Camara determined to contribute more as a junior

STORRS — Batouly Camara has learned the art of patience.

More than two years after transferring from Kentucky to UConn, Camara is still waiting to show what she’s truly capable of. The 6-foot-2 junior remains something of a mystery — an aggressive, physical, big-bodied forward who has been beset by injuries and erratic play.

“She’s definitely trying to figure out where she fits in,” senior guard Katie Lou Samuelson said recently. “When she comes in and she knows that she needs to get someone open, she does the best job of anyone. She probably sets the hardest screens I’ve ever seen. She’s working hard and trying to find a way that she fits in.”

Camara sat out the 201617 season per NCAA rules after transferring, then struggled to get on to the court last year. Hampered by a right knee injury, she made a minimal impact, averaging just 1.3 points and 1.3 rebounds over 4.8 minutes per game.

“I really had to lean on my teammates to say, ‘You’re here, we need you, you’re a vital part of our team. What can you do to help us?’ ” Camara said.

Camara has approached this year with renewed enthusiasm, insisting that she’s overcome many physical and mental hurdles associated with the injury. It helps that she sees an opportunity to carve out a more defined role, one that could benefit the Huskies greatly as they look to get back to the Final Four for the 12th straight season.

“She’s really strong,” Samuelson said. “I think sometimes she doesn’t understand how strong she is. If she can come in there, get rebounds and be that physical presence, we could really use her.”

The Huskies need more grit and muscle in the post. That’s been apparent since April, when Azurá Stevens told them that she intended to leave for the WNBA a year early.

“I think that’s something that my teammates have kind of reiterated to me, that, ‘Batouly, we need you to screen, we need you to rebound and get good looks (at the basket) and do the intangibles,’” Camara said.

Geno Auriemma originally recruited Camara, a New York native, out of Blair Academy in New Jersey, believing she could develop into a player capable of handling all those needs. Though she spent her first season at Kentucky — averaging 5.1 points and 4.3 rebounds across 33 games, including 14 starts — she ended up transferring to UConn.

After injuring her knee in practice, Camara missed the first seven games of last season. She played sparingly in her return, logging more than 10 minutes just twice over the final four months.

The Huskies believe Camara can contribute to some level this season — assuming, of course, she can stay healthy. In hopes of doing so, Camara has stuck to a strict training routine, one that involves up to an hour of stretching and core exercises.

“To be honest, I do have a little up and down, but I do feel better,” Camara said of her recovery. “Everyone said I look better. I’m just trying to keep steady. I was here until July and August — I stayed the whole summer just to rehab and work on my body.”

Auriemma seemed to ease Camara along in Sunday’s exhibition against Vanguard, playing her only six minutes — tied for the fewest on the team — in a 96-30 victory. She finished with six points, three rebounds and one block — a performance that earned a compliment from Auriemma.

“Batouly never has had a problem playing hard,” Auriemma said. “That’s not an issue. It’s something we’ve come to expect. I’m never surprised that Batouly plays hard. She struggles a lot of times to get up and down the floor the way she used to. Things get a little sideways sometimes in the lane and in traffic, but Batouly’s effort has never been a question. She plays hard. She competes really hard.”