There was a time in her life when Tiya Misir didn't want to play basketball. Like any athlete, she struggled with the obstacles placed in front of her and wondered, quite seriously, whether or not it was worth continuing. But, for Misir, this existential doubt was quite recent. 

In fact, she contemplated leaving the sport entirely just last year. At the onset of the pandemic, she was confused, disappointed and, most tragically, discouraged at the prospect of playing basketball.

"I was like, 'oh, maybe basketball isn't for me,'" Misir admitted, overlooking the Rams' home court at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. "It was really frustrating to me and I was honestly heartbroken."

Originally from Scarborough, Ont., and a graduate of the prestigious Bill Crothers Secondary School in Markham—alumni from which include US Open champion Bianca Andreescu and Maple Leafs blueliner Travis Dermott—Misir was heavily recruited during her Grade 11 year, receiving three offers from NCAA Division I programs. By her own admission, she wasn't ready to commit to a school south of the border, so she bided her time and waited until her last year of high school, during which she was playing basketball at the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) level.

In her last game as a high school student, a representative from Long Island University in Brooklyn, N.Y. approached Misir's coach at halftime and recruited her to their program. In her words, it was quite a crazy development, but one that certainly worked out for her in the end. 

"They came to my coach and they were like, 'we want her,'" Misir recalled with a nostalgic smile, acknowledging that her commitment to LIU came quickly and began unexpectedly.  

While at Long Island, Misir didn't quite feel at home. She played well in her first season with the Sharks, but was the latest recruit in her class and felt disconnected from her teammates, most of whom came from the surrounding New York and New Jersey areas. 

"At first, I didn't think it was going to be tough," Misir conceded. "But, New York is a tough city. It kind of hit me in the face, too." 

Of course, she also had to deal with the acute pressure of playing against such schools as Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University, who have prestigious reputations in their own right. While she was set up for success as a first-year, she nevertheless had to develop a more robust jump shot to compete with taller players in the Northeast Conference. She also wasn't alone in being an explosive force on her team, as every player was at the top of their game. 

"I was prepared," Misir recalled. "But, the girls were taller, bigger, and faster, and everybody was good."

After giving it her all at the beginning of her second year, Misir felt homesick and unhappy. Eventually, she was granted a week to return home, a break which she welcomed wholeheartedly. Upon returning to Long Island, however, things weren't the same as far her relationship with her coaches was concerned. 

"When you left, the dynamics changed," her coaches told her, almost as if she'd been cast away. 

"I just didn't feel like I was really wanted there," Misir said softly and sadly.

With that, she decided to leave behind the stress and discomfort of NCAA competition and return home. She reached out to Rams head coach Carly Clarke—whom she knew from past interactions at various tournaments—and began laying the groundwork for a return to Canada. She knew a few of the girls who had committed to the Rams ahead of the 2020-21 season—Mikaela Dodig and Kaillie Hall among them—and was incredibly excited to join a program that seemed to genuinely want and value her talents.

Just over a year into her tenure with the Rams, Misir's instincts proved to be correct. She loves being a Ram and wakes up every morning loving her sport and the program. 

"I feel so appreciated here," she said happily. "My teammates support me so much. I'm so happy to be at practice every day."

That jovial love of the game has served Misir well in the early parts of her inaugural season in the blue and gold; she's racked up nine points and two steals, albeit in just 18 minutes on the court.  

"I've been working on decision-making when I get in the paint," Misir said of the aspects of her game she's been working on improving with Clarke and the Rams coaching staff. "Decision-making has probably been the number one thing."

On the academic side of things, Misir is settling in nicely to her school life as a psychology student. Initially, she studied sport management at Long Island, eventually switching to business before making the 180-degree shift to psychology upon arriving at Ryerson, a decision she likewise believes to have been the right one. 

"It's kind of hard to decide what you want to do straight out of high school," Misir remarked candidly. 

As she contemplates potentially playing professionally after graduation, Misir remains thankful for the opportunity to return to her hometown and rekindle her love of the game she's been playing for nearly a decade. In other words, she's glad she stuck with basketball and didn't quit when the going got tough. 

"I'm happy that I stuck with it," Misir reflected with a confident, almost triumphant, resolve. "Carly and the girls have helped me find my love for basketball again, like never before."