’t let me make excuses and she’s always pushing me,” Camilla said. “Whether it’s screaming at me from the sideline, or giving me support when I need support, she’s my rock. To have someone who knows you that well — and knows how to develop you in ways that most coaches and teammates don’t understand — I can’t express how valuable that is.”
Camilla posted gaudy numbers this past season, averaging 18.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.6 blocks as Lakewood won the Jeffco League title and made a deeper state tournament run than was expected by the Tigers’ coach, Chris Poisson.
“She put us on our back until we figured out how to play without Kira, because in December, we were a lot different,” Poisson said. “But what Camilla did was she enabled the team to grow. A lot of kids in her position would’ve made it all about her.
“If she had done that, we don’t have the great run we had this year or last year, to the program’s first title game. She wants everybody involved, and she’s great at creating a selfless culture even though she’s the star.”
That selflessness was seen throughout practices and games as Camilla embraced a well-rounded approach that allowed the Lakewood guard trio of Jessica Woodhead, Hannah Renstrom and Nadia Trevizo to flourish, in addition to helping solidify senior forward Sassy Coleman as a complementary paint presence.
“Kira and I realized what we were missing on our team from those first two years was really great chemistry,” Camilla said. “That’s something we dedicated ourselves toward as juniors and seniors, and that was my ultimate goal — to leave a legacy of a team that’s willing to go out and fight for each other, and love each other.”
In addition to talent and a true team vision, high academic success (4.83 GPA) combined with a potent basketball IQ made Emsbo tough to game plan against.
“I always felt she made the right decisions all the time,” Dakota Ridge coach Diane Thompson said. “If she was double-teamed, she kicked it out. If a kid of mine was in foul trouble, she would go at them. If she needed to score, she would score.”
Camilla finished with 1,260 points and 659 rebounds in her prep career. Now, she looks forward to cultivating a college rivalry with Kira, who has been cleared to run and is on her way toward a complete rehabilitation.
“We’ve never played against each other in a game, and the elbows will probably be flying,” Camilla said with a laugh. “Our parents are already worried about who they’re going to cheer for, and what color to wear. But we’re excited for everything about the next chapter.”