Saturday afternoon, Amanda Kalin entered elite territory with her performance against La Salle.
Her 15 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists gave her the fourth triple-double in Duquesne University women’s basketball history, joining April Robinson (2016), Orsi Szecsi (2013) and Korie Hlede (1994).
It was a continuation of what has been a breakthrough junior season for the Pine-Richland High grad, who endured injuries and limited playing time as a freshman and sophomore.
“I’m in a much better rhythm this season,” said Kalin, who spent much of her first two years playing behind several talented guards, including 2019 graduate Chassidy Omogrosso. “It’s a lot easier to get going offensively now. I’m more consistent, more confident.”
Kalin opened the season with six consecutive double-digit scoring games, including 16 points at Pitt and 15 each versus Iona and Lafayette. The Dukes (11-5, 1-2 Atlantic 10 heading into Wednesday’s game at Dayton) opened with 10 consecutive victories.
Kalin ranks third on the Dukes and 15th in the A-10 at 11.9 points per game. She’s third in the league in assists (4.2) and fourth in minutes played (35.3)
“She’s had a great amount of consistency this year,” Dukes coach Dan Burt said. “You always know what Amanda is going to give you. She’ll give you a made 3-pointer or two, she’ll score point-blank at the rim, she’ll be an effective on-ball defender. And, the first thing you think of when you say the name Amanda Kalin is that she’ll be leading the charge downcourt. She can shift at high speeds and get by people. She’s a lot of fun to watch as a fan and as a coach.”
In some ways, Kalin reinvented herself as a player over the past two offseasons. She corrected a glitch in her shooting form to get her shot off more quickly. This required countless hours in the gym.
“I had to start from scratch, which isn’t easy when you’ve shot a certain way your whole life,” she said. “After the injury my freshman year [a hematoma in her leg that hindered her throughout] my shot was even more messed up. I had to put in a lot of work to correct it. My muscle memory wasn’t there. It was frustrating at times, but it had to be done.”
In addition to the hematoma, suffered in a shootaround prior to the season opener of her freshman year, Kalin later developed myositis ossificans (a condition where bone tissue forms inside muscle or other soft tissue after an injury).
“Thing was, she was pushing for playing time as a freshman,” Burt said. “It was unfortunate that she had to go through it.”
This season, Kalin has converted 46.2% of her field-goal attempts, including 36.6 from 3-point range. Those numbers are significantly better than last season’s marks of 41.3/29.4. She averaged 5.8 points in 32 games, including 13 starts, as a sophomore.
“The mental part of my game is the biggest difference this season,” Kalin said. “If you’re not there mentally, you’re not going to play at a high level.”
Kalin was a heralded three-sport athlete (basketball, soccer, track) at Pine-Richland, even earning Post-Gazette Athlete of the Year honors as a senior. She originally committed to Rutgers to play soccer as a sophomore, but de-committed that summer. It was a risky move because she had no other scholarship offers, in any sport, at that time.
“It was scary,” she said. “But I always liked basketball better than soccer. In soccer, I was going to be a goalie in college, and I don’t like standing around. I like to run. I like to be moving. So, I made a tough decision.”
Burt eventually convinced her to play for the Dukes ... and it is paying off for both.
“You don’t get a chance to recruit a kid like her often — someone who had scholarship offers in three sports,” he said. “And when you add in her work ethic, she was a great addition for us. We’re fortunate that she’s healthy and she’s a big part of what we’re doing. ... She’s low-maintenance. She says, ‘Yes sir’ and ‘no sir’ to her coaches. I attribute that to the upbringing by her mother and father. She is great for this program.”
First Published: January 15, 2020, 12:00 p.m.
