NORFOLK, VA (WTKR) — There's no hiding that when Old Dominion guard Jordan McLaughlin hits the court, she does it with confidence. Not something any player can do in their first year's with a new team.
"It makes it feel pretty easy," the junior guard said. "My teammates love me, I love them, and it's really easy to play for them."
McLaughlin, who's averaging 9.1 points and 3.3 assists this season, won't shy away from the big moments. Something she takes to heart after the way her career at Chipola College ended: missing a game-winner in the National Junior College Athletic Association tournament last season.
"I actually replay that play a lot," McLaughlin remembered. "It actually hurt a little bit to lose because the team that we lost to won the national championship, so it let me know how close we were."
That miss continues to push her now that she's in Norfolk, like her game-winner against Georgia Southern.
"I told myself I couldn't be short like that again," she said. "I practice that shot a lot."
"Jordan McLaughlin, she is one that lives for the big moment. She's not afraid of it," Monarch coach Delisha Milton-Jones said. "As I was drawing up the play for her, I was like, 'OK, this is good for her.'"
Confidence is key, and McLaughlin doesn't lack it. Even when the moment doesn't go her way, it just adds fuel to the fire.
"I actually take that pretty personally, it hits me pretty hard," McLaughlin said. "But if it happens or doesn't happen, that's fine. At least I had the confidence to take the shot."
