Last Saturday Texas Southern beat Grambling 61-58 in the SWAC tourney title game to clinch an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Tigers lost 20 games during the regular season but got hot at the right time and claimed the school’s 3rd straight NCAA tourney bid. In addition to shining a light on the players who got the job done on the court, it is also important to recognize the spirited students who have worked just as hard on the sidelines, such as band members/cheerleaders/dancers. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Texas Southern Tiger Sensations dancer Jada Prescott about bringing some HBCU spirit to the NCAA tourney.
You were born/raised in Houston: what made you choose Texas Southern? I wanted to be somewhere close to home because I am family-oriented. Once I visited the campus it felt like home and a place where I needed to be.
You have been dancing your whole life: how did you 1st get into it, and what is the best part? I have been dancing since I was little. My mom put me into ballet/step/cheer and I eventually realized that I am best at dance.
You are a Game Day Co-Captain: what is the key to being a good leader? Just separating friendship from leadership. I have a lot of responsibilities as co-captain but sometimes it is hard to separate the 2 and remember your position.
You are majoring in Healthcare Administration and will also be graduating with a certificate in Business Management: why did you choose those subjects? In high school I had to choose a major and always wanted to start my own clothing line. My mom always told me that I should get a job in the health field because I want to be secure for my future.
Your long-term plan is to become an OBGYN: how many years of medical school will that take? It takes 2-4 years. I was talking to my academic advisor about my credits/transcript so I think it will only take me 2 years.
You also want to start your own dance team: what will make your team different from other teams? Since I am starting from scratch and doing it on my own, it will test my ability to run a business. I want to be fair and teach kids that even if you take a loss to not be bitter about it but rather use it as a lesson. My girls (or dudes!) will build their own character by learning how to deal with failure.
Last Saturday in the SWAC tourney title game you had a 3-PT win over Grambling: how on earth were you able to win 3 games in 4 days after going 11-20 during the regular season?! Everyone can have a rough start and things might not be perfect at the beginning: the key is how you finish your season. At the end of the day we are 3-time champs, which shows that no matter your seed or your # of losses anyone can win the title.
How does your school decide who gets to go to the NCAA tourney, and what will it mean to you to see your group doing its thing in front of a national TV audience? We can only send 5-6 dancers so we usually just take our veterans who have experience or our seniors who only have 1 opportunity left. It will be great to give everyone a taste of what a real HBCU looks like!
Does your squad have anything extra-special planned for the NCAA tourney? We shall see: maybe for our halftime performance. We are overly-prepared and super-excited.
Any predictions for the Tigers tonight vs. Fairleigh Dickinson? We will take a W!: I have so much confidence and it is go time!