Senior forward Naz Hillman has entered Wolverine’s match against South Dakota, having made a couple of impressive appearances in the NCAA tournament against Americana and Vilanova. As Michigan was about to move on to its first elite eight in the program’s history, another great Hillmon performance seemed a necessity.
And again Hillmon passed. She posted her third double-double in as many NCAA tournament games, and her weight in that position wreaked havoc in defending the Coyotes.
“It’s no wonder we’re American,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arica. “I always feel that she will succeed. In all her years, there were almost no cases when she did not succeed … So, I knew it would only be a matter of time. But she was gorgeous and we went to her at key moments down. ”
Hillman did not start the ditch game in the offensive. She finished the first quarter without points, missing all three attempts to score a goal combined with three turns. When Hillman caught the ball in the bar, the double or triple team closed. Instead of coming out of the swarm, Hillman forced blows.
Entering the second frame, Hillmon’s switch switched. Her first basket departed from Leaga Brown’s senior wing pass. Brown found a wide-open Hillmon at the crossing. After Hillmon’s first bucket found a mark, it began to heat up. She scored six points without missing out on the field, and added three rebounds in the second quarter.
In addition to improving his scoring efficiency, Hillman started making smarter games. Instead of pressing blows on a double command, she returned the ball to the perimeter. First-year bodyguard Leila Fellia benefited most from Hillmon’s presence in the interior by being exposed around the perimeter or using shiny stripes in the paint.
“If I don’t think about it too much, I think I can maneuver throughout the game and have balance with me,” Hillman said. “I’m really trying to do intangible things to go. Don’t just focus on trying to kill buckets every time. “
Hillman came out of the break and expanded his offensive effect from the second quarter. After failing to reach the free throw line in the first half, Hillman reached the charity strip five times in the third, joining in all his attempts. She finished third with nine points and added three more rebounds. The coyote’s once-pursuing defenses seemed to be weakening.
But when the fourth quarter began, South Dakota strangled Hillmon again. She finished the quarter by making only one basket, but otherwise left her mark in the offense.
“Even on days when (Naz) doesn’t score big points, she’s a huge pass and a great defender,” Barnes Arica said.
Hillmon’s selflessness gave the impetus needed to win Wolverine. Two minutes before the game she turned to inspect the floor from a high rack. As the second defender approached the backup, Hillman found senior striker Emily Keeser wide open at the edge. Kieser finished the lead and brought Michigan ahead by five points at the end of the game.
While Hillman once again showed great performance in the statistics table, she continued to influence the game in other ways. Her 17 points and 10 rebounds added an already impressive summary of the tournament in which she scored 51 points and 22 rebounds in the first two rounds. But in the end, it was her awareness of the trial and the seriousness of her presence that prompted Wolverine to their first elite eight in the program’s history.