Freshman sparks Glen Cove

Invaluable is the word that comes to mind when Mike Woodhouse, head coach for the Glen Cove High School girls’ basketball team, thinks of his freshman point guard Destiny Howell. Woodhouse said Howell and the Big Red caught a lot of teams by surprise this season.

“Coming into this year, a lot of people did not expect a freshman to be our leading scorer and most skilled player,” Woodhouse said. “Destiny is our best ball handler, our best shooter and it was pretty apparent right away.”

The Big Red finished the season with the best record in its conference at 10-3 and Howell led the way with her all-around performance. Howell, 14, led her team in scoring at 15.2 points per game. She said that despite being a freshman, her teammates embraced having her as a key contributor.

“They were really supportive of me,” she said. “Sometimes it might be weird having a freshman starting on the team but they actually had a lot of respect for me which I appreciated.”

Howell, who played on varsity since the eighth grade, said she did not realize how talented she was until her first game this season against Commack. She scored a team-high 17 points in a tight 49-42 loss to Commack, the defending Long Island Class AA champions. “I did not even know that I could do all of that,” she said. “That first game made me realize how good of a player I could be and it gave me a lot of self-confidence.”

Woodhouse added that Howell’s game against Commack was the moment he knew what she was capable of. He said her confidence grew during that game and that it stayed with her throughout the season. 

“She was not flustered by playing somebody who was a defending champion,” Woodhouse said. “She stepped up in the moment and had no problem with it.”

Woodhouse said it did not take Howell very long to adjust. This was his first year as head coach but he said the girls were able to get on the same page early in the season. He was able to implement numerous play calls for Howell, and those led to her scoring prowess. “We clicked on a lot of things,” Woodhouse said. “She allowed me to show her different moves and plays on the court which helped us connect in a lot ways.” 

Woodhouse also commended Howell for her toughness during games where she could have sat out. Howell had a stomach virus in the middle of the season and opted to play two games through it.  

“It was really difficult to play those games but I was able to lock in,” she said. “I knew that I had to find a way to take over those games to help my team in any way.”

Howell said her team’s playoff loss to Sewanhaka is what stands out the most during her freshman campaign. She said, however, she’ll use it as motivation going into the offseason.

“I am going to put a lot more effort in training and conditioning,” she said. “Not a day will go by where I’m not going to pick up a basketball.”