Lady Rebel Kelli Thompson sits with summer campers during Lady Rebels Camp. Photo courtesy of Leila Navidi // Las Vegas Sun.
The Lady Rebels, along with winning championships on the court, also are role models to the young girls in Las Vegas. At the end of every home game the Lady Rebels hold an open meet and greet with all the fans that attended the game at center court to take photos and sign autographs.
Since Lindy La Rocque was hired as head coach in the 2020 offseason, The Lady Rebels have a 72-18 record, won two Mountain West Championships, clinched two NCAA National Women’s Basketball Tournaments and were voted into the Associated Press top 25.
Alongside La Rocque, the leader of the Lady Rebels is Las Vegas native Desi-Rae Young. Referred to as “the anchor” by La Rocque, Young in her first three years as a Lady Rebel has earned Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Mountain West Player of the Year accolades.
Under La Rocque's leadership, the Lady Rebels have not only achieved on the court but also implemented a community outreach program to give back to the Las Vegas community. The program includes various community service events such as volunteering at local food pantries, donating toys to children in need during the holiday season, and passing out free pizza to UNLV students at the student union.
Lady Rebels celebrate winning the Mountain West Championship. Photo courtesy Kalin Sipes // Scarlet & Gray.
The Lady Rebels biggest upcoming community event is their summer basketball camp, which has been growing in popularity each year. The camp is a week-long event held at the Cox Pavilion from June 19-23. The Lady Rebels players serve as coaches, counselors, and instructors for the camp. The summer basketball camp gives young girls the opportunities to learn the fundamentals of basketball by the Lady Rebels team.
“It's a great week,” La Rocque said. “It’s really fun helping little girls meet other friends who want to play basketball.”
La Rocque believes that the summer camp is a great opportunity for the Lady Rebels to give back to the community.The 2023 camp already had 40 girls registered as of Feb. 20 compared to the 2022 offseason where according to La Rocque at the end of Feb. only two girls signed up for the camp.
"We want to get 100-150 little girls in our camp for a week to expose them to basketball and have some fun to meet our team," La Rocque said. "Our players are the camp coaches, counselors, and instructors. It's going to be their biggest camp of the year."
The Lady Rebels success has also made the players on the team role models for young girls in Las Vegas. Many girls in the community look up to the Lady Rebels as their role models and aspire to be like them.
Young is one of the Lady Rebels volunteering at the camp. Young is using the summer camp as an opportunity to be a role model for girls who aspire to be athletes.
"I now have a full ride scholarship to UNLV and next year, looking to be in the WNBA," Young said. "The camp feels great just to be able to show the younger girls that you can do it."
Young will be coaching the girls the fundamentals of basketball, including how to dribble the basketball and read defenses. Young hopes to inspire and encourage the girls to pursue their dreams.
The Lady Rebels summer camp not only provides an opportunity for young girls to learn basketball skills but also serves as a platform for the Lady Rebels to give back to the community.
The Lady Rebels community outreach program has been making a positive impact on the Las Vegas community and the Lady Rebels will continue to be role models to the community.
Lady Rebels Podcast Featuring Lindy La Rocque:
Background Research
“Lady Rebels help boost popularity of women's basketball” by Steve Wolford News 3 LV March 25 2022 - https://news3lv.com/news/local/lady-rebels-help-boost-popularity-of-womens-basketball
Wolford’s article was about how the Lady Rebels led by coach Lindy La Rocque boosted the popularity of women’s basketball.
“The Las Vegas Aces were built to succeed. (And it’s working.)”
By Matt Ellentuck sbnation.com Sep.14 2019 -
Ellentuck explains how the Aces developed as a franchise and how they have connected with the city of Las Vegas.
“Fans proud of Lady Rebels in hard-fought NCAA Tournament appearance” by Jeremy Chen KTNV March 19, 2022 –
Chen explained the importance of the NCAA Tournament appearance and how that created more popularity for the Lady Rebels.
Background Questions:
Lindy La Rocque:
Head Coach of the Lady Rebels. Has been the head coach for two seasons and has won one Mountain West Championship.
The Lady Rebels made March Madness last season. What would a deeper run this year mean to the city of Las Vegas?
Even though you have a 41-16 record as a head coach, you still face adversity. For example, you had a kid early this season. How much has the team and the city had your back during your adversities?
What makes women's basketball in Las Vegas unique compared to anywhere else in the nation?
Since being hired by the Lady Rebels, how much have the Las Vegas Aces helped the Popularity of the Lady Rebels?
Compared to the other cities you coached at, what fan characteristics does the city of Las Vegas bring to the team?
Basketball is just a sport, but your players are student-athletes. What has the city of Las Vegas done to contribute to the team off the court?
What charity work has the city of Las Vegas done with the Lady Rebels since your tenure as the Lady Rebels Coach?
Do you see the Lady Rebels as a team that can help influence the city of Las Vegas to be fans of women's basketball and all women's sports?
How much have the Runnin' Rebels helped out with the Lady Rebel's community engagement since your tenure as head coach?
As of Feb. 13, 2023, the Lady Rebels are ranked in the top 25 for the first time since 1994. What does it mean to you to be a Las Vegas native and have this Lady Rebel team represent not just the school but the city of Las Vegas as a whole?
Desi-Rad Young:
Starting Center for the Lady Rebels. Currently is a junior at UNLV, and won Mountain West Player Of The Year in 2022. Young is referred to "the anchor" of the team by coach La Rocque.
How much has the Lady Rebels fan base grown over your tenure?
What does it mean to you as a Las Vegas native that you are one of the leading proponents of why Women's Basketball is growing in the city?
How much have you seen the Lady Rebels fan base grow from growing up in this city to now?
How does it feel to be a role model to young aspiring women athletes in Las Vegas?
How is the Lady Rebels fan base compared to the other teams in the Mountain West Conference?
Talk more about the Lady Rebels collaboration with the Las Vegas Aces over the past few years.
What would a deep March Madness run mean to the city of Las Vegas?
How much has social media influenced more of the city of Las Vegas to watch the Lady Rebels and join the fan base?
What has the school done to help create engagement for the team from the city of Las Vegas?
What is your vision for the future of Women's basketball in Las Vegas?
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