DENVER — When DU freshman guard Angie Robles hoops, she brings toughness, energy, and...biscuits?
"Give me those Popeyes biscuits, baby!” Robles screamed out after hitting a three-pointer in practice.
Her words clearly light up any gym she’s in.
"I think life would suck if it was serious all the time,” Robles smiled. “There has to be someone to lighten the mood. Monday’s are tough or like early morning practices are tough. There has to be someone that brings energy, that brings that light, that gets people going.”
Her name is Angie but on the court she’s known as Ant.
“It’s short for antsy. My official visit to Denver, you could say I was excited.”
Denver head coach Doshia Woods says she was very excited: “I remember we were in the weightroom and our strength and conditioning coach was trying to give her a spiel and Ant’s just [waving her hands, looking everywhere] and I was like stop being so antsy! Focus!”
Does Angelina like the nickname? “I see it now. At first I was like, that’s kind of weird, I don’t even know these people yet but I mean it stayed.”
And it’s clear. The Pioneers count on Ant, I’ve told the team multiple times, I have to look to Ant for energy,” said Woods. “I’m looking at her because we’re all dragging so if you’re struggling, find Ant.”
And when you find her, if she isn’t playing, she’s still celebrating on the sidelines.
“All credit goes to my teammates, like they do crazy stuff on the court and I think the least I can do is just bring energy. If I’m not contributing on the court, I can contribute on the bench. I think that’s where it comes from. I think I just get excited for them.”
The 5 foot 4 guard is strong. She isn’t afraid. “I think it’s just always been there. I’ve always been the smallest on the court, so I always felt like I had to prove like, you can’t just push me around. I’m not gonna let you push me around. I gotta be a dog.”
Woods says she recruited Ant, in part, because of her height, “My best friend moved here and the first time she saw Ant play, she was like, ‘I see why you signed her. She is you.’ I saw a lot of myself in her, and I think it’s important for a head coach to have a point guard that they can have that relationship with.”
Ant doesn’t know the definition of stage fright. She’ll just burst out singing random songs in practice, “I think I have a natural voice,” she laughed. “Yeah it needs to be worked on but my vocal chords are natural because I’m special.”
Her joy is contagious, “I have so much fun. Like I have to be serious right, but like it’s fun. I come back every day because it’s fun.”
Woods mentioned that when Robles received her offer to DU, she wanted to sign it immediately, without thinking about it. With tears running down her face, she kept saying how thankful she was for the offer. She loves the game, “I think just competing. My favorite part about the game is just competing and I think being with the team, this team is definitely something special, definitely different so I’m excited for what’s to come.”
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Sports