Anita Brown, like most college freshmen, are taken aback by the rigors of college life.
For the 2012 Warren G. Harding graduate, she's made the adjustment as part of the University of Akron women's basketball team.
She was the area's leading scorer last season, averaging more than 26 points per outing her senior season with the Raiders.
Now, she puts in three points and two rebounds per game, coming off the bench for the Zips.
"College is like completely different," said Brown, a 5-foot-8 freshman guard. "I realized how much I didn't know about basketball. I thought I did.
"The whole scoring thing, I'm OK with that. I'm fine with coming off the bench this year. It wasn't hard to adjust to that."
Tonight, as Akron (8-3) travels to Youngstown State (7-3) to play the Penguins at Beeghly Center, Brown is happy to show off her newfound skills in front of her family, friends and coaches - former WGH coach P.J. Notar and current coach Frank Caputo. Tonight's game begins at 7:05 p.m.
"I'm really excited because none of them have gotten a chance to see me play since I've been in college," she said. "I'm excited for my coaches to see my progression and everything."
Akron coach Jodi Kest said she recruited Brown because of her scoring and athleticism.
"I thought she fit well with the up-tempo style game," Kest said.
Brown's defensive prowess isn't bad either.
"We play zone," Kest said. "She plays in the top of the zone and she's really aggressive in the zone and has really helped us a lot this year. Last year, we didn't play a lot of zone. We're pleased with that. She's able to run the floor and score in transition. Phenomenal athlete and great rebounder. So many times she may not get the rebound, but she's keeping the ball active for other people.
"She needs to continue to grow and learn. It's a different type of game than high school to college. That learning curve takes a little bit longer for freshmen, but she continues to work hard every day. You'll continue to see more improvement and more playing time as well."
The adjustments Brown has made isn't uncommon.
"Most high school kids, you try to prepare them and warn them," Kest said. "Until they get there, they really don't understand. It's high intensity the whole time. We don't stand around at practices. It's constant movement. You get the ball offensively, defensively. Sometimes in high school, you don't do that. You run a lot of plays. A lot of high schools, you don't run a lot of plays - you run a lot of quick hitters and defensive assignments people don't know about."
"When I got here, I really didn't work that hard," Brown said. "I definitely have to adjust and work a lot harder than I used to work."
Brown has made progress.
"She's been wanting to get better and I'm proud of her for that," Kest said. "I've been tough on her. She's handled it pretty well. A lot of kids, that's a big adjustment. We're starting to learn about each other. Sometimes, it takes a little bit longer to do that, find out what motivates her and what doesn't motivate her.
"I think her best basketball is ahead of her."
