The 5th-ranked Michigan women's basketball team notched a huge win last night, beating perennial juggernaut UConn, the No. 2 team in the county, 77-66 on Thursday night at Crisler Center. The victory lit up hopes for a Final Four appearance, with a powerhouse class of juniors – and talent to spare.
With point guard Mila Holloway out with an injury, it was not entirely clear the Wolverines would have what was necessary to take on Geno Auriemma’s squad. But U-M held on, despite some shooting problems, to pull away in the fourth quarter.
Detroit Free Press sports columnist Shawn Windsor spoke with Stateside host April Baer about the win and its significance.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
April Baer: This game may not have been the cleanest one the Wolverines ever played, but with a ten-point margin on the win … Shawn, would you call that decisive?
Shawn Windsor: Well, they pulled away really late, I don't know that I would call it decisive. I would call it an impressive win. It was a confident win. And what was different for Michigan this time – because they've played several top-ranked teams the last couple of years and have come up just short – they made the plays right that they needed to make, [the plays] they haven't been able to make. And when UConn made a couple of runs, Michigan answered every time. And that felt different.
Baer: The team that coach (Kim) Barnes Arico has is built around some very strong talents. Mila Holloway, of course, was out with an injury, but it didn't seem like the Wolverines were lacking last night. You know, Syla Swords was there. Olivia Olson, contributing some real star shots. Te’Yala Delfosse really picked up some slack in the third quarter. And these are athletes who've been playing together now since their freshman year. Have you had a chance to notice anything as they've developed together?
Windsor: There are a few things. First of all, Geno Auriemma, the legendary UConn coach, who's the best coach in college women's basketball – he was saying last night that when you're building a program, the hardest thing to do is to convince that first really good class to come to you, [to] convince them that they're going to be the ones that are going to turn it around. It's human nature – so many high schoolers want to go maybe to an established program and, and be part of something and develop and get on to Europe and play or the WNBA. What's interesting about this class is that now, while Kim Barnes has had some success, she's never had a group quite like this. Olivia Olson and Syla Swords in particular, they were both five-star, highly regarded recruits. To get them to believe and to come to Ann Arbor was the first step. And they and they did, and they've all stayed. And Coach Barnes said again last night after the win that, “Hey, my gals could have gone anywhere. A lot of schools would have been happy to play them. But they they believe what we're doing here and they stay.” Delfosse, in particular, looks like a different player. She's always been talented, but she was a two-way menace last night. And if this is their trajectory, then they're going to have a chance to do something really interesting in the spring, for sure.
Baer: I do need to talk about the shooting. Some of the shooting from the line. And also, layups didn't go the way that that they should have gone. Can we can trust the team has a pattern of fixing the problems as they come up through the season?
Windsor: Absolutely. We can see the development of the group of juniors and how much better they've gotten year over year. There were yeah, there were a few layups that were just completely uncontested, where nobody else was around. I would chalk a little bit of that up to the opponent, the first game of the season. I would say that's going to get a little bit better.
Baer: UConn's coach, Geno Auriemma, was talking in his postgame press conference, giving big coach dad vibes. He wasn't mad. He was just disappointed! He felt his team had tried to lean on its stars to make up the deficit when UConn got into trouble. I couldn't help but wonder how these teams might match up again in the postseason. Do you have thoughts?
Windsor: I do, I think it would be similar. [UConn has the] reigning player of the year – arguably the best player in college women's basketball. Sarah Strong picked up her third foul and missed, really, the second quarter. And I would imagine that would make a difference in a rematch. On the other hand, Michigan's missing their starting point guard, Mila Holloway, I don't know if she would be back for a rematch that could potentially make a difference. But Michigan's got some depth as Coach Arico pointed out last night. It's not just the Olivia Olson and Syla Swords right there. They've got a lot. They can get shots from lots of different places. They can get plays. They have playmaking in lots of different places, and it's going to make them tough to tough to guard. I would imagine they'd be able to stick with them if they meet again in March.
