With 6:30 left in the third quarter on Wednesday night, Crisler Center fell silent. Laila Phelia landed awkwardly on her left foot and couldn’t put any pressure on it as she was helped over to the training table. It was an injury that, at the time, seemed as if it would put an early end to the junior guard’s night.
But Phelia reentered the game after sitting for just over three minutes of play, and the Michigan women’s basketball team benefited from her performance the same way it has for the last three seasons.
Immediately, Phelia drove to the basket and converted a layup. With her second made free throw and two minutes remaining in the middle of the Wolverines’ 9-0 run to end regulation, Phelia scored her 1,000th career point. Her game-tying free throw sent the contest into overtime, and she eventually made the game-sealing free throws with 0.6 seconds left to complete Michigan’s comeback win over Maryland.
“She’s a phenomenal player and she deserves it,” Wolverines coach Kim Barnes Arico said Wednesday. “She’s just been a great part of our program for the last three seasons and I’m just happy for her to have the night that she did. I’m happy for her to make those two free throws down the stretch and to get her 1,000 points tonight.”
Needing just 11 points to accomplish her feat against the Terrapins, Phelia defied the odds of both her mid-game injury and her team’s 16-point deficit to reach the individual milestone and get the win.
Such a game-defining moment isn’t uncommon for Phelia. She’s been making that kind of an impact for Michigan ever since she stepped foot on the court.
Her freshman season, Phelia played all but three games and proved to be a key contributor both as a starter and off the bench. Scoring 255 points on 8.8 per game, she was selected to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team. In her sophomore year, she cemented a starting spot for most of the season when she wasn’t injured. And with her expanded role, she added 433 points to her resume on 16.7 points per game.
But at the beginning of this season, Phelia struggled to find her groove as the Wolverines’ new go-to player. In Michigan’s first 16 games, she had just two where she shot exactly 50% from the field and none higher. Yet in the last four games, she has already matched that mark. And when Phelia shot at two of her worst clips of the season, against then-No. 24 Ole Miss and at Nebraska, the Wolverines lost.
Now that Big Ten play has settled in, though, she has become much more confident and has thrived in more difficult conference games as a result. Shooting 42% from the field, 32% from deep and averaging 17.9 points per game in conference play, Phelia’s reclaimed efficiency has led to positive results for the Michigan offense.
So while her numbers haven’t been as strong throughout the entire season, Phelia continues to make an impact both as a player and as a person.
“The grit that she shows every day but especially (against Maryland on Wednesday) just really speaks to her character,” junior guard Jordan Hobbs said Wednesday. “I think she’s just a phenomenal person. And I’m just so proud that she scored 1,000 points. … She’s just a hell of a player.”
Oftentimes, the Wolverines’ success hinges on Phelia’s performance. As the leader and devoted player to step up in times of struggle, her confidence and composure is — and will continue to be — necessary for Michigan.
As of Wednesday, Phelia is the 31st player in Wolverines history to reach 1,000 points. She did so in 58 games — five fewer games than former teammate Leigha Brown. And now, Phelia instills herself in a list of Michigan legends as she continues to lead the Wolverines through this season.