Iowa State’s Cooke makes return to court in Y Cap City League

WEST DES MOINES — Hallice Cooke stood near the basket awaiting the impending contact.

His former teammate Daniel Edozie — nearly five inches and 60 pounds larger — was charging toward the basket in a game at the YMCA Capital City League. But the Iowa State sophomore guard didn't move. He welcomed the contact, totally confident in himself since two hip surgeries last fall.

'I just go out there and try to compete again,' Cooke said. 'I missed it while I spent a year off watching and not being able to practice has been tough. The adversity made me stronger and I'm just excited to be out here playing.'

Cooke, a transfer from Oregon State, is finally starting to feel like himself on the court again. Surgeries to repair cartilage tears were performed last fall while he sat out as a red-shirt, which kept him away from contact.

Now eight months later the range of motion has returned and the pain has subsided. Fatigue is one of the only obstacles for Cooke, but he is feeling better than ever.

'I don't think I'm going to regress, I think I'll only get better,' Cooke said. 'That's the biggest positive so now it's just about me taking care of my body, putting the right things in my body and just keep building my legs.'

As good as Cooke feels now, that wasn't always the case for the last eight months. Pain would crop up often, but what started to take a toll were the mental hurdles.

When he was feeling low, Cooke would often find himself in his room. Watching inspirational movies like '42' or reading stories would help lift him up, but it's connections with family and teammates that provided the biggest boosts.

'No matter how many times I get low, I'm always going to get back up,' Cooke said. 'If I feel like I'm knocked down, I've got the right people around me to talk me back into being positive.'

Cooke will be on the ISU foreign trip to Spain in August, but he has also taken on another role this summer.

When senior Naz Long underwent hip surgeries this spring, Cooke was there as almost an encyclopedia of hip recovery. He kept Long's spirits and confidence up, even when the inevitable low points would creep into Long's mind.

'I know definitely there's been a couple times where I've been a little scared and paranoid about me sleeping and feeling a little pain in my right hip,' Long said. 'I would just hit him up and ask if he felt the same and he'd definitely be there, letting me know it's normal for him and it's normal for me.'

'I never thought I would know as much about the hips as I do and it's cool to actually see us switch positions now,' Cooke said. 'He was coming to me and watching me in therapy and now I go watch him in therapy to make sure he's doing good.'

Long was cleared to start shooting last week and has been running while submerged in water at the Bergstrom Football Facility as a part of his therapy. He hopes to be running on dry land in three to four weeks. In the meantime, Cooke will continue to be that example Long looks to when he thinks about his own return to the court.

'Seeing him run up and down the court alone is something that keeps me going,' Long said. 'Being able to see him move quickly left or right or forward, his shot looks great right now. It's definitely a saving grace.'

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