11/19/2010 Michelle Harrison faces her old team, S…
Michelle Harrison faces her old team, Stanford By Sarah Thomas Deseret News Published: Thursday, Nov. 18, 2010 11:55 p.m. MST SALT LAKE CITY — Michelle Harrison is looking forward to a unique experience this evening. The 6-foot-3 forward, who transferred to play on Utah's women's basketball team for her senior season, will reunite with her old team when the Lady Utes take on the Stanford Cardinal Friday night at the Huntsman Center at 7 p.m. Harrison, a graduate of Mountain View High and former MVP and Deseret News Ms. Basketball, headed out west after high school to play for Coach Tara Vanderveer and the notable Stanford women's program, which is currently ranked third in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches' polls. She has since graduated from the Pac-10 school and, due to an injury, still had a year of eligibility left. "Utah was my first choice, my last choice, I wanted to be here," Harrison said. "I was going to do whatever I needed to make it happen."
A torn ACL during her sophomore season sidelined Harrison, allowing her to use a medical redshirt. Two years later, Vanderveer pulled Harrison aside to talk to her about space on the roster. "She sat me down and said with the recruits coming in and the number of people we had that wanted to stay, we were short one scholarship," Harrison said. "There were no hard feelings, but she let me know that the position they really needed were point guards, so she gave me the option of looking and seeing what I wanted to do." While most athletes who transfer from one Division I school to another Division I school are required to sit out a year, Harrison fit into a category most student-athletes do not. "Through research (we found) if you can get accepted into a graduate program that isn't offered at the school you're already at and (that school) is not in the same conference, there's an opportunity to be waived for that year and not have to sit out," explained Harrison, who graduated from Stanford last May with a bachelor's degree in studio art. She was accepted into the University of Utah's Education, Culture and Society master's program, which she could eventually use to teach art and coach basketball at the high school level, and the NCAA cleared her to play. Now in Utah crimson and white, Harrison made her first career start when the Utes traveled to play SMU in the season-opening victory and her second in a win at Weber State on Tuesday. Tonight's matchup against Stanford will be her first home-opener at the Huntsmen Center, as well as an powerful reunion. "It's going to be really emotional, but it's going to be a lot of fun," Harrison said. "This is such a unique opportunity for someone to transfer, get to play (immediately), and get to come back and play their old team — and on good terms." She added that she is especially pleased to have Stanford on the schedule so she can reunite with the friends, and relive some of the memories she made over the past four years. deseretnews.com/…/Michelle-Harrison… 1/2 11/19/2010 Michelle Harrison faces her old team, S… "It was a really good experience. The injury certainly made it a hard road, but I think through those knocks you learn lessons that aren't learned anywhere else," she said. "And school was challenging, but to walk out with a degree, that's going to open up a lot of opportunities when basketball is all said and done."
As for the game, she expects her current team to hold its own against her old one. "I know (when I was) at Stanford and we came and played Utah, Utah always played us really well," Harrison said. "I know (interim head coach) Anthony (Levrets) and these girls really want to take this program to another level, and to do that you have to be able to compete against top-5 teams. "I think it's going to be an interesting matchup. They're really big, they're really athletic — they always are — and with the newcomers they have coming in it mixes things up. But I expect it to be really competitive. We'll all be happy to see each other, I know it's going to be all smiles, but when tipoff comes, we want to play." The Cardinal, last season's NCAA runner up, is 1-0 after winning its first game of the year, a 63- 50 victory over Rutgers. They are led by junior All-American Nnemkadi Ogwumike, who averaged 18.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per game last season, and her sister, freshman Chiney Ogwumike, who had a game-high 12 rebounds and nine points against Rutgers.
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deseretnews.com/…/Michelle-Harrison… 2/2 11/18/2010 Hard work pays off for Messer - The D…
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Search ARCHIVE SUBMIT NEWS TIP FACEBOOK TWITTER RSS Hard work pays off for Messer
By Kelsey Price
Published: Thursday, November 18, 2010 Updated: Thursday, November 18, 2010 03:11
On the court, sophomore point gaurd Rachel Messer has proven to be a tremendous asset to the Utes, starting in 27 games last season as a true freshman.
However, when she was growing up, sports didn't come easy to Messer, who, in preparation for this year, pushed herself to new levels athletically during the offseason. Nathan Sweet
"I'm not the most athletic person there is," Messer said. "I really had to work hard over the summer to get to where I am right now."
Despite struggling with clumsiness in other youth sports, Messer continued to pursue basketball. Her older brother, Joseph, also played and Messer was determined to be as good, if not better, than him. Growing up, they liked to mess around on the court, which kept Messer playing ball through high school.
Messer came to Utah as one of the team's highest-ranked recruits from the high school class of 2009. The Utes recruited her alongside Diana Rolniak, who was the No. 83 player in the country and the No. 15 forward in the nation, according to ESPN. Rolniak played on the same club team as Messer, Mile High Magic, an Amateur Athletic Union squad based in Denver.
"(Diana) and I played on the same club," Messer said. "(Utah was) following her very closely and came out a lot, which is how they really saw me, too."
Messer came to Utah ranked as the No. 51 guard according to Scouts, Inc. Messer, in addition to being named to the first team All-Continental League, was named to ESPN's Top Gunners, an honor given to the best shooters and scorers in high school basketball.
As a freshman, Messer didn't initially start for the Utes, struggling with her speed early in the season. However, determined to contribute in any way possible, Messer was eventually worked into the rotating lineup of point guards and soon began to start.
"(Rachel) is probably our most solid, versatile player," said head coach Anthony Levrets. "Last season her biggest weakness was definitely her speed and overall physical fitness. That held her back a bit."
Despite her setbacks, Messer continued to work hard throughout the season.
"I ended up starting over 20 games or so, which was pretty great to be able to play that much as a freshman," Messer said.
During the summer, however, Messer was determined to train harder than ever, taking advantage of the resources the athletics department offers to its students. dailyutahchronicle.com/…/hard-work-p… 1/2 11/18/2010 Hard work pays off for Messer - The D…
The women's basketball team returned to campus for conditioning during the summer semester.
Messer's primary focus was losing weight and building lean muscle mass to become faster on the court. Messer also took additional optional practice time to work on her shooting, so her production would increase during the season.
"She's made the most progress during the offseason than probably any other player I've coached on a college level, which is fantastic," Levrets said.
During the summer, Messer's typical training schedule began at 7 a.m., when the team would start conditioning for about an hour and a half before lifting in the weight room. Afterward, the team often went to the gym to shoot and run various offensive drills. About twice a week, the Utes also scrimmaged against either local club teams or other colleges. In all, Messer averaged between two and three hours a day in the gym with the team plus additional individual workouts.
"Rachel really took advantage of the summer resources we have as a team," Levrets said. "She really worked hard and the results really paid off and are showing. She's already contributing in more ways than before."
In addition to workouts, Messer made an effort during the offseason to work with the team's nutritionist, a worthwhile resource in which many college athletes don't invest their time.
"Not only did Rachel train hard, but she also took the time to learn how what she puts into her body affects her," Levrets said. "She really ate right over the summer, and...that's made a tremendous impact on her overall fitness this season."
The results of Messer's efforts are already evident. In just two games, Messer's production has gone up noticeably, scoring four more points per game than last year. Although Messer has yet to start this season, she is averaging 23 minutes a game, compared to 19.7 in 2009- 2010.
Because of her increased speed, Messer is able to contribute more effectively in the team's rotation.
"As she continues to improve her fitness, she'll be able to do even more for us," Levrets said. "She's the only kid on our team that can play as many positions as she can. She plays all three guard positions, and she's also a great shooter and a solid defender, so it's important she works as hard as she does."
For Messer, the rewards of her hard work in the offseason will hopefully pay off for the team during conference play.
"I just want to be the best I can be and contribute to the team in the best ways possible," Messer said. "I'll fill in whatever role they need me in to help lead us hopefully to a conference title. It would be awesome if we could make an NCAA run, especially knowing I helped take us there."
dailyutahchronicle.com/…/hard-work-p… 2/2 11/23/2010 Former Cardinal joins Utes against Sta…
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By Bubba Brown
Published: Friday, November 19, 2010 Updated: Friday, November 19, 2010 13:11
On Nov. 27 last year, Michelle Harrison and then-No. 2 Stanford beat the Utah women's basketball team 60-41 on the way to an eventual national-title game berth.
Tonight, the script is flipped for Harrison, who will be on the opposite bench when the Utes host Stanford at the Huntsman Center at 7 p.m.
Harrison, who transferred to Utah after spending her first four years with Stanford, is looking forward to facing her former teammates.
"It's definitely a whole new atmosphere, a whole new element to be in," she said. "I can't even really describe how exciting and fun this game is going to be."
Harrison was granted a fifth year of eligibility by the NCAA after losing her 2007-2008 season to a torn ACL, but between two other fifth-year players returning and incoming recruits, the school couldn't find a spot for Harrison in the lineup.
The senior forward said the split from Stanford ended on good terms and she has kept in touch with several of her former teammates.
"Each one of them one by one has come through somehow to say they're really excited to see me and excited to play," Harrison said. "That's what I think makes this opportunity really special, because there's no hard feelings."
Stanford, which has played in the past two Final Fours, is 1-0 this season after beating Rutgers in its season opener, and it is ranked No. 3 in the nation. The team's biggest threat is All-American Nnemkadi Ogwumike, who averaged 18.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per game last season. Ogwumike gets plenty of help from a talented supporting cast that includes All- Pac-10 honorees Jeanette Pohlen and Kayla Pedersen.
Head coach Anthony Levrets said that though Utah has played teams similar to Stanford in both size and athleticism, what separates the players are their its defensive effort.
"I think that's probably the biggest difference," Levrets said. "They guard you and don't give up anything easy. There are teams out there that are big and strong and athletic that you get easy baskets against because they're not as sound defensively. Stanford is not like that."
To have a shot at beating Stanford, Levrets said the Utes must get between the team and the basket on the defensive end.
"For us to be in the game with them, we have to be able to rebound the basketball defensively and not give them second chances," Levrets said. "They're too good to give them second opportunities." dailyutahchronicle.com/…/former-cardi… 1/2 11/23/2010 Former Cardinal joins Utes against Sta… Harrison, who has had her fair share of Cardinal victories, said the biggest key to sticking with Stanford is to simply believe.
"I think we are an extremely talented team," Harrison said. "We're very young, and I know they haven't been in this
position very much, but the entire program wants to go to the next level. To do that, these young kids have to believe they can play with (Stanford)."
Levrets knows the pressure that comes with playing a national power like Stanford and understands what it means to coach a program like Utah.
"It gives your program the spotlight for a little while," Levrets said. "When you bring one of the best programs in the country into Salt Lake City, people hear about it and think about it. We're at the forefront of what's going on because of who we're playing, not just because of who we are."
dailyutahchronicle.com/…/former-cardi… 2/2 12/1/2010 Young players will fill void left by Wicij…
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By Bubba Brown
Published: Wednesday, December 1, 2010 Updated: Wednesday, December 1, 2010 02:12
If there was ever an opportune time for a lengthy home stand, this might be it for the women's basketball team.
Since learning last week they would be without preseason all-conference member Taryn Wicijowski for the remainder of the season, the Utes (3-3) have been preparing for a major shift in their individual roles. The transitions will be made a little bit easier by a four-game home stand, which is the longest of the season and kicks off tonight against Washington. Without travel days, the Utes will have a long, uninterrupted stretch of practices to get used to their new roles until they play at Mississippi State on Dec. 11.
"The biggest thing is going all offseason and all preseason and then 31 practices of everyone getting comfortable together within their roles," said head coach Anthony Levrets. "And then all of a sudden that Christopher Reeves all changes overnight...It's going to be a work in Taryn Wicijowski tore her ACL this week during practice and will miss the remainder progress again." of the season. Wicijowski was among the leaders on the team in points and rebounds. The Utes played five of the season's first six games away from the Huntsman Center and are looking forward to some home cooking.
"Just getting some continuity in practices without having travel days in the middle of it, I think that will be the biggest thing," Levrets said. "Not having to travel is a wonderful thing."
Wicijowski tore her ACL during practice last week as the team was preparing for the Caribbean Challenge. She was dribbling the ball down the court and stopped awkwardly, causing the tear. In the three games she played before the injury, she averaged 10.7 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
"I'll definitely miss her," said guard Janita Badon. "We're just going to have to find another way to come up with her production from the post."
Levrets said Wicijowski's absence played a large factor in the Utes going 1-2 in the Caribbean Challenge last week, and it will take a team effort to make up the lost production.
"It'll be an opportunity for some other people to play some more minutes and more meaningful dailyutahchronicle.com/…/young-playe… 1/2 12/1/2010 Young players will fill void left by Wicij… minutes," Levrets said. "Younger people that were going to be kind of on the periphery and playing limited minutes, there's going to be a couple of them that have to step up and play. We don't have one person who's going to average 16 points and 10 boards, which is what (Wicijowski) would average before the year was over."
Washington comes into tonight's game dealing with injury concerns of its own. Starting center Regina Rogers has missed the past three games because of a hamstring injury after scoring 18 points in the Huskies' opener, and starting guard Sarah Morton hasn't played yet this season because of an injured ankle.
The Huskies, who are 2-2 on the year, are led by Kristi Kingma. The junior has established herself as Washington's main scoring threat in Rogers' absence, averaging 18.5 points per game.
With Wicijowski out of the mix, Badon and her 12.5 points per game will be responsible for leading the Utah offense. For Badon, tonight's game represents an opportunity to apply the lessons learned from playing so many games on the road.
"I think it's good that we played so much on the road to start the season," Badon said. "Now that we've learned from that, we get to come home in front of our crowd."
Tip-off for tonight's game is 7 p.m. at the Huntsman Center.
dailyutahchronicle.com/…/young-playe… 2/2 12/9/2010 Rodrigues starts to take place in the sp…
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By Bubba Brown
Published: Wednesday, December 8, 2010 Updated: Wednesday, December 8, 2010 11:12
Women's basketball head coach Anthony Levrets has repeatedly said sophomore guard Iwalani Rodrigues has the potential to be one of the premier players in the Mountain West Conference.
Judging by her past two games, that proclamation doesn't seem too far-fetched.
Rodrigues made all seven of her 3-point attempts and scored a career-high 31 in Utah's blowout win Monday over Westminster. That backed up her then career-high 18 points in Utah's loss to Arkansas during the weekend.
Rodrigues will have a chance to set a career high in points for the third time in as many games tonight when the Utes (4-5) host Idaho State at 7 p.m. in the Huntsman Center to close out a four-game homestand. Andrew Glade Levrets said Rodrigues' recent performances Iwalani Rodrigues broke her career high, reaching the 30-point plateau with 31 points. indicate the type of player she is expected to be.
"She has all the things you want out of a scoring guard," Levrets said. "She can shoot it, she can get to the basket. She's a great free-throw shooter—we've got to get her to the line more —and she can defend when she decides she wants to."
Last season, Rodrigues averaged 3.5 points per game as a freshman, but sometimes struggled to gain the confidence to take big shots. As a sophomore, that has not been the case. She is averaging 10.2 points and has established herself as one of the team's top weapons.
"I feel more confident," Rodrigues said. "I think last year I was so nervous, and I don't want to say scared, but just nervous to mess up and miss. This year, I'm just playing now. I'm not so much thinking about what I'm doing."
One of the main reasons for Rodrigues' recent emergence is the season-ending injury to all- conference forward Taryn Wicijowski. Before the injury, the offense was focused around working the ball down low and getting Wicijowski as many touches as possible. Since the injury, the Utes have gone with a more guard-based offense, forcing Rodrigues and fellow guard Janita Badon to step in as go-to scorers. dailyutahchronicle.com/…/rodrigues-st… 1/2 12/9/2010 Rodrigues starts to take place in the sp… "Now (Rodrigues) has no choice," Levrets said. "She's got to go play. And I think that's the beautiful thing out of injuries and bad things happening to teams. Every other kid finds something within themselves to bring something that they just weren't doing."
Idaho State enters 5-4 and has won two in a row. Chelsea Pickering is the Bengals' top scorer, averaging 17 points and 4.6 rebounds a contest. Kaela Oakes and Lindsey Reed are also formidable, averaging 12.1 points and 11.2 points, respectively.
The Utes come into tonight's game having broken a three-game losing streak against Westminster.
"I came into this game saying this game can either make us or break us after we lost to Washington and Arkansas," Badon said after the Westminster game. "I think we're headed the right way."
Following tonight's game, the Utes will be back on the road for a game against Mississippi State on Saturday.
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They came into this world together, and grew up sharing a passion for hoops, a union that took them to Harry Ainlay high school, then Basketball Canada's National Elite Development Academy (NEDA) in Hamilton, and finally back home to Edmonton again.
Now 18-year-old twins Katherine and Michelle Plouffe are both playing significant roles as freshman for a prominent U.S. college team, only this time, they're not together.
A dynamic duo since Day One, the sisters are establishing themselves as individuals: Michelle in Salt Lake City at the University of Utah, Katherine at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis.
"Not that there was anything wrong with it, but all our high school it was 'the sisters', 'twin towers', that kind of thing, and I love her, but we kind of wanted to play our own game," says Katherine.
So far they are doing just that: Michelle, a forward, leads the Utes in rebounds and blocks, and is third in scoring with 13 points per game. Guard/forward Katherine is the Golden Eagles' third-leading rebounder, tied for first in blocks, and was named Big East Freshman of the Week earlier this month.
Being nearly 2,000 km apart has taken some getting used to, but the twins are still there for each another.
"We talk pretty regularly," says Michelle. "The first part of the year, I didn't talk to her for a long time. We didn't talk because it was so different just not being together, but then we adjusted after a while, we're like, 'ok, it's different' but she's doing very well."
For a time it seemed the Plouffes were a package deal. As Grade 10 students, they led the Harry Ainlay Titans senior girls' team to a provincial title in 2008. The following season, they trained together in Ontario with NEDA, a now-defunct program that ran during the academic year for the countries' top players aged 15-18.
They were being recruited by the same schools, but their paths began to diverge in the summer of 2009. Michelle was able to showcase her skills playing for Canada at the world junior championships, while Katherine had to sit out the action because of injury.
Last season, as they teamed to lead the Titans to another provincial title, Katherine and Michelle committed to different universities.
"We both found schools that were good for us, that we both liked," Katherine says. "In our senior year of high school we realized that we wanted to go to different schools, so it worked out."
The twins are following footsteps of older sister, Andrea, who also played U.S. college hoops at the University of Washington from 2004 to 2008. She was a three-time Pac-10 All-Academic selection, and helped the Huskies reach the celebrated NCAA Tournament on three occasions.
Katherine and Michelle hope to reach the women's Big Dance with their respective teams, too, beginning this season.
Almost certainly they will reunite on the hardwood. Last summer they played together on the Canadian junior team, and both figure to prominent players on the national program in the future.
For the time being, though, they're happy figuring things out on their own.
"We have the rest of our lives to spend together, so four years won't hurt us," Michelle says.
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It didn't happen right away. Last year, as a redshirt freshman, she played in 34 games, but only started three, averaging 3.5 points per game.
When she'd get into the game, she admitted that she "didn't know any of the plays" and "tried not to make a mistake every time she went in."
After adjusting to the demands of college It wasn't until the Mountain West Conference tournament when she got the brilliant idea to treat life, Iwalani Rodrigues has become the basketball the same way she did in high school. leading scorer for Utah's basketball team "It was the semifinals against TCU and I felt like I might By Billy Hull as well stop being afraid of making mistakes," she said. "I just went out and played and scored my career high that year in that game."
POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jan 26, 2011 It's been all uphill since for Rodrigues, who as a sophomore this year leads the Utes in scoring at 14.3 Iwalani Rodrigues was greeted by something other ppg. She posted a career-high 31 points against than basketball at Utah. Westminster in December and fell one short of the NCAA record for consecutive 3-pointers made, going "My day would start at 7 a.m. and go until 9 o'clock at 7-for-7 against Westminster and hitting her first six in night," she said. "Just school and meetings all day. It the next game against Idaho State. was really tough." She's scored at least 20 points five times this season College life was a shock to the 2008 Kalani grad, who, and led the team in points 10 times, including eight of instead of stepping in and playing right away, the past 13 games. redshirted her first year.
» Position: Guard "I've improved a lot, but I'm constantly still working on my game," she said. "I need to get more aggressive. I » Height: 5 feet 9 still (shy away) from contact a little bit and need to try to add some more weight." » High school: Kalani (2008) Utah is 10-10 overall and 3-3 in conference after » Highlights: Won three OIA Red titles (two at losing to TCU 56-46 on Saturday. The Utes have a full Roosevelt, one at Kalani);two-time OIA Red East player of week off before playing at Colorado State on Saturday, the year; rankedNo. 6 in 2006 and No. 3 in the '07 and '08 Star-Bulletin Fab 15; leadsUtah in scoring as a ADVERTISEMENT sophomore with 14.3 ppg; leads the MWC and is 15th nationally in 3-point shooting at 43.8 percent (53-for- 121).
"It was really tough academically," Rodrigues said. "At times, I would feel like I wasn't part of the team and my brain was pretty much dead with basketball."
It took sessions during open gym time for the Star- Bulletin's No. 3-ranked player out of Hawaii in '08 to remember why she'd been playing basketball since she was 5.
The year away from the game eventually became enough for Rodrigues to realize what was ahead.
"I knew I had to show (Utah) what I can do," she said.
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one of two more games before they reach the halfway point in league play.
"We have a really young team -- only one junior and two seniors," Rodrigues said. "It's just hard because we're not always mentally prepared and we're still kind of learning.
"But I think we're going to do better the second half of the season because we play well when we play as a team. We compete, and that's what I like about this team because we hate to lose."
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By Bubba Brown
Published: Thursday, February 3, 2011 Updated: Thursday, February 3, 2011 00:02
On Nov. 19, Iwalani Rodrigues was just another player on the women's basketball team, unknown to all but those inside the locker room and the most ardent Utah supporters.
Two and a half months later, the sophomore guard is the team's leading scorer and a strong candidate to earn Mountain West Conference postseason Nathan Sweet Iwalani Rodrigues scored 13 points during accolades. Tuesday night’s game against UNLV. Rodrigues averages 14.2 points per game, Rodrigues' emergence from role player averaging a making her the team leader of most points in little more than three points a game to the Utes' the season. leading scorer was a transformation born out of necessity.
When preseason all-MWC forward Taryn Wicijowski tore her ACL during practice two days after the Utes fell to then-No. 2 Stanford on Nov. 19 in just the third game of the season, it left the Utes without its most potent scorer. Knowing that the team would have to find a way to replace that production to be successful, coach Anthony Levrets implored Rodrigues to become more aggressive on the court and fill Wicijowski's void.
"When Taryn got hurt, I felt like everyone on the team was all, ‘What do we do now?' " Rodrigues said. "I talked to Anthony, and he said I needed to be a scorer and I needed to find ways to get to the rim and get shots up. I took that into consideration and started playing."
It was a tall order for a player who had scored just 11 points combined in the Utes' first three games of the season and hadn't shown many flashes of being a game-changing scorer. But sure enough, when the Utes traveled to the Caribbean Challenge in Cancun, Mexico for their first games without Wicijowski, Rodrigues stepped up, averaging 9.7 points in the three- game tournament.
Rodrigues' true breakout came a week later, when she scored 18 points on 8-17 shooting from the field in a loss to Arkansas. Despite the poor outcome of the game, Rodrigues had officially arrived. It set off a four-game streak in which Rodrigues led the Utes in scoring, including a 31-point performance in a win against Westminster and a 27-point night against Idaho State. At one point, Rodrigues made a blistering 13 consecutive 3-pointers spanning two games, one shy of the all-time NCAA record.
Rodrigues slowed from that frantic pace once the conference schedule—and the tougher defenses that accompany it—arrived, but she now finds herself leading the team and ranking No. 7 in the conference with an average of 14.2 points per game.
Levrets said he envisioned this type of production when Utah recruited her out of Kalani High dailyutahchronicle.com/…/rodrigues-st… 1/3 2/3/2011 Rodrigues steps up to challenges - The… School in Hawaii.
"I knew when we recruited her—we told her this, and I believed it, that she had a chance to be one of the great guards here," Levrets said. "She has a unique skill set. One of the things she still has to develop is...being able to get to the rim and get to the paint. But she can do that as well. If she can get that whole skill set into games, she's going to be really, really hard to guard."
The road Rodrigues has taken to get to this point has not been easy. She was recruited to Utah as one of the most highly touted players in Hawaii, but academic difficulties forced the Utes to use an NCAA waiver to get her on campus, meaning she couldn't practice or play with the team during her first year at the U.
"It was hard," Rodrigues said. "It was sad that I didn't do my part in high school so I could play my freshman year in college, but I think that was a great lesson for me school-wise and basketball-wise."
Taking a year off from basketball to focus on school made it difficult for Rodrigues to find her stride last season as a freshman. She averaged just 3.5 points and 18 minutes playing both the shooting guard and wing positions.
"That was kind of her struggle last year," Levrets said. "We asked her to play two positions as a freshman, and not only play two positions, but play them after not having played basketball for an entire year. That's a very, very difficult thing to do."
Fellow guard and roommate Janita Badon has been helping Rodrigues work through her struggles.
"She's really helped me," Rodrigues said. "She gets on me when I don't do my stuff, and I listen to her because she is my good friend and one of the leaders of the team. I look up to Janita like a role model."
Badon's influence on Rodrigues and the duo's friendship has translated to success on the court, Levrets said. The two combine for more than 27 points a game.
"I think having a roommate and really good friend on the floor with you, there's obviously a natural chemistry between the two of them that wouldn't exist if they weren't that close," Levrets said. "They communicate well with each other and seem to feed off one another."
Badon says she is now reaping the well-earned rewards of guiding Rodrigues along the way.
"I know she's older than me, but basketball-wise she's not," Badon said. "So I'm like a proud big sister. Just watching her in practice and in workouts, I knew she had it in her. I just didn't know when it was going to come out."
Off the court, Rodrigues boasts a quiet sense of humor that tends to catch her teammates off guard.
"She's secretly funny," Badon said. "It's like, ‘What, that came from Iwa?'. It's usually me and Rita (Sitivi) cracking all the jokes, but Iwa will sneak one in from time to time."
As for the culture shock that might be associated with moving to Utah after growing up in Hawaii, Rodrigues says it hasn't been too much of a challenge. In fact, the move has forced her to mature, enabling her to become the basketball player she is today.
"It's been really nice, actually," Rodrigues said. "I thought I was going to have a hard time, but I actually like all of the changes. I was on a rock my whole life. I love Hawaii, but I felt like it was time to get away. I've grown up in a way. I'm not so hang-loose."
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By Tony Jones The Salt Lake Tribune Published: March 7, 2011 11:34PM Updated: March 6, 2011 11:41PM
On the basketball court, Michelle Harrison defines versatility.
Utah’s senior small forward is the second-leading rebounder on the team. She hands out assists, she scores and her defense is a major reason that the Utes were able to start playing small ball midway through the season.
But for as many things that Harrison brings to her team, her accomplishments off the court make her truly unique.
As a senior transfer from Stanford University, Harrison is a wonderful artist. She’s already received a bachelor’s degree, Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Michelle and is working on a master’s in culture in society. She’s one Harrison, a 6-foot-3-inch-tall forward and artist, transferred from Stanford to play on the Utah women's of the few around the country to take advantage of an NCAA basketball team. rule allowing a graduate with a year of eligibility remaining to transfer to another school without penalty.
It’s been a whirlwind career for Harrison, once the best player in the state when she was playing at Mountain View High School in Orem.
“It meant a lot for me to have the opportunity to come home and play in front of my family because I had been gone so long,” Harrison said. “I wanted to come in, work hard and blend in with my teammates. The chance was there, I started working out with the team and things just clicked from there.”
Harrison’s love for art is well-known. She started drawing as a child, and things just grew for her from there. She’s thought about pursuing a career as an artist, but plans on possibly becoming a teacher, which would allow her to mentor as an artist.
“I want to keep at it,” Harrison said.
Of her work, Harrison is most proud of a drawing she made for Tara VanDerveer, her coach at Stanford. She took a picture of VanDerveer’s dog, drew it and presented it to her last season at the team banquet.
VanDerveer, one of the legendary coaches of women’s basketball, hung the drawing in her office.
“My love for drawing didn’t just happen,” Harrison said. “It didn’t come from anywhere. I just felt like drawing one day and I really liked it.”
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As Utah prepares for the Mountain West Conference tournament this week, Harrison’s experience will make her invaluable. That’s part of the reason the Utes were willing to take her in the first place. As Division I programs go, most are reluctant to take senior transfers, because they have just one year to play.
Harrison proved to be an exception because of what she could offer on the court, and because the Utah senior class this season shaped up to be thin.
“We didn’t know if we were going to have a senior class,” Utes coach Anthony Levrets said. “In that sense, the idea of having a senior was an appealing one. We went through the process, we brought her in on a visit, and she’s done everything we’ve asked of her.”
At 6-foot-3, Harrison offered size at the small forward position. She’s done all of the little things that don’t show up in the stat sheet, and she quickly became a favorite among her teammates, even playing in a system completely different from the one she played in at Stanford.
“It’s difficult for anyone to transfer to a new system,” sophomore forward Diana Rolniak said.
“She’s worked hard on and off the court to adjust, and she’s been great defensively. She’s a really, really good defender.”
Twitter: @tonyaggieville
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Who is Michelle Harrison?
Played at Mountain View High School in Orem.
After four years at Stanford, the graduate transferred to Utah with a year ofeligibility left.
Is a dedicated artist.
Is one of the most versatile players in the Mountain West Conference.
© 2011 The Salt Lake Tribune
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Utah women's basketball: Diana Rolniak copes with celiac disease
By Sarah Thomas Deseret News Published: Monday, March 7, 2011 9:39 p.m. MST SALT LAKE CITY — Diana Rolniak is the type of person who thrives when faced with a challenge. Her ability to fight through trials has been especially helpful over the past three years, as a sophomore on Utah's women's basketball team who has dealt with a handful of new obstacles, including leaving her home in Denver to start school at the University of Utah and taking on the workload that comes with being a college athlete. Each of those became infinitely more complicated when she was hit with her biggest test: learning to live, and play basketball, with celiac disease. "I just took it head on," Rolniak said of her July 2008 diagnosis. "I had already committed to Utah, and I just took it on as a new challenge in my life." Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the body is unable to digest gluten, which is a mixture of proteins that appear in foods processed from wheat, oats, rye and barley. When Rolniak and others with celiac get gluten poisoning, they can be sick for days as their body works to recover. "Everything you would imagine with a gastrointestinal illness, you have those problems," Utah interim head coach Anthony Levrets said, and Rolniak added that, "I'm going to be sick for a while and I can lose close to 20 pounds in one week." She experienced just how devastating eating the wrong items can be during the summer before her senior year of high school, when the 6-foot-4 forward was trying to play basketball while dropping below 100 pounds. As a result, Rolniak spent her first year at Utah focusing on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle while adjusting to living in Salt Lake City and being a college student and athlete. After living in a group setting to start her freshman year, Rolniak has since set up specific living arrangements in order to prevent cross-contamination, including living alone and turning herself into a chef. "I have to have a lot of control over my food; I do most of my own cooking," she said. "When I did have a roommate, I spent most of my time making sure things were kept clean and things were kept separate. It's kind of a consuming process." Traveling with the basketball team adds another dimension to the daily grind. Fortunately, more and more restaurants have begun offering gluten-free menus. "On the road, we've figured out the restaurants that cater to gluten-free … that she's comfortable with," Levrets said. "And all of the hotels we stay in, we make sure they're able to prepare gluten-free meals to go along with our pregame meals."
In addition to figuring out what items are safe to eat, working at maintaining her weight is a constant effort for Rolniak, because of a combination of her disease, high metabolism and grueling workouts. "There's a certain weight I want to stay above in order to be healthy," she said. "If I dip below that, I'm not the same player — I'm not the same person." Rolniak eats every two hours and nearly 6,000 calories a day. Her daily menu looks something like this:
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Breakfast is two bowls of cereal, two yogurts, eggs and a homemade breakfast sandwich; she has two snacks before lunch, which each consist of a protein shake and fruit; and at noon she eats a sandwich, fruit, yogurt, chips, Reese's and a Diet Coke. She has a small shake during the team's film session, takes a break to snack during practice, and then has another shake after practice. Dinner is another substantial meal, which can range anywhere from lasagna to chicken to steak, potatoes and rice. Depending on how late she is up, Rolniak says she might have another dinner, which is always followed by dessert. Levrets said he has seen a difference in Rolniak this season, both as a student and an athlete. "Getting diagnosed and leaving home, going to college and being an athlete, figuring all of those things out (was a challenge)," he said, "but she's a take-charge kind of kid … and the healthier she gets, the more she learns to manage this, the better she's becoming. She's got a dynamic future ahead of her on the floor and off." Aside from being a starting forward and averaging 23 minutes a game, a nearly 10-minute improvement from the beginning of the season, Rolniak is a stellar student. She's a chemistry major — the chemistry program was a key part of what drew her to Utah — and is working toward becoming a surgeon. "I've wanted to go to medical school since I was seven years old," she said. "Nothing quite gets me as excited as chemistry does, I'm just lighting up as I talk about it. I look at ingredients on the back of shampoo bottles and start drawing out the structures in my mind." She said she's currently interested in either trauma or oncology. Both are male-dominated fields, but she feels her personality and the on-your-feet decision-making training from basketball will help her be successful. "For me, it's about making a difference for other people. I've been blessed with so much, and I definitely feel called to do this, and I can help a lot of people doing this. It's something I'm really passionate about." MWC women's tourney In Las Vegas • Today's first round Colorado State vs. Air Force, 3 p.m. Utah vs. UNLV, 5:30 p.m. San Diego State vs. New Mexico, 8 p.m. • Wednesday's second round Colorado State-Air Force winner vs. Utah-UNLV winner, 5:30 p.m. Wyoming vs. San Diego State-New Mexico winner, 8 p.m. • Friday's semifinals BYU vs. Colorado State-Air Force—Utah-UNLV winner, 1 p.m. TCU vs. Wyoming—San Diego State-New Mexico winner, 3:30 p.m. • Saturday's Championship
Semifinal winners, 2 p.m. Women's awards Newcomer of the year: Courtney Clements, San Diego State Freshman of the year: Michelle Plouffe, Utah
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Utah stuns BYU at buzzer in MWC women’s semis
By Jay Drew
The Salt Lake Tribune
Published: March 12, 2011 06:05PM Updated: March 12, 2011 12:50AM
Las Vegas • A little bit of luck and a lot of resiliency gave the plucky University of Utah women’s basketball team an improbable win against top-seeded BYU in a Mountain West Conference tournament semifinal game Friday, possibly ending the cold- shooting Cougars’ NCAA Tournament dreams while prolonging their own.
Michelle Plouffe’s 12-foot, buzzer-beating shot lifted the Utes to a 50-49 upset win at Thomas & Mack Center. It came after the ball was inbounded with 1.5 seconds left, then tipped in the Utah sophomore’s direction.
“I don’t remember a lot of that play,” Plouffe said after a wild celebration. “But I just remember the ball rolling towards me. It was in a spot I knew I could make a shot from. I didn’t really have a choice. I put it up, and it went in. So that’s how it happened.”
All in 1.5 seconds, although officials were able to review only whether the shot was off before the buzzer (it clearly was) and not whether the clock was started when the ball was tipped, or when Plouffe scooped it up.
Rick Egan | Salt Lake Tribune BYU forward, Coriann Fifth-seeded Utah, which needed to win games Fraughton and BYU guard, Jazmine Foreman (3) put pressure on Utah forward, Michelle Plouffe (15), in the Tuesday and Wednesday just to get to well-rested Mountain West Conference Championships in Las BYU in the semifinal, will play for the tournament Vegas, Friday, March 11, 2011. championship, and the NCAA Tournament bid that goes to the winner, at 2 p.m. MST Saturday against TCU.
Meanwhile, the Cougars (23-8) have to wait until Monday’s selection show to learn whether they will get a bid.
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“I would say right now we are probably on the bubble of maybe we’re in, maybe we’re out,” said BYU guard Haley Hall. “I know it is going to be a long weekend waiting to hear.”
BYU coach Jeff Judkins said his team deserves a bid, based on how well MWC teams have played in the NCAAs in the past few years, but he acknowledged the Cougars’ rating percentage index (RPI) might not be high enough.
That the Utes (17-16) would be playing Saturday, instead of BYU, seemed improbable for much of the second half. BYU had a 42-33 lead with six minutes remaining, and a 45-37 lead with four minutes left.
“These kids are really, really resilient. They don’t know how to quit,” said Utah interim coach Anthony Levrets. “Right now, we’re playing our best basketball.”
The Utes turned the ball over 19 times but got two big 3-pointers from Iwalani Rodrigues in the final three minutes and a three-point play by Janita Badon to get back in it. The Utes were 8 of 16 from 3-point range, while the Cougars were 4 of 17 from there and shot 31 percent from the field, 11 percentage points below their average.
Rodrigues’ off-balance 3 with 46 seconds left came after BYU’s Jazmine Foreman missed a front-end free throw with 1:01 remaining. It cut the BYU lead to 49-48 and set up the final dramatic moments.
The Cougars’ Coriann Fraughton, who was 3 of 15 from the field, drove hard to the hoop with about 17 seconds left and the shot clock about to expire, but her heavily contested layup rolled out.
Utah’s first subsequent inbounds pass was almost stolen by Foreman, but the Cougar guard stepped out of bounds, giving the Utes new life.
Rodrigues missed a shot with four seconds left, but the rebound fell out of bounds after a scramble, giving Utah the ball with less than two ticks left.
“This time of year, you got to play well, but you’ve also have to be lucky,” Levrets said. “We got lucky tonight that the ball at the end bounced our way. If that [tipped pass] goes 3 feet one direction or the other, there’s no way [Plouffe] is going to get it.”
The Cougars, playing for the first time in almost a week, missed their first nine shots before Hall made their first field goal nearly seven minutes into the game.
Utah led 24-23 lead at the break.
“We didn’t play our best ball tonight,” Judkins said. “It was a real ugly game.”
But it featured a beautiful ending — at least for the Utes.
[email protected]: @drewjay
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Storylines
R In Short • Utah upsets top-seeded BYU on Michelle Plouffe’s 12-foot shot at the buzzer in a Mountain West Conference tournament semifinal game.
Key Moment • Plouffe’s shot came on Utah’s third inbounds pass in the game’s last 8.6 seconds.
Key Stat • Utah overcomes 19 turnovers to win its third game in four days.
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Utah Utes basketball: Ute women capture MWC tourney title By Dirk Facer Deseret News Published: Sunday, March 13, 2011 4:04 a.m. MDT LAS VEGAS — Beating your rival at the buzzer in the semifinals is one thing. Winning a championship is quite another. In a span of two days, the University of Utah women's basketball team experienced both — capping things off with a 52-47 overtime victory over TCU to win the Mountain West Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. "A championship is no comparison to any regular game," said Utah guard Janita Badon. "Cutting down the nets, getting the hats, the shirts. I like free stuff." Badon dished out seven assists in the championship game and was named tournament MVP.
Freshman Michelle Plouffe, however, stole the show for the second straight game. A day after hitting the winning shot against BYU, the forward from Canada provided even more late-game heroics for Utah. She scored the Utes' final eight points, including a pair of free throws with 14.5 seconds remaining, to seal the deal.
"I just tried to give it my all and do what I could for my team," said Plouffe, who scored 24 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in 41 minutes of action. After helping her teammates cut down the nets at the Thomas & Mack Center, Plouffe acknowledged how special her past two games have been.
"It's just all been really fun, and I've been able to spend it with such a great group of girls and a great coaching staff," she said. "I couldn't ask for anything more." Winning the title, Plouffe added, is an awesome feeling. "We are Mountain West Conference champions," she screamed. "I'm pumped." Things didn't come easy, however.
Despite opening the game with a 16-2 run, the Utes eventually found themselves in a battle. TCU wiped away the deficit and took its first lead, at 38-37, with just 3:51 remaining in regulation. Plouffe later hit a 3-pointer to put Utah ahead by two with 1:14 to go. The Horned Frogs, though, wound up forcing overtime when a layup by Breisha Wynn evened things up with 10 seconds remaining. By game's end, the lead changed hands six times and the score was tied on five occasions. "We just kept fighting back," Plouffe said. "We knew they were going to make a run for it, and we were able to keep our composure." In doing so, the fifth-seeded Utes became the lowest seed ever to win the MWC women's tournament. They'll host first- and second-round NCAA games next week. "I am ready to go home," said Utah coach Anthony Levrets, whose team has been in Las Vegas since March 4. "Yes, I'm ready to sleep in my own bed and then have a nice day off." deseretnews.com/…/Utah-Utes-basket… 1/2 3/14/2011 Utah Utes basketball: Ute women capt… And then, he added, get back to work Monday night when the Utes find out who they play in the Big Dance. "We just want this year to keep going," Levrets said. "They do not know how to give up."
After closing out the regular season with a 51-47 loss at UNLV, the Utes stayed in town and reeled off tournament wins against UNLV (55-44), Air Force (70-55), BYU (50-49) and TCU. The reward? At least one postseason game in the Huntsman Center.
"That's exciting. You go 4-0 at somebody else's home, then you go home and actually get to play there with your fans," Badon said. "It's just exciting. Words can't explain how excited I am."
GAME NOTES: Pac-12 bound Utah closed out MWC play with its fourth tournament title. The other crowns came in 2000, 2006 and 2009. In all, the Utes reached the finals seven times in 12 years. ... Iwalani Rodrigues finished with 13 points for Utah. She also had three blocks and three steals. Badon, Plouffe amd Rodrigues made the MWC all-tournament team. ... Helena Sverrisdottir and Delisa Gross topped TCU with 10 points apiece. ... Saturday's attendance was 4,305.
e-mail: [email protected]
© 2011 Deseret News Publishing Company | All rights reserved
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Women’s hoops: Utes NCAA- bound after shocking TCU
By Tony Jones The Salt Lake Tribune Published: March 13, 2011 11:40PM Updated: March 13, 2011 12:10AM
Las Vegas • Four wins in five nights. Beating two teams they haven’t beaten this year. A last-second shot at Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Emily Carter (15) TCU the buzzer. An overtime thriller. goes up for a shot, as Utah guard, Iw alani Rodrigues (3) defends, in the MountainWest Championship game, Utah vs. TCU, Saturday, March 12, 2011 Yep. The Utah women’s basketball team picked a great time to play its best basketball of the season.
One day after shocking BYU with a buzzer-beater, the No. 5 Utes used Michelle Plouffe’s 24 points, with eight coming in the extra session, to defeat No. 2 TCU 52-47 in Saturday ’s Mountain West Conference tournament title game at the Thomas and Mack Center.
With the win, Utah receives the MWC’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. The Utes will learn of their seeding on Monday, but Utah coach Anthony Levrets said after Saturday’s game that the Utes will play in the Huntsman Center no matter what.
Junior point guard Janita Badon, big throughout the Utes’ run, was named the MVP of the tournament. Plouffe, the MWC’s Freshman of the Year, was named to the all-tournament team.
“I’m proud of what these kids accomplished,” Levrets said. “Before the tournament, I said that the one thing we do is defend. We’ve stopped people all year long and I thought that we may have a chance if we can score just enough points, hit a few shots here and there.”
That’s the exact scenario that played out against TCU. Utah jumped to a 16-2 lead in the first half before the Horned Frogs even blinked. From that moment, it was about holding on.
And that’s where Plouffe came in. Adding to the legend that was her 15-foot winner against the Cougars, Plouffe carried her team in the extra session. She made several jumpers against the middle of TCU’s zone defense. Her turnaround jumper with 1:52 remaining in overtime gav e her team the lead for good at 46-45. Up one with a minute remaining, she came up with a huge rebound, and she made clutch free throws when it counted. She added 11 rebounds.
“We knew that they were going to make a run,” Badon said. “They ’re too good a team not to. We just needed to answer when they did so.”
TCU did just that, taking several leads down the stretch as the Utes went cold offensively, scoring just sltrib.com/csp/cms/…/printerfriendly.cs… 1/2 3/14/2011 Women’s hoops: Utes NCAA-bound aft… 12 points in the second half. The main culprit was TCU’s 2-3 zone, long and active, which made it extremely difficult for Utah to get an open look at the basket.
The Utes had some success against it in the first half, with Badon driving the middle, and kicking it out to Iwalani Rodrigues for 3-pointers. The Horned Frogs took that option away in the second half, and that effectively shut down Utah’s offense for long stretches. A sophomore guard, Rodrigues scored 13 points, but most of those came in the first half.
“The middle opened up when they extended to the 3-point line,” Plouffe said. “We made the adjustment that we needed to and we were successful when it counted.”
Utah’s run through the MWC puts them in the tournament for the first time since 2009, when the Utes advanced to the second round. Without the league title, Utah’s season would hav e ended as the Utes, (18-16), would hav e finished under .500, making them ineligible for any postseason tournament.
“Everything we’ve gone through this season shows that hard work pays off,” Badon said. “We lost a lot of close games, we went through a lot of tough times, but we always knew that we had something like this in us. We came in confident and it paid off for us.”
[email protected]: @tonyaggieville
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Utah women ready to Dance
R Michelle Plouffe scores eight of her 24 points in overtime.
• Up 48-47 , Plouffe grabs a big rebound, gets fouled and makes two free throws.
• For more photos of the game, visit sltrib.com/sports
© 2011 T he Salt Lake T ribune
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Plouffe’s shooting saves Utes again
By KURT KRAGTHORPE The Salt Lake Tribune Published: March 12, 2011 07:06PM Updated: March 13, 2011 12:10AM
Las Vegas • Utah scored 12 points in the second half of regulation Saturday against Texas Christian.
Ute forward Michelle Plouffe scored eight points in the last two minutes of overtime.
So even if her closing effort was not quite as dramatic as her last-second shot Friday against BYU, Plouffe’s work was every bit as important.
Good thing that Utah interim coach Anthony Levrets and Plouffe’s teammates told her to keep shooting during a 52-47 victory for the Mountain West Conference women’s tournament title at the Thomas & Mack Center.
“I just started making ’em when it mattered,” Plouffe said. “I just need to keep my confidence when shots aren’t going in.”
After drilling the game-winning shot against BYU in the semifinals, Plouffe opened the championship game by hitting a jumper. But the game became a struggle for her and the entire Ute offense. Plouffe stood 6 for 19 from the field as of two minutes remaining in overtime, but then scored inside for a 46- 45 lead.
The MWC Freshman of the Year made two free throws on the next possession, then answered a TCU basket with the biggest play of the game.
After grabbing a loose ball, Plouffe made a jumper from just inside the free-throw line with 24.4 seconds remaining. Plouffe completed her all-tournament showing by grabbing a rebound and making two more free throws, giving her 24 points and 11 boards. The Utes needed everything she could prov ide. Plouffe’s 3-pointer that gave the Utes a 42-40 edge late in regulation was only their fourth basket of the second half; they finished those 20 minutes with 4-of-22 shooting against TCU’s tough defense.
But the Utes came through in overtime, with Iwalani Rodrigues hitting a shot and Plouffe adding her eight-point flurry.
Plouffe once responded to a six-point game at Colorado State with a 30-point effort against UNLV, so Levrets was not surprised at her perseverance Saturday.
“She’s really, really talented, has a great demeanor about her and does not get down,” Levrets said. “She just plays through anything.” sltrib.com/csp/cms/…/printerfriendly.cs… 1/2 Utah Utes women's basketball: Utes to host Irish in NCAA 1st round | Dese... http://www.deseretnews.com/article/print/700118566/Utah-Utes-womens...
Utah Utes women's basketball: Utes to host Irish in NCAA 1st round
By Sarah Thomas Deseret News Published: Monday, March 14, 2011 11:58 p.m. MDT SALT LAKE CITY — Utah women's interim head coach Anthony Levrets has said all along his team would be playing its best basketball at the end of the season. With two upset victories in two days last weekend over teams the Utes had lost to twice each during the regular season to become the first fifth-place team to ever win the women's Mountain West Conference tournament, he was right, and his team has been rewarded for it. "Through the ups and downs and injuries and all kinds of adversity this season, the (team) never stopped believing and competing," Levrets said minutes after Utah (18-16) found out it had earned a No. 15 seed and the chance to play No. 2 Notre Dame (26-7), a Big East at-large team, at the Huntsman Center in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. "Just making it to the NCAAs is special," he added, "but playing on our own court, I can't imagine anything better." Junior point Janita Badon added that, aside from playing on a familiar floor, the Utes have another slight advantage: "People underestimate how hard it is to run here," she said, referring to the 3,501-foot difference in elevation between Salt Lake City and South Bend, Indiana. Though the coach and his players admitted they don't yet know much about Notre Dame, which is currently ranked seventh in the coaches' poll and ninth by the Associated Press, they said they will be ready to put on a good show. "All I know about Notre Dame is that they are a good team," Levrets said. "My assistants are already downstairs grabbing film so we can get to know them. "It doesn't matter who you play at this point, it is going to be a good team. Either you are good all year long, like Notre Dame has been, or you get hot at the end of the season, as we have done. We have been close in almost every game. We are comfortable in close games, so hopefully that will be the case (against Notre Dame)." The Fighting Irish are led by the scoring of junior guard Natalie Novosel, who is averaging 14.6 points per game this season, and sophomore guard Skylar Diggins, with 14.2 points per game. "I think we need to look at it as a neutral game," Novosel said of playing the lower-seeded Utes on their home court. "It being on their court of course gives some advantage, but we need to step back and look at it like a regular NCAA tournament game." Head coach Muffet McGraw said, "We're excited Utah is in the tournament because they'll draw a great crowd. We like to play in an atmosphere where there are a lot of people there, so we're excited about playing at Utah," head coach Muffet McGraw said.
"Salt Lake City is a place we've never been so it will be a great experience for us," she added. "This week, our focus is all about Utah. They're a very good team. I happened to watch their game the other night in their conference tournament. It's going to be a really good game." This year marks the 16th consecutive season Notre Dame has played in the NCAA Tournament. The Irish are 27-16 all time in the tournament and have won 13 of their 15 NCAA first-round games.
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Devereaux Peters, a 6-foot-2 senior forward, is also scoring in double-digits for the Irish with 11.6 points, as well as leading the team with 7.2 rebounds and a team-high 58 blocks this season. "My teammate was just telling my they (Notre Dame) have a pretty good shot-blocker and I like to go to the rim," said Badon, the Utes' 5-foot-7 point guard, "so we'll have figure that out." Freshman forward Michelle Plouffe and sophomore forward Taryn Wicijowski, who is out for the season with a torn ACL, both played with Notre Dame freshman Natalie Achonwa on the Canada Junior National Team during high school. Achonwa, who has played in all 33 games this season, is averaging 7.3 points and 5.4 rebounds a game. "I'm excited to much up against her," Plouffe said, adding, "It's going to be a challenge. We need to get focused, get prepared and get ready for this weekend." The Utes are led by the scoring of sophomore guard Iwalani Rodrigues (14.7 ppg), Plouffe (13.9) and Badon (12.6), each of whom earned All-Tournament honors in last week's MWC championship run. "We're playing well," Levrets said. "We wouldn't be here if we weren't playing well. That's an advantage for us. These kids think they can win — they're not just happy to be here. They are playing with a lot of confidence. Defense is very important to our success, and we will continue to focus on that." Utah is making its 17th appearance in the NCAA tournament, that last time was in 2009, and is 9-16 overall in NCAA Tournament games. The last time Utah hosted the first and second rounds was in 2001, when the Utes were a No. 5 seed and beat Fairfield (79-57) and Iowa (78-69) to reach the Sweet 16, where they lost to Notre Dame, 69-54. Utah has played Notre Dame one other time, a regular season game in 2006, which the Fighting Irish won.
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By Bill Oram The Salt Lake Tribune Published: March 14, 2011 11:43PM Updated: March 15, 2011 12:08AM
It’s March, so it makes sense the Utes’ first-round matchup in the NCAA Tournament will be the Irish.
The University of Utah women’s basketball team will be hoping for luck of its own to advance beyond a first-round matchup Saturday against Notre Dame, which was announced Monday evening on ESPN.
The Utes, who will host the first two rounds at the Huntsman Center, were given a No. 15 seed and matched up against the 26-7 Fighting Irish, the region’s No. 2 seed. Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune The University The Utes and Irish will play at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, after of Utah women's basketball team reacts to the seventh-seeded Arizona State plays No. 10 seed Temple at 2 announcement of their being matched against Notre p.m., also at the Huntsman Center. Dame in the first round of the Women's NCAA tournament, Monday, March 13, 2011. in the Huntsman Center Lounge. The front row left to right is; Iwalani The Utes, at 18-16, bullied their way into the tournament by Rodrigues, Janita Badon, and Ciera Dunbar. upsetting BYU and TCU on Friday and Saturday to win the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas.
So, these Utes know a thing or two about being underdogs under pressure, although a No. 15 seed hasn’t knocked off a No. 2 seed since the women’s tournament went to full seeding in 1994.
“It’s March,” junior guard Janita Badon said. “I don’t think any number before March matters. Same with our conference tournament. We went in as the fifth seed and no fifth seed had ever won the tournament before, so no number before a name matters to me.”
Utah will have plenty to worry about with its opponent as it is. Interim coach Anthony Levrets said Utah has lots of studying to do on Notre Dame.
“I don’t know anything about them,” he said. “I’ve been so focused on our team. I know they’re good.”
The Irish are led by guards Skylar Diggins and Natalie Novosel, who each average 14 points per game, while 6-foot-2 forward Devereaux Peters is a big defensive presence in the post.
Figuring all of that out will come in the next few days. Monday, though, was about celebrating for a team that for much of the season looked little like it would make the postseason.
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Then the MWC tournament rolled around, and Utah found ways to win four games — three against teams to whom the Utes had already lost a combined five games. The Utes will be the conference’s lone representative in the tournament.
Levrets said the Utes’ run through the conference tournament has tested them for the NCAA Tournament.
“Tournament time, you expect games to be hotly contested and not run away with,” he said. “I think we’re comfortable in that setting. Hopefully we’ll be able to be in a close game here and see if we can make enough plays at the end to give ourselves a chance to win.”
Twitter: @oramb
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Notre Dame at Utah women
P At Hunstman Center, Saturday 4:30 p.m.
TV • ESPN2
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BYU, USU host first-round games in the WNIT
BYU had hoped to be part of the NCAA Tournament when the women’s field was unveiled Monday. Instead, the Cougars (23-8) will play Denver (19-11) in Provo on Thursday in the opening round of the Women’s NIT.
Meanwhile, Utah State will be part of its first national tournament since the school reinstated women’s basketball in 2002. The Aggies (17-14) will host Arizona (21-10), also Thursday. Tip-off times have yet to be announced.
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No. 2, Notre Dame; 26-7, 13-3 Big East
After starting their season at 2-2, the Irish were almost unbeatable the rest of the season. Three of their five other losses came against No. 1-seeds Baylor and Big East rival Connecticut. The Irish are led by guards Skylar Diggins and Natalie Novosel, who both average 14 points per game.
No. 7, Arizona State; 20-10, 11-7 Pac-10
The Utes’ future conference foe makes its sixth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last seven seasons and hasn’t lost a first-round game since 2001. Before their loss to California in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 Tournament, the Devils, led by senior point guard Dymond Simon, had won sixth of their previous eight games.
No. 10, Temple; 23-8, 13-1
The Owls advanced to the second round of last year’s tournament as a No. 8 seed. This year, they have been just as good, although they have lost two of their last three games after previously winning 17 straight. Temple is led by guards Qwedia Wallace and Shey Peddy and forward Kristen McCarthy. The trio combines to average 40 points.
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