Feb. 11, 2008
For Samford senior MaKenzie Spruiell, the game of basketball was just something she was born into. Her father played collegiate basketball at North Texas and he coached her in high school. Her mother also played at SMU, and her younger brother, now a senior in high school, plans to play college basketball as well.
"It's always been a part of my life and just something I love to do," Spruiell said. "I found that out at an early age. It's just in my blood."
Spruiell, a native of Aubrey, Texas, began playing at a young age, and later began playing for her father at Aubrey High School.
In her time as a high school player, Spruiell was named All-District and Academic All-District all four years. She was also named All-Area three times and All-Region in her senior season.
Spruiell led her team to a runner-up finish in Class 2A in 2004, and she was her team's Co-Offensive Player of the Year in 2003.
Though her high school career was successful, Spruiell says it was no always easy playing for her father.
"It was interesting," Spruiell said. "I am a little emotional, and I had a hard time separating my dad from my coach. With my dad, from the word go, I was his player and not his daughter."
Spruiell said that her father was a big influence on her basketball career.
"My dad was probably my biggest influence," Spruiell said. "He coached me in high school and he played at North Texas, so he was probably my biggest influence."
When she started deciding where to go to college, Spruiell said she had several reasons for choosing Samford.
"I really liked the coaches," Spruiell said. "Coach Morris was really nice. I talked to a bunch of the players and I liked the atmosphere here. Also, I really liked the gym, Seibert Hall. I shot in there and made every shot, so I thought I should come here."
During Spruiell's time at Samford, the program has had its most successful run. Her first season in 2004-05, the team was 13-15 and 6-10 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
Her sophomore year, however, the team posted a program-record 21 wins with a 21-8 record. The Bulldogs were 15-5 in conference play and reached the semifinals of the OVC Tournament for the first time ever.
Spruiell posted her best season so far in 2005-06, when she scored 55 points and pulled down 18 rebounds. In a game against Florida Atlantic on Feb. 25, 2005, Spruiell tied a then-Samford record with six three-pointers, scoring a career-high 18 points. Spruiell says that game was her proudest accomplishment on the court at Samford.
"It was probably the game when I hit six threes," Spruiell said. "I hit five in the first half and six in the game."
Last season, the Bulldogs posted a second-straight winning season for the first time in program history, with a record of 18-13 and 12-8 in league play. The 18 wins are the third-most in the program's history. Samford reached the semifinals of the OVC Tournament for the second year in a row.
This season, with six games remaining, Samford has a record of 18-7 overall and 11-3 in the OVC. Over the past three seasons, the Bulldogs have posted three of the top four records in the program history.
Through the first 24 games of her senior season, Spruiell has scored 45 points, the second-most of her Samford career.
Spruiell says it has been a great experience being a part of the improvements the team has made over her four years.
"It's an honor to be a part of it," Spruiell said. "That is another reason why I wanted to come here, I wanted to go somewhere I could help turn a program around. Really, it's just a great experience to do something like this."
Spruiell and the Bulldogs still have six games remaining in her senior season, and they would like nothing better than to finish by winning their first conference championship. This season will be the team's last chance to win the Ohio Valley Conference, as Samford will move to the Southern Conference next season.
As for Spruiell, she is considering staying in athletics after earning her degree from Samford.
"I'll probably start coaching," Spruiell said. "I'll probably start in high school, and I'd like to coach college basketball one day."
With her and her family's background in the game of basketball, it is no surprise that Spruiell is considering staying in the game for her profession.
