By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

UTSA point guard Nina De Leon Negron and forward Jordyn Jenkins grew up in different worlds, and yet they are so connected, so in tune with each other on the basketball court, that when they play you almost expect to hear a symphony in the background.

When fans of the Roadrunners watch these two, they see passes from De Leon Negron thrown into the post, right on Jenkins’ fingertips.

Or, they’re thrown from the paint to the perimeter on a drive and kick, with Jenkins set up perfectly for a three-point shot. Two wondrously talented kids, making it look easy.

Moreover, they also seem to have a tight, sister-like bond off the court. You can see it in their occasional in-public, chit-chats with one another and also in their whimsical displays of mock outrage and disagreement on the silliest little things.

For instance, De Leon Negron recently joked in a news conference about a claim that Jenkins wanted to buy a ranch in Texas one day.

She questioned irreverently the notion that her friend could run a ranch, noting that after the team’s trip to Puerto Rico last Christmas, she came away with the impression that Jenkins is afraid of animals.

“Like, which one?” Jenkins said, her eyebrows arching.

“In Puerto Rico,” De Leon Negron replied, “you were scared of everything.”

Oh, well.

One thing that is not open for debate, is that Jenkins and De Leon Negron will work as a unified force for the Roadrunners to win the American Women’s Basketball Championship this week.

They’ll lead the top-seeded Roadrunners into the quarterfinals on Monday in Fort Worth against the Rice Owls, with tipoff at noon at Dickies Arena.

Rising above adversity

To understand their connection as players, it’s best to consider their back stories, and how both faced significant obstacles in basketball and life before they became recipients last week of major awards in the American Athletic Conference.

Jenkins, from Renton, Wash., overcame ACL injuries to both knees.

The first mishap came late in her career at Kentridge High School. As a result, she sat out her senior year and part of her first season at the University of Southern California. The next one came in 2023, about a month after completion of her first season at UTSA.

Though she returned to play for the Roadrunners late in the 2023-24 season, Jenkins wasn’t quite the same player that she was a year earlier, when she was named Player of the Year in Conference USA.

This season, Jenkins returned to form, winning Player of the Year honors in the AAC, while leading UTSA to a 26-3 record, including 17-1 in conference.

De Leon Negron also endured a long road to being named AAC Newcomer of the Year and second-team all conference. When the Puerto Rico native came to the United States as a teenager, she spoke very little English.

First, she moved to Florida to attend Montverde Academy, then to Tennessee for a two-year stay at Austin Peay University and later to San Antonio for two more years at the University of the Incarnate Word.

She admitted at times wondering whether she might be better off just going home.

UTSA coach Karen Aston said that with everything that Jenkins and De Leon Negron have been through, she wouldn’t wish it on anyone. In terms of leadership, Aston said the two know how to play off the coaches

For instance, if coaches are upset and “getting on” the players, then the two know how to become positive to lift up their teammates.

“Our staff is like that,” Aston said. “They’ve learned how to play off of each other too, and play off of me, and I think that’s always when you have a successful team is when your players can become an extension of your coaches. That’s kind of what (De Leon Negron and Jenkins) have become.

“Our team has a lot of personalities, but they are definitely in the lead as far as that’s concerned. They’ve learned what the team needs, and I think that’s probably because of the efforts that they’ve made off the court, to get to know their teammates and spend time together, so they probably know each other’s personalities a lot better than I even know that they do.”

Recalling their first interaction

In NCAA games played against one another, De Leon Negron is 1-0 against Jenkins, a fact that is the source of discussion between the two to this day.

It was in December 2022, when the 5-foot-6 De Leon Negron was in her first season at UIW and Jenkins, a 6-foot forward, was in her first at UTSA. It was also the first time that either had come face to face with one another.

De Leon Negron described the mood in the Cardinals’ camp as “really serious” at the time, playing a game that the school “needed to win.”

“I remember the scout (on) Jordyn Jenkins, like, we need to be all over her. She’s really good. She still had a really good game. But I do remember that I went for a layup and she blocked my shot and she yelled at my face.

“I don’t know what I did to her,” De Leon Negron said. “I actually wasn’t talking trash. That was our first encounter.”

The two talked about the game in a sit-down with UTSA media staff and media before a March 1 Senior Day game against Florida Atlantic.

Recalled Jenkins, “I honestly think that’s funny, how that was our very first interaction…like, me, getting switched on her. It was like a low clock. High ball screen switch. And, yeah, I blocked her shot. And, yeah, I don’t know what I said.”

Later in the game, De Leon Negron was starting to impose her will, in more ways than one. She was on a scoring binge, bringing the Cardinals back from a deficit, leading into what she recalled as “the free-throw incident.”

With UTSA’s Sidney Love at the line and a little more than a minute remaining, the first free throw was missed.

“So I was coming in, to go to my position.” De Leon Negron recalled, “and I just, like, tap her on the back and say, ‘Good shot. Do it again.”

UTSA’s Kyra White heard the exchange and took exception to it, and apparently some words were exchanged. Ultimately, referees started to blow their whistles to sort out what was going on.

“I actually didn’t do anything,” De Leon Negron said. “I just wanted to get into her head. We ended up getting a double tech, or something. But we got the win, and that’s all that matters.”

For the record, De Leon Negron and the Cardinals, playing at home, defeated Jenkins and the Roadrunners, 56-53.

She played a major role in the outcome, scoring 18 of her game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter. Even though the Roadrunners were upset at the time, the game also left an impression on Aston, who stepped in to recruit De Leon Negron immediately after she entered her name in the transfer portal last spring.

Becoming a Roadrunner

Today, De Leon Negron is a Roadrunner, and she has become one of Jenkins’ biggest boosters. Likewise, Jenkins said she knew from the first practices last summer that the addition of De Leon Negron to the squad was a plus.

“When Nina first got here, in the summer, I noticed how vocal she was and … knew how much of a hard worker she was,” Jenkins said. “She had already been getting shots up with one of our assistant coaches and one of our (former) players, as well. I knew that she was dedicated and that we were going to be on the same level mentally.”

The chemistry between the two developed quickly. Even in early practices last summer, De Leon Negron’s passes always seemed to be delivered to Jenkins with touch, leading to easy moves she could make around the basket.

“I mean, I kind of already kind of knew that I needed to get the ball to Jordy,” she said. “Not so we can score. But, like, kind of. It just makes everybody’s life easier, as I keep saying. But, she was just running the court and she was open, so I was just getting it to her.”

One day last summer, it looked to an outside observe like magic, as deft passes were delivered, and shots were made. It looked as if they had been teammates for months, not weeks.

“I feel like those practices in the summer, at the rec, they helped a lot,” De Leon Negron said. “Like, with our chemistry. I would see her running. It’s kind of hard sometimes with a post, because if they run, and one time you don’t give it to them, sometimes they get mad.

“Like, ‘I’m running. What are you doing? Why are you not passing it to me?’

“And I’ve never minded that. I’m like, ‘Jordyn, if you’re open and I don’t give it to you, tell me something.’ And she was kind of like, ‘I know you’re going to pass it to me every time I’m open.’ But I was like, ‘You need to tell me, because I need to know.’ Like, I like that.”

In explaining the early chemistry between the two, Jenkins said it’s always been her passion to work to get open for a shot.

“I’ve always played with a really good point guard,” she said. “I guess I know what they’re looking for and I think my IQ is really good, so … one thing I take pride in is … always trying to get open. Open in the post, however way I’m being guarded.

“You know, just trying to get my hand out. Catch any pass I can. I take pride in catching passes, as well, so I love assisting and I love catching passes.”

In the not-too-distant future, both players could be playing in the professional ranks. De Leon Negron is expected to have a chance to play pro ball, possibly in Puerto Rico. Jenkins could get a look from the WNBA.

De Leon Negron said Friday at UTSA that she wasn’t surprised her friend was named Player of the Year in the American.

“I’ve been telling Jordy all the time, ‘You’re good,’ “ she said. “Like, you should be in the league (in the WNBA). You’re going to be in the league.’ ”

Jenkins made it clear that she is focused on one thing, and that is winning the AAC postseason crown to assure a trip to the NCAA tournament.

“I’m just grateful, and just glad that we worked hard this season, and that we won all these awards,” she said. “But the job’s not finished, and we’re excited to keep going.”