Head start for Lafayette duo
Kucowski, Margolis mesh in summer league
UPPER MORELAND » As opponents, Natalie Kucowski and Becca Margolis always had a respect for one another.
This summer, they’re learning life is a lot easier, and a lot more enjoyable as teammates. Kucowski, a rising sophomore at Lafayette and Margolis, an incoming freshman, have been getting an early start on the their oncourt chemistry as part of the Philadelphia/Suburban Women’s Summer Basketball League.
The early returns are solid, as the duo have already combined for some good moments.
“Firstly, you don’t have to worry about her scoring against you,” Kucowski, a St. Basil Academy graduate, said. “I feel like we play the same way. Once either of us gets the ball, it’s look up and push the ball up the court. She’s very good at attacking but also distributing.”
Margolis, who graduated from Council Rock North after a standout career that saw her eclipse 1,000 points, was likewise glad she doesn’t have to contend with Kucowski as an opponent anymore. The two crossed paths a
“Firstly, you don’t have to worry about her scoring against you. I feel like we play the same way. Once either of us gets the ball, it’s look up and push the ball up the court. She’s very good at attacking but also distributing.” — Natalie Kucowski on incoming Lafayette teammate Becca Margolis
couple times during their high school careers and both remembered the other as tough competitors, but also highly skilled.
Kucowski made an instant impact in her freshman season, leading Lafayette in scoring at 11.5 points per game and rebounding at 10.4 rebounds per game and set the school’s singleseason record for rebounds with 309. The 6-foot-3 forward also has range out to the 3-point line but can easily handle the ball pushing up the floor in transition.
“It’ll give me a little bit of an advantage because I’ll already know how she plays,” Margolis said. “I only remember playing against her, so it’s been good to get on the court with her and actually start playing before I even get to school.”
The duo plays for Red in the 10-team league, which consists mostly of Kutztown players and two from St. Joseph’s. As the only two Lafayette players on the roster, Margolis and Kucowski have been building their own chemistry while also meshing with their other teammates in order to win. Two of the Kutztown players on the roster, Karen Lapkiewicz and Kalee Fuegel, were teammates with Kucowski at St. Basil.
As a point guard, Margolis has also been using the summer to adjust to the quicker pace of college basketball. There’s no shot clock at summer league, but Margolis said she’s trying to keep a 30-second count in her head during offensive possessions, just to help speed up her decisionmaking.
“The transition is so fast, the ball gets out to the wings so fast, there’s been a few times where my back was still turned,” Margolis said. “The pace, right after someone scores or even misses, you have to keep up with it.”
Red has secured the No. 3 seed for the league’s playoff tournament. When they’ve been on the floor together, Margolis and Kucowski have produced. Both players have hit for at least 20 points on multiple occasions and in their win on July 10, Kucowski (26) and Margolis (23) combined for 49 of the team’s 80 points.
Kucowski has been impressed with Margolis’ shooting but also the hustle the guard has brought. Margolis, who was an AllSOL soccer player at CR North to go with her allconference hoops accolades, set the tone on the defensive end with her persistent and relentless effort.
In that July 10 win, Margolis chased down an opposing player, diving to the floor to poke the ball free while managing to grab it for a steal. In the same game, the pairing combined for a couple of baskets that looked like they’d been teammates for years, not weeks.
On the first, Margolis got the ball to Kucowski in the high post, then made a sharp cut, where Kucowski found her on a bounce pass that drew a shooting foul. The second play saw Margolis get into the lane, drawing a defender before she dropped the ball off to Kucowski for an easy lay-in.
“I like the quickness she plays with and she never quits,” Kucowski said. “She’s just running up and down the whole time, it’s really impressive. Being on the same league is a really good opportunity to get our chemistry. She’s an incoming freshman and doesn’t have the experience, which is where I can help her but I see her running up and down the court when I may be tired, I think ‘if she can do it, I can do it.’”
Margolis said as helpful as the league is in some aspects, there’s no substitute for that first real college experience coming later this fall when the Leopards start practice. Having been through it, Kucowski echoed that sentiment.
“Her aggressiveness is good to see, she’s knocking down shots and you can tell she’s putting the work in over the summer,” Kucowski said. “That’s going to make everything easier once we’re on campus. For me, it helped tremendously. The speed is so much quicker and with the shot clock, Becca has been doing a good job of taking good shots that are available as soon as they are available.”
Kucowski noted that the summer league is a good first experience for the speed and physicality that comes with college basketball but added it doesn’t have the same intensity. There’s no way to really replicate a real college game in a summer environment and Margolis also noted that level of intensity is something she won’t get until she goes through it.
“I’m really happy with how I’m playing and I’m working pretty hard off the court too so I think that’s showing,” Margolis said. “I’m just happy I’m doing well in this league because I like playing against these girls who are already established in college and understand the competitiveness and intensity.”
“If you’re willing to work that hard, there’s always playing time available,” Kucowski said. “There was one possession, she was down here having missed a layup, sprinted down the court, made a steal and came all the way back to finish a layup. Just that effort is so impressive.”
Coming off a debut season where she made the Patriot League All-Rookie team, Kucowski knows she still has a lot of room to grow. Even putting up solid freshman numbers, there were some games that were much tougher than others.
The forward said her next step is on the mental side. If things aren’t going well with her shot, Kucowski said there are other ways to impact a game and she wants to push through what isn’t going right to find those things quicker.
“The biggest thing you’re going to learn from experience is the intensity,” Kucowski said. “You can prepare for it as much as you want but until you’re in the training and the practices and not that there’s no room for error, but if it’s repetitive error, you have to change. It’s the biggest adjustment going to that next level.”