SAN ANTONIO – Based on how their first interaction transpired, it would have been hard to imagine that one day Jordyn Jenkins and Nina De Leon Negron would be close friends and the leaders of a UTSA Women’s Basketball team that will go down as perhaps the best in program history.
De Leon Negron was in her first season playing for the University of the Incarnate Word and Jenkins was in her first year with the Roadrunners after transferring from the University of Southern California. On December 15, 2022, the two teams squared off at UIW’s McDermott Center. De Leon Negron scored 25 points to lead the Cardinals. Jenkins recorded her first double-double in a UTSA uniform with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
“I remember that I went for a layup and she blocked my shot and she yelled in my face,” De Leon Negron said. “I’m actually never going to forget that. I don’t know what I did to her. I actually wasn’t talking trash, but that was our first encounter. I thought that we weren’t going to be friends.”
Jenkins remembers the exchange, reflecting on how far the pair has come since that initial meeting.
“I honestly think it’s funny how that was our first-ever interaction,” Jenkins said. “It was like a low-clock high ball screen switch and I blocked her shot.”
With 1:14 remaining in the high-intensity, tight game, De Leon Negron attempted to try to rattle then-UTSA freshman Sidney Love at the free throw line. Kyra White, a standout guard for the Roadrunners who played a huge role in establishing the program’s culture under head coach Karen Aston, didn’t take kindly to the interaction. Both De Leon Negron and White ended up getting technical fouls after the exchange.
“Sidney was shooting and it was a close game,” De Leon Negron said. “And she missed the free throw. I was coming in to go to my position. I just tapped her back and said, ‘Good shot, do it again.’ I just wanted to get into her head and Kyra White wanted to fight me. We got the win, that’s all that matters.”
While it would have been impossible to predict that De Leon Negron would one day help lead UTSA to the American Athletic Conference regular-season championship, she left a lasting mark on Aston, who would later recruit her as a graduate transfer this past offseason.
“What made me want to recruit Nina was the impression she gave me in that game,” Aston said. “I didn’t know about all this trash talking that went on, but I knew that she lit us up in that game and you could just tell how competitive she was. It was a missing piece, for sure, that I knew we needed.”
* * * * *
Jenkins and De Leon Negron have both experienced their share of adversity.
De Leon Negron came to the continental United States from San Juan, Puerto Rico, as a high school student who didn’t speak English. She played two seasons each at Austin Peay and UIW. With the Cardinals, she earned several impressive accolades, including Southland Newcomer of the Year in 2022-23 and All-Southland First Team in 2023-24. But it has been at UTSA where De Leon Negron has really come into her own.
“I would start off with Coach,” De Leon Negron said. “She just told me, this is your team, lead them, do whatever you want with them. I feel like every time I have Coach’s confidence, that’s kind of all I need. And having such a talented person on your team, that just makes everything easier. I don’t think people understand, I can have like 19 points and I can’t even take credit because having Jordy on the court makes my life so much easier. If she’s setting a screen, people are more concerned about her than me.”
DeLeon Negron ranks second in the American Athletic Conference and top-25 in the nation in assists per game with 5.3. She also is third in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio at +1.99. De Leon Negron attributes much of her increased confidence to her coach.
“I always tell the girls that we have it good here because Coach cares about everybody,” De Leon Negron said. “Even if you’re not getting one second on the court, she still cares about you as a person. She cares about your grades. A lot of coaches don’t do that. Every time I feel like I’m not good mentally, I come to her office and she always makes me feel better.”
Jenkins, a Renton, Wash., native, has already compiled a list of accolades that make her one of the most accomplished players in program history. In her first season with the Roadrunners, she was named the 2022-23 Conference USA Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. She leads the AAC this season in total points (487), field goals (175) and free throws (114). Jenkins’ 18.7 points per game headline the American Athletic Conference.
Despite all of the headlines and the fact that she’ll likely become the first-ever UTSA player to compete in the WNBA, Jenkins remains focused on the team and not on her individual achievements. It’s something that comes naturally to her.
“I’ve always been on a really team-oriented team my whole entire life,” Jenkins said. “I feel like I’ve been really blessed to have great teams every single step of the way. I grew up on an AAU team that we spent years together. My entire AAU career, I played with the same people. I just value friendships and relationships. Everything kind of comes naturally after that. It’s fun when you play with your friends on the court.”
What Jenkins has accomplished at UTSA is even more impressive considering that she missed the majority of the 2023-24 season with an injury she sustained prior to the year. She returned towards the end of the season, appearing in 12 games with two starts and averaged 17.1 points per game and 6.8 rebounds per game. Her transformation into one of the best to ever wear the Blue and Orange has come as a result of sheer determination.
Aston is proud of the resilience that her two seniors have shown.
“I would never have wished for their journey as far as the toughness is concerned,” Aston said. “It’s what they were given and what they’ve done with it has been something really special. If I have to pick one thing when I look for in recruits, other than position and what we need, it’s an understanding of winning. Have they done it before? Do they know what it feels like? Are they accustomed to winning? These guys are winners. They’ve won a lot in their lifetime and they understand what it takes to win.”
* * * * *
Despite the hostility of their first meeting, it didn’t take long for Jenkins and De Leon Negron to become close this past summer. They realized they had the same goals and more in common than they initially knew.
“Whenever Nina first got here in the summer, I noticed how vocal she was,” Jenkins said. “I knew how much of a hard-worker she was. She had already been getting shots up with one of our coaches and one of our former players. I knew that she was dedicated and I knew that we were going to be on the same level mentally.”
De Leon Negron quickly understood that the opportunity to team up with a player like Jenkins was something she had sought since she first began playing basketball.
“Throughout my whole career, I wanted a post player that I could just pass the ball to and give me an assist,” De Leon Negron said. “Coming here, I knew that Jordy was that person. I knew that it was going to work out. I didn’t know on the side of friends how close we were going to be, but I think it’s hard for her because I make her laugh a lot. I think she struggles to not be my friend.”
The two often reflect on summer practices and scrimmages at the UTSA Rec Center that made them realize what a perfect fit they were for each other on the court.
“They really helped with our chemistry,” De Leon Negron said. “I kind of knew that I needed to get the ball to Jordy so that we can score. She was just running the court and she was open, so I was getting it to her. With a post, if they run every single time and you don’t give it to them, they can get mad. I always told Jordy, ‘If you’re open and I don’t get it to me, tell me. You need to tell me because I need to know.’”
That bond between Jenkins and De Leon Negron has been one of the most important keys to UTSA’s success this season. Aston sees them both as coaches on the floor for the Roadrunners.
“Everybody always talks about the point guard as the head to the monster and that’s absolutely the truth about this team, but I would say we have a two-headed monster from the standpoint of leadership and playing off of each other,” Aston said. “They’ve learned how to play off each other and off me. I think when you have a successful team, it’s always when players can become an extension of your coaches. That’s what they’ve become. Our team has a lot of personalities, but they’ve definitely been in the lead as far as that’s concerned. They know what the team needs and that’s because of the efforts they’ve made off the court to get to know their teammates and spend time together.”
* * * * *
Jenkins and De Leon Negron will take the court for the final time on Saturday when they play host to Florida Atlantic on Senior Day. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for the 11:40 a.m. senior recognition at the Convocation Center.
It’s expected to be the largest crowd ever to attend a UTSA Women’s Basketball game in the Convo. The Roadrunners have the opportunity to break the all-time attendance record of 2,000 fans set in 1991. With a win Saturday, they’ll set a new school record for wins in a season with 25 and will claim the American Athletic Conference regular-season title outright. Both players have marveled at how the community has embraced them.
“It’s really cool,” Jenkins said. “Coming down to Texas, I didn’t know what to expect. It was so good for us to build our program so that we got to where we are now. I literally love it here and I want to live here. Everyone is just really supportive, especially at UTSA. All of the student-athletes are really supportive, as well as the staff and faculty.”
As has been the case this entire season, neither Jenkins or De Leon Negron are focused on anything more than the game at hand. At the end of Friday’s pre-game press conference, Jenkins joked that she wasn’t even looking past that particular evening.
“I’m just trying to stay grounded and in the present because it’s easy to get ahead of myself,” Jenkins said. “I try to think about what I’m going to have for dinner tonight instead of what game is to come.”
“Are you cooking for me?” De Leon Negron asked.
“Yeah!” Jenkins exclaimed.
Today, the duo is ready for one last dance in the Convocation Center.