BERKELEY, Calif. -- At first, Rama N'diaye kept a secret from her loved ones and entire support system last summer: She had breast cancer.
Privacy is the cultural norm back home in Senegal, yet N'diaye quickly realized she would need everybody cheering her fight. She gathered the courage and reached out to former California basketball staff member Sarah Holsinger, now at Virginia working as associate athletic director of basketball administration for Joanne Boyle, the coach who recruited N'diaye to Berkeley over a decade ago before leaving for Charlottesville.
"I was so amazed," N'diaye said Sunday. " .