Leaders aren’t always the players who score the most points, leaders are the players that will leave it all on the line every time they step on the court.
Sydni Brandon leads the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) in steals with 28 as she was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week for two weeks in a row. Brandon has been the driving force behind Colorado Mesa University (CMU) on both sides of the ball this season, and she can bring the energy out of all her teammates when it is needed most.
“I think her athleticism differentiates her from some of the other players, she is able to do things that other players can’t do, and then her motor, when she steps out on the floor, she is playing hard all the time and I think that separates her from other players,” CMU Head Coach Taylor Wagner.
The Grand Junction native is a natural-born leader and she leads by example with unprecedented effort on both ends of the ball. Brandon averages 6.0 points per game (ppg), 5.1 rebounds per game (rpg), 3.62 assists per game (apg) and 3.5 steals per game (spg) through eight games this season.
Brandon is the third leading Maverick rebounder and she leads the team in assists, but her real goal is that conference award she missed out on last year.
“Being named Defensive Player of the Week of the Week is awesome, it’s nice to get some recognition, but my biggest goal is Defensive Player of the Year so I’m not stopping here,” Brandon said.
Brandon was chosen as the one of the two captains for the 2019-20 season because she leads the team by example, and she can bring the best out in all her teammates. On the floor, you can see the respect her teammates have for her but the respect she has for all of her teammates, and they always rush over to whoever is on the ground to get them up before they can pick themselves up.
“Sydni was an easy pick for captain for me and our team because she has been a great voice for us and can lead us to do what we need to do to win another championship whether it’s in practice or in games,” junior guard Kylyn Rigsby said.
The Mavericks have leaned on Brandon defensively to try to eliminate the opposing team’s best player, and she has a great job as they have lost twice by four points each time. CMU has looked to Brandon when they need big-time plays on either side of the ball, and her relentless effort allows her to make plays without needing to score 20 points a game to make an impact.
“I’ve always put an emphasis on defense because it really does win championships. You can be good on defense every night, you’ve never really off like you can be on offense,” Brandon said. “Rebounds just comes naturally because of my athleticism, and I’ve always loved sharing the ball and making crazy passes, they really get the team going.”
Effort is key in everything that Brandon does, and she shows it when she plays, she is all over the opposing guards forcing 3.43 spg, but she is all over the court getting rebounds and saving the ball from going out of bounds. Brandon is looked to when the team needs energy and she delivers in major ways, as she was a key factor in the comeback win against Montana Western University on Nov. 30.
Brandon does shoot .833 percent from the free-throw line and she gets to the charity stripe at will due to her athleticism and her quick first step forces defenders into bad angles to draw fouls. Brandon’s athleticism helps her rebound like a forward on the offensive and defensive glass, but her ball-handling skills allow her to get into the paint for easy layups or to dish it off to one of her teammates for an open shot.
