SAN ANTONIO – Adriana Robles’ love of basketball was developed at a very early age. Some of the UTSA freshman point guard’s earliest memories are of sitting on the couch with her dad, Edfren, and watching National Basketball Association games.
“It’s been my whole life, literally,” Robles said. “I started playing basketball because of my dad. He watched the NBA a lot. I started loving basketball more and more and he started training me. It was a great bonding experience.”
Hailing from Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Robles moved to the United States at the age of 8, following her father’s career to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex along with her mom, Michelle, and her sister, Alanis.
Basketball was the constant.
“I started playing basketball in the first or second grade,” she said. “As soon as I moved to the United States, my mom took me to the YMCA and that’s how I kept playing. I was playing with boys most of the time.”
Robles’ transition to the United States wasn’t an easy one. She only spoke Spanish and was often frustrated by the challenge of communicating.
“It was really tough because I had a language barrier,” Robles said. “I didn’t know English at all, so the first two to three years, I was still learning English. It was easier for me to adapt since I was young, but I was still struggling. I would go home and cry because I was a kid, and I couldn’t really talk to people. It was something that built me into who I am today, so I appreciate that.”
At Fossil Ridge High School in Fort Worth, Robles excelled on the hardwood. She scored more than 1,000 career points and earned three First-Team All-District Awards. As a junior in 2023-24, she was the District Offensive Player of the Year. Robles was also an outstanding student, claiming Academic All-District honors with a 4.7 weighted grade-point average.
Competing for Texas LoneStar Basketball, as part of adidas 3 Stripe Select Basketball, Robles caught the eye of UTSA head coach Karen Aston.
“KA came to some of my games in Bryan, Texas,” Robles said. “She initiated the conversation with me. We talked a lot and it was just amazing. She’s a really fun person to learn from. She’s tough on us point guards, but I think that’s a good thing. I feel like I’ve learned so much from her and I just want to continue to learn from her.”
Robles also had the opportunity to play for the junior Puerto Rican National Teams, which proved to be an incredibly meaningful experience for her.
“I started playing for the national team when I was 15,” Robles said. “They called my dad, I went and it was an awesome experience that I honestly had no idea was possible. It was like a dream come true and an unbelievable experience.”
Representing Puerto Rico at the FIBA U18 Americup, Robles posted 10.3 points per game, 3.7 rebounds per game and 2.5 assists per game en route to the quarterfinals. A year prior at the U17 World Cup, she averaged 14.9 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game and 3.6 assists per game.
When she arrived in San Antonio, Robles felt ahead of the curve because of her national team experience.
“It prepared me for the scouting stuff and some terminology that they use here,” she said. “It really prepared me to play in college.”
Robles was one of two point guards to join the Roadrunners for the 2025-26 season, filling the spot previously held by fellow Puerto Rican Nina De Leon Negron. It was a perfect pairing for Robles, a rookie, with Ereauna Hardaway, who played three seasons at North Texas prior to transferring to UTSA.
“I call her ‘Granny,’” Robles said of Hardaway. “We’re kind of similar; we’re really good at playmaking. It’s been really fun learning from her and talking to her as a person, as well. She’s been playing in this conference now for four years, so I’m trying to learn as much as I can from her.”
While two players vying for time at the same spot could lead to a rivalry, Hardaway and Robles have become complimentary talents.
“We competed throughout the whole summer, but I’m so glad we’re on the same team,” Robles said. “I’m so glad I get to learn from her. It’s a good competitiveness – no bad blood. It’s fun.”
As a freshman, Robles has played in all 13 games for the Roadrunners with five starts. She is averaging 2.2 assists per game to complement 5.5 points per game and 2.0 rebounds per contest. Robles is seeing more than 20 minutes of action per game, has already won an American Conference Freshman of the Week accolade and has been a major driver in the team’s success.
“Not many people have this opportunity,” Robles said. “I’m blessed that I do have this opportunity and I’m just going to take advantage of it as much as I can.”
Academically, Robles is a kinesiology major in UT San Antonio’s College for Health, Community and Policy. Once her collegiate career has concluded, she looks forward to playing professionally overseas and ultimately pursuing a career as a physical therapist, working specifically with athletes.
“I want to help athletes recover from injuries because I’ve been through a lot of injuries myself,” she said. “I think I’ll be able to relate to them. If I can help them through a process that we all have to go through, that is going to toughen them up both mentally and physically.”
For now, Robles is focused on helping her team, which enters Saturday’s 12 p.m. game against Charlotte with a 2-0 American Conference record, be as successful as possible. Adjusting from playing in high school to a key role on a championship-level team has come with its challenges, but Robles is grateful to be a Roadrunner.
“Transitions can be tough, but I feel like the support of the coaching staff has been amazing,” Robles said. “I came to UTSA because it felt like home. I love the program, the culture and the player development. It feels like you’re at home and you’re with your sisters every single day. It’s just amazing. I love it.”