Vanessa De Jesus to begin US NCAA sophomore bid in November

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-American guard Vanessa de Jesus will kick off this November her sophomore campaign at Duke University after a shortened rookie year in the US NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Duke released the full schedule for its women's basketball team on Wednesday (Thursday, Manila time), with de Jesus looking to continue where she left off after only four games in her freshman year.

The Gilas women's prospect will first see action with the Blue Devils women's basketball team on November 4 (November 5 in Manila) with an exhibition game against the Wingate University Bulldogs.

The team then officially begins their campaign with second-year head coach Kara Lawson on November 9 (November 10, Manila time) against Winthrop as part of the non-conference slate.

De Jesus and Duke will also be joining the Maggie Dixon Classic where they play against Alabama on November 21 (November 22, Manila time).

They play their first conference match up before the year ends on December 30 (December 31 in Manila) against Virginia Tech on the road.

De Jesus and the Blue Devils hope to qualify and make a deep run in the ACC Tournament set in March after cutting their season short to just four games last year due to COVID-19.

De Jesus, the first-ever Asian to play for Duke University's women's basketball team, played all four games as a starter and posted norms of 12 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists.

More details of De Jesus and the Blue Devils' 2021-22 campaign can be found on the University's site here.