Joye Lee-McNelis talks about camp, 'Chillin 4 Charity'

Summer and camps go together like peanut butter and jelly. Red beans and rice. Steak and a baked potato.

Sorry if I made you hungry, but as Southern Miss women's basketball head coach Joye Lee-Mcnelis said, she's hungry to teach kids the game.

"We've had a great two days of camp. We have young ladies from five different states here."

"It's an opportunity for them to take an in-depth look at our women's basketball program, but also the University of Southern Mississippi.

Current Lady Golden Eagle forward, Tamara Jones, echoed her coach's thoughts.

"I think it's very important because most high school seniors or juniors might not get the chance to play. So, these camps really get their talent out there and have their D-1 coaches see what they actually can do."

Coach McNelis and her team recently participated in the "Chillin 4 Charity" challenge to benefit the Kay Yow foundation for cancer research.

Those that accept the challenge, must get dunked by ice-water and then call out other coaches to do the same.

"I tell you what, it was really cold and when we were headed over, I kept sticking my hand in it to see how cold it was."

Asked if she got any joy out of seeing her coach get iced, Jones had this to say.

"Yeah, just a little bit. We were excited. We were like, 'Yes, gotta get coach back this time,'" said Jones with a laugh.

"I think they had a great time being a part of it," McNelis said from court side inside Reed Green Coliseum.

"We have a lot of dancing competitions within our team and believe me, Coach McNelis never wins, but it was a lot of fun and I thought it was great to have the whole team to be a part of it, to be able to raise money for such a great cause."