NC State women’s basketball junior guard Aislinn Konig has been around the program for a while, but she has to step into a new role as a new season starts. Konig will hop into the point guard position, while teammate graduate guard Kaila Ealey is out on an injury. Konig knows she has a job to do, but keeps the pressure from getting in the way.
“I think for the team, we’re definitely losing a major piece of our offense and our defense,” Konig said. “I’m going to trust the coaches and the game plan and my teammates. I think that despite the huge hit that that does to us, that we’ll pull through.”
Teammate redshirt junior guard Grace Hunter agreed that Konig can do the job.
“She’s definitely filling in Kaila’s shoes better than anyone else,” Hunter said. “She knows it all. She’s got to remember everybody’s position during the plays, and she directs us really well. She’s a good point guard for us.”
Head coach Wes Moore concurred with Hunter’s statement.
“Ace played point guard in high school, and travel ball and all that, so she’s used to doing it,” Moore said. “We miss Ealey a lot; I feel bad for her and for our team, but we’ve just got to move on, and I think Ace will do a nice job.”
Konig has high hopes for herself and the team in this upcoming season.
“I definitely want the team to be successful,” Konig said. “I think if we work really hard and we put all the pieces together that we can manage to get to the Sweet 16 and higher. That’s my first and foremost goal. Then, my personal goal would be to beat my record again; that’ll bring me closer to the all-time.”
Last season, Konig had 91 3-pointers, and during the team’s exhibition game, she was 4 for 9 from the 3-point line and led the team with 14 points.
“Ace is definitely our best shooter right now,” Hunter said. “I feel like she shouldn’t shoot under 40 percent by far. She should definitely shoot over 40 percent from the three.”
Moore has no plans to stop Konig from shooting any less, even though she is now at the top of the key.
“Obviously she’s such a good shooter,” Moore said. “We a lot of times like to have her on the wing, where we can run her off-picks and that sort of thing, but we’ll figure out some ways to get her some shots at the point position. The thing is she’s got size; she can see over a defense. She makes good decisions with the ball. Last year, she had almost two to one in assisted turnovers.”
Konig explained how she plans to help guide her teammates.
“I think it’s definitely leading by example,” Konig said. “We have some really great seniors who are vocal. I think my role personally is to play hard in and out of every possession, and to help push myself and my teammates to be the best they can be.”
Hunter affirmed Konig’s reliability on the court.
“Ace just knows how to make plays,” Hunter said. “She just plays so smart, and I feel like that’s why her minutes just keep increasing all the time, because she makes the right passes and she knows exactly when to shoot it, too.”
Konig’s had a lot of experience with basketball, as can be seen throughout her family.
“Basketball actually runs in my family,” Konig said. “My mother and my father played D-2, then all of my aunts and uncles on my mom’s side – she has four siblings, they all played. My grandfather actually still plays in the Master’s League, and they travel around the world. He’s gone to Australia [and] Russia, and they actually had another one in Utah and he won silver.”
Overall, Konig realizes she only has two years left, and plans to make them count.
“I really want to enjoy this,” Konig said. “Play and have a lot of fun this year, because I feel like the end is coming close. I’m a junior now, and it’s important for me to enjoy the game I’m playing. Especially with Ealey going down, it puts a lot of things in perspective. You’ve got to be thankful for every game you get.”
