IT'S a different world Jessie Rennie has stepped back into on her return to the University of Tennessee following a breathtaking freshman season.
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But as none of us I'm sure needs reminding, these are different times we are living in.
Rennie has been back in Knoxville for about three weeks after a two-and-a-half-month stint back home in Bendigo.
The now 20-year-old appreciated the opportunity to return home to Australia once the US college basketball season was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, but laments it wasn't under more amiable and positive circumstances.
"I got home on March 21 and was home for about two and a half months so this was great to be able to spend time with my family, even with all the restrictions in place," she said.
"By the end of my time home I was actually able to see most of my family as restrictions dropped.
"We really all just hung out and this was really refreshing for me as I hadn't been home in so long and nothing is like home."
It was a good time for reflection for the former Bendigo Braves, Bendigo Spirit and Victoria Country representative on where and how far her still blossoming basketball career has taken her.
A whirlwind and continually eye-opening first season in the college ranks ended - albeit prematurely - with Rennie having played in 30 games for the Vols, for averages of 12.5 minutes per game, 2.7 points, 0.7 assists, 0.8 rebounds and eight steals.
The undoubted standout was a December 29 encounter against Howard University, where Rennie knocked down five of seven from the arc to score a college career-high 16 points in 19 minutes of duty.
It was a performance Vols coach Kellie Harper said instilled not only considerable confidence in the Bendigo-born sharpshooter, but as much in the playing group's faith in their young team-mate.
"I think for her that confidence-base was definitely big - she looked extremely confident with the basketball today," Harper said of Rennie post-match.
"When you have that confidence that is going to give you an opportunity to take some shots.
"Her team-mates do a better job now of looking for her and expecting her to shoot the ball.
"They couldn't have been happier every time she made a three. That makes you feel good as a shooter.
"Our players are just figuring out roles, both for themselves and each other."
In total during her first season as a Vol, Rennie fired in 25 three-pointers in 54 attempts to rank third on the term in threes made and first in three-point field goal percentage.
Her .463 three-point shooting percentage was the second-highest for a season in Tennessee history.
If the transition from a talented teenager coming off an 18-month knee injury and rehabilitation, to first-year college guard appeared smooth, starting over again in Knoxville last month would be a little more testing, with Rennie going into immediate 14-day quarantine at a house, located a little off campus.
She spent her time cooking and doing what exercise - running and walking - she could, while keeping in contact with team-mates through FaceTime.
"It was weird being back in Knoxville, but not around them every day," said Rennie, who last weekend was able to move back into her dormitory room.
"It's been great getting back into workouts and seeing them all. My coaches and staff too.
"Workouts will look a lot different for a little while, we've begun lifting and conditioning workouts in groups of four and one team workout a week.
"There can only be limited people in the weight room at a time which is strange.
"We also have to wear a mask so that's going to be interesting for sure. "
A return to the practice court remains a little further off.
"For basketball it's still very up in the air, we cant begin any basketball workouts with coaches until July 20 and even then it'll be smaller group workouts - probably bigs and guards - not full team practices like usual," she said.
"We get allocated times each week to shoot and workout these are scheduled and specific for each player and we each have our own ball just to get shots up and work on our own things."
Getting back to basketball has never been far from Rennie's mind during the pandemic, even when back in Australia.
The young guard was a willing and enthusiastic participant in the online workouts organised by her former WNBL club and their head coach Tracy York and assistant Mark Alabakov.
"It was great to join the other girls in these twice a week and interact with them while back in Australia," she said.
There was also plenty of contact with coaches and team-mates at Tennessee.
"I obviously had workouts to complete from Tennessee each week and to stay in shape best as possible, but we didn't have workouts via Zoom, which would've been hard anyway due to the 14-hour time difference," she added.
"We had regular team meetings and leadership meetings, which were cool to be able to see them every week, just to chat and check-in with each other.
"It was weird going from seeing everyone every day for 10 months then to not seeing them for three."
A steep learning curve for the Vols sharpshooter extended beyond the basketball court and into the classroom during her first year in college.
It was weird going from seeing everyone everyday for 10 months then to not seeing them for three.
- Jess Rennie
Rennie is studying therapeutic recreation and hopes to eventually forge a career working with children and adults with special needs.
"I'm taking a wide range of classes for my major, which is cool and interesting, learning in a different country and different learning styles," she said.
"With a lot of work, organisation and time management is crucial, especially during the season.
"Handling work and assignments along with practice travel and games can become difficult."
With more than 2.8 million cases of the novel coronavirus now reported in the United States and 131,000 deaths, it remains to be seen what this means for the college basketball season.
If a season does eventuate - and Rennie is certainly hopeful - it's a sure bet it will look markedly different to her first, if not unrecognisable.
For now, the classy three-point specialist finds herself yearning for anything like the heady days of her unforgettable freshman season, and the thrill of playing in front of thousands of Vols fans, and at places like UConn and South Carolina.
"My freshman year absolutely flew by," she said.
"I absolutely loved my first year and I'm praying this season will go ahead too.
"It is something you really can't compare with any basketball in Australia.
"The intensity and competitiveness every day, in every workout and every game, is such an amazing environment to be in and thrive in.
"Everyday is tough, from classes all day to practice for hours and to lifting weights either before or after.
"Then in season travelling every week for two games.
"Being a college athlete has its ups and downs and it is super tough, both physically and mentally, but playing at a place like Tennessee is truly a blessing."
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