Jefferson Hagen / MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – As a child growing up in Sherwood Park, one of the first sports that Mackenzie Farmer took up was basketball.
But it didn't take long before she cycled through most everything out there.
"I played basketball for two years, quit it and then did gymnastics for nine years, quit that and then played soccer for three years, quit that and then in Grade 10, I took basketball seriously," she explained.
It takes pure athleticism to excel in so many disciplines, which is probably why she's still ascending on the hardcourt. Despite not playing the game for as long as many players she's going against in the Canada West conference, Farmer has been one of the league's top rookies, even if she hasn't reached her peak in the sport.
Through six games, she's the Griffins' third-leading scorer with 8.7 points per game. Farmer will lead MacEwan (1-5) into home action this weekend against UNBC (3-5) – on Friday (6 p.m.) and Saturday (5 p.m., both games Atkinson Gym).
"I have not (played the game for long), which is nice because it means I don't have the fear of plateauing like some people who've played it for so long," said Farmer, who has nowhere to go but up as one of the youngest players in the conference – still shy of her 18th birthday. "I always feel like I have a new (outlook) on basketball."
Farmer is a unique talent in that she stands 6-foot-1 – big enough to battle inside – but still has the speed to be extremely effective from the perimeter.
"I think she actually grew this summer. Every time I look at her, I think she's bigger," chuckled Griffins head coach Katherine Adams. "I consider her more of a guard who has the ability to go and play inside. She's a good athlete, she has the ability to defend one on one and it gives her the ability to go in and defend bigger players.
"We've matched her up at times with tough perimeter players because she has the length and athleticism to stay with them and contest shots that maybe a smaller player doesn't have."
That's a big reason why Farmer has averaged 20.0 minutes a game thus far – rare playing time for a Canada West rookie.
"I think I'm adjusting pretty well," she said. "Obviously, I've had some games where I was disappointed, but you have to learn somehow.
"The games I struggled with … I know my place on the team now and when I struggled, I feel like I just didn't provide that. So, I feel like I'm adjusting well in that I know what I can do for the team and I'm always striving to be there and do better."
Being a member of Team Alberta for the past three years also helped greatly with the transition from high school (Bev Facey) to top-level university basketball. Last August, she went to the Canada Summer Games in Winnipeg on a team that Adams helped coach.
"I think it kind of prepared me," she said of the squad that finished fourth in that competition. "I had some Team Canada players on there, so I was obviously always pushing myself. Going into a high intensity tournament, you always have to strive to be better. I think that just prepared me – the pace was higher than high school – and then playing my first university game, I didn't have as much of a jump as I would have."
Farmer's scoring touch is something that the Griffins will continue to lean on as they aim to improve upon the second-lowest points for total in Canada West (59.8 per game).
"There have been a few games this year where she's led us in scoring," said Adams. "She definitely has a knack for putting the ball in the hoop. And she has found the ability to score in a variety of ways, which makes her tough to guard.
"We've asked her to do a lot as a rookie, much like we did last year with Paige (Knull), asking her to play multiple positions," she added. "We're asking Mackenzie this year to do the same.
"She's handled it like a champ."
Farmer is one of eight first-year players on the Griffins' roster that has searched for consistency early in the season. They've leaned heavily on veterans Kayla Ivicak and Knull, but it's only a matter of time before the rookie contributions grow.
"I think we'll grow immensely – as other people step up, the points will come," said Farmer. "I feel like we rely too heavily on some of our fourth and fifth years. I think we'll be a phenomenal team because we'll have the chemistry that a team needs. We're so young now and we'll grow. We'll be a threat inside and out."
The learning process continues this weekend as the freshmen continue to work for more minutes.
"We're doing a lot of really good things," said Adams. "Again, we're dressing six first-year kids and it's a learning curve for them. And we've put a lot of responsibility on our veteran players to carry the load, while these young kids figure it out. They're doing their best, they're doing a great job.
"We just hope over time as they get more comfortable with the pace, the physicality and the grind that is the regular season that we'll start to see the bottom of the hoop a little bit more."
