Although she’s made more news recently for her post-game altercation with Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma on Jan. 17, behind the scenes, Syracuse women’s basketball junior forward Nicole Michael has quietly been producing offensively as well as any SU player.

In fact, the junior forward has the longest active streak on the team, with eight consecutive games scoring in double figures. Michael will look to continue that streak when Syracuse hosts Villanova at the Carrier Dome Saturday at 1 p.m.

‘I have a desire to play hard and play my game and be a leader,’ Michael said. ‘I just want to win, that’s it.’

In the past eight games, Michael has averaged 15.8 points for the Orange (14-6, 3-4 Big East), two points better than her season average. Though she hasn’t led the team in points in any of those games, she has led the team in rebounds in three contests.

Michael’s influence on the offensive end was perhaps no more evident than in Syracuse’s much-needed win over Marquette on Tuesday. With the Orange reeling from losing three straight contests, Michael scored the first seven points of the game to give the Orange a 7-0 lead that turned into a 32-31 lead at the half.

For a team that had led in its past three games for less than a minute, Michael’s early lift was exactly what the team needed and what Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman planned for.

‘We just threw her the ball early and wanted to see if we could get her going,’ Hillsman said. ‘We did, and that was critical to our win, her productivity on the floor.’

Hillsman said the difference in Michael’s production has been her being more aggressive. He said the coaches have been telling her to be more aggressive at the rim and go to the basket hard, because teams are game planning to keep her away from the basket, so she has to fight to get there.

Hillsman also credited her for stepping out and shooting the ball well. While she mostly shoots the mid-range jumper, she also dabbles from outside the arc at times and has hit five of her last seven shots from long-range. In the eight-game stretch, Michael has hit 51.1 percent of shots.

Junior forward Juanita Ward said Michael’s ability to shoot aids the team down low.

‘It helps us a lot,’ Ward said. ‘It takes some of the pressure off Erica (Morrow), Chandrea (Jones), and it takes pressure off myself as far as Vionca (Murray), too. So with her stepping out and taking the 15-footers and shooting the 3’s, she’s very valuable to this team, so you can’t take anything for granted.’

Michael’s last two games have been particularly impressive. She finished with 18 points against Marquette, and on Jan. 24 against then-No. 25 Pittsburgh, Michael shot 8-of-14 from the field and finished with 20 points and seven rebounds.

These numbers are more worthy since they are the first two contests Michael has played in since her altercation with Auriemma. With a week of national media coverage and time to digest it all in, it could’ve been a big distraction for Michael, but it has not turned out to be.

In reaction to Auriemma’s new comments – in which he said Michael tripped him after the game – Michael said she is not paying attention. She is just going to stay focused. It seemed to work the first time.

‘It definitely motivated me to be the player I am,’ Michael said. ‘And be respectful and have sportsmanship and play my game.’

Michael’s strong offensive efforts coincide perfectly with when the Orange needs it the most: Big East play. Though the Orange is 3-4 in the conference, it has already played three of its five games against ranked opponents.

Hillsman knows he needs Michael to keep this level of play up for the Orange to battle for a postseason berth.

‘It’s going to be very critical,’ Hillsman said. ‘It’s crucial for her to be aggressive and play good basketball and get to the boards and rebound for us.’

mrehalt@syr.edu

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Published on January 30, 2009 at 12:00 pm