March 4, 2010
West Lafayette, Ind. - If it weren't for Drey Mingo's mother, Mingo may have never come to love basketball.
In seventh grade, Mingo's mother, Jennifer, encouraged her daughter to try out for the basketball team. Jennifer was a big fan of the sport and thought her daughter's height would give her a great advantage.
"I started out as a competitive cheerleader," Mingo said. "My mom told me, 'I'll let you keep cheering if you try out for basketball.' So I agreed. I didn't really think anything of it. I tried it out (for basketball) and loved it."
After that, besides a brief stint with tennis in eighth grade, basketball became the main sport in Mingo's life. The Atlanta, Georgia native attended Marist High School where she averaged 20 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks per game as a senior. She was named WBCA/Nike All-American, McDonald's All-American and Parade Magazine fourth team All-American and participated in WBCA/Nike All-Star Game.
Mingo was recruited by a number of schools and she ultimately ended up at Maryland. As a Terrapin, Mingo appeared in 33 of 35 games as a sophomore, including all 14 regular-season ACC contests.
Despite her success at Maryland, Mingo ultimately decided to transfer after her sophomore year.
"Maryland just didn't work out for me," Mingo said. "I already had a really excellent relationship with coach V (Versyp) prior to committing to Maryland. I knew immediately that I wanted to come here."
The "here" Mingo refers to is Purdue University. She is currently majoring in biology with a concentration in pre-medical studies and is unable to compete this season per NCAA transfer rules. Being able to practice but not play the sport she loves has not be easy, Mingo admits, but she is doing her best to see the positives of the situation until next year when she can play.
"It's been tough during this adjustment period," Mingo said. "I definitely want to be out on the floor playing and helping my teammates in any way that I can. I just have to make my impact elsewhere, from the sidelines."
Mingo has not been the first Purdue player to transfer to West Lafayette from Maryland. Preceding her is former Boilermaker guard Kalika France. During France's two season tenure at Purdue, she helped lead the Boilermakers to the 2008 Big Ten Tournament championship and the second-round of the NCAA Tournament.
The significance isn't lost on Mingo.
"Kalika and I actually wore the same number," Mingo said. "Maybe it's meant to be that way."