Gina Cerezuela Robuste has joined the University of South Florida’s women’s basketball staff as an assistant coach/director of global recruiting, announced by head coach Jose Fernandez on Monday.
“We are really excited about Gina (Cerezuela Robuste) joining our staff here at South Florida,” said head coach Fernandez. “Her main responsibilities will center around global recruiting in Europe and she will also serve as one of our assistant coaches. The landscape around international recruiting has changed over the past few years and Cerezuela Robuste’s expertise will provide an advantage for our program.”
“I’m really thankful to coach Fernandez for the opportunity,” said Cerezuela Robuste. “I’m excited to get to work alongside coach and staff, as we focus on the development of our student-athletes and recruiting efforts overseas.”
COACHING RESUME
Cerezuela Robuste started her coaching career with Femeni Maresme (Barcelona, Spain), as an assistant women’s basketball coach. From 2019-20, she helped guide the program to the state championship before the season was cut short due to Covid-19. As an assistant, Cerezuela Robuste worked primarily with the post players and conducted individual workouts.
Cerezuela Robuste spent 2020-21 as the head men’s basketball coach of the U17 Unio Esportiva Sant Cugat (Barcelona, Spain) program. She oversaw all aspects of the program including management, player evaluation, recruitment, scouting, skill development, strength training, and academic support. During her time with U17 Unio Esportiva Sant Cugat, Cerezuela helped increase the club’s wins by 75 percent.
As a player development coach for CB Ripollet and Holdat in Barcelona in 2021 and 2022, Cerezuela Robuste tutored players in the post, created practice plans, and taught skill and drill techniques including shooting and footwork.
Most recently, Cerezuela Robuste served as a recruiting coordinator with Pickus for the past three years. While with Pickus, Cerezuela Robuste provided guidance on the academic and recruiting process for prospective student-athletes looking to attend American colleges. Cerezuela Robuste also assisted with home visits and visa applications.
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT
While coaching with Femeni Maresme, Cerezuela Robuste helped develop seven players who are currently playing for American colleges/universities, six of the seven performers are currently playing at NCAA Division I institutions:
Nhugh Bosch Duran – California Baptist
Hawa Balde-Camara – Queens (Charlotte)
Sofia Llanos – Portland State
Chiso Okhafor – Miami
Julia Puente Valverde – McNeese St.
Nahawa Diarra Berthe – New Mexico
Claudia Garrido – Spring Hill
PLAYING CAREER
Playing primarily as a center, Cerezuela Robuste graduated from Coker University in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a minor in Sociology. Prior to her time at Coker, Cerezuela Robuste earned her associate degree from Northeastern Junior College.
