You wouldn’t have blamed Neleigh and Norah Gessert if, after all those years under one roof in west Omaha, the superstar basketball twins had chosen different roommates for the start of their Creighton careers.
Nah. They wanted to be roomies. Probably needed to be. Practical decision.
“We actually share a lot of stuff,” Norah said Thursday at CU’s media day. She smiled. “So honestly, not being in the same room might have been a hassle for us.”
The 6-foot, four-star signees — who led Millard West to a state title last season — have three classes together at Creighton, too. And they’re also liable, as they did all those years as Wildcats, to share the floor when the Bluejays tip off their season next month.
“The twins will play,” Creighton coach Jim Flanery said. Yep, the Gesserts exist as a duo, a license Flanery takes because Norah and Neleigh’s parents, when they ask about their kids, say “well, how are the twins?”
The twins are part of a CU’s much-ballyhooed freshman class that — because seven Bluejay seniors graduated — will learn on the job, right from opening night.
The top-rated newcomer, Ava Zediker, has spent much of training camp in workout clothes while she heals a shoulder injury. Norah Gessert missed a week of camp, too, though now she’s back in drills with her sister. A fourth freshman, Kendall McGee, produces “wow” plays, Flanery said.
The CU coach has dialed back the in-practice barking and the level of defensive detail he imparts to his players who, unlike program legends Lauren Jensen and Morgan Maly, aren’t building on four years of Big East scouting reports.
“They’ve pushed us to our full potential,” Neleigh Gessert said. “And they’re expecting big things out of this class. You can tell, the urgency, the competitiveness of practice. The coaches do a great job of pushing us but also making sure we can handle it.”
Defense, in particular, is different in college, requiring “10 times more” communication, Norah Gessert said, because the game is “10 times faster.”
Neleigh shared a similar thought.
“What I’ve learned is that the little stuff means a lot more (on defense) than I did think,” she said. “In high school, you could get away with whatever you wanted almost.”
The twins clogged passing lanes and used their length to deter easy drives during practice Thursday. Creighton is far less experienced than last season, Flanery said, but more athletic.
Consistent offense could take some time to develop — although Zediker’s court pace, teammates say, will make CU tough to slow down. Norah Gessert, more of the distributor at Millard West, is likely to be in a primary or secondary ball handler role for the Jays.
Neleigh, a volume shooter who hit 39% of her 3s last season, had a summer workout with Maly, CU’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made.
“Neleigh’s more like Morgan,” Flanery said. “Norah shoots it better than I thought — her practice numbers aren’t a lot different from Neleigh — I just think Neleigh’s just wired to shoot.”
They’re wired for Omaha, too. As top-100 recruits, they had options. They were sold on Creighton.
“It’s like I’m away, but I’m not really,” Neleigh Gessert said. “I can just take a 25-minute drive back.”
sam.mckewon@owh.com, 402-540-4222, twitter.com/swmckewonOWH
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