Coimbra ready to shine this season
Most of the players on the CMU men’s basketball team were recruited from the midwest, but Andre Coimbra has a different story.
The 6-foot, 9-inch forward came to Mount Pleasant from Northeastern Oklahoma A & M by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler said he gives most of the credit of landing Coimbra to assistant coaches Darren Kohne, Terrance Chatman and Keith Noftz.
“We talked about identifying a need, needing an athletic rebounder who can score,” he said. “Coach (Darren) Kohne did an excellent job of finding Andre, and once we found him, I did a heck of a job of closing.”
Coimbra has only been in the U.S. for two years and said he is still working on transitioning to American life.
“My first six months, I didn’t speak English at all. My classes were super hard, and I had a tutor 24 hours a day,” he said. “I still work at it and I still have a tutor, and my teammates help me.”
With an 85-inch wingspan, Coimbra brings size and length to the Chippewas frontcourt. But he can also stretch the defense with his shooting ability.
Coimbra has started the season 4-7 from three-point range and said his outside game is a work in progress.
“I really like to shoot,” he said, joking. “Coach says hold and follow through. If I hold and follow through, I would make some shots.”
Zeigler said Coimbra’s versatility is a big boost for he team. With the departure of former forward Chris Kellermann, Zeigler said Coimbra, an athletic big man who can lock down in the post defensively, fits in well into CMU’s system.
“We just have to get him touches,” Zeigler said. “He’s our leading shooter, percentage wise, and he has the least amount of shots, so something has to change.”
Coimbra has started the last two games for the Chippewas (1-3) after coming off the bench in the first two contests.
His minutes increased in each of the first three games, but Zeigler said Coimbra’s skills are still raw and he is still adapting to Division I college basketball.
“On a scale of one to 10, he’s probably at a five in terms of dealing with his transition,” he said. “He’s shown flashes of his ability. Now we just have to get him to have some consistent performances while he‘s still trying to learn the nuances of what we’re doing.”
The Chippewas frontcourt has been somewhat depleted as of late.
Zeigler and his staff decided to redshirt freshman forward Jevon Harden and freshman center Nate VanArendonk didn’t make the trip to face South Alabama, forcing the Brazilian to play forward and center.
Coimbra said he likes having an opportunity to step outside, so he prefers playing forward, but said he has no problem playing center if it helps the team win.
He returns to action at 8 p.m. Wednesday when the Chippewas travel to Chicago to take on the University of Illinois-Chicago.
