For the second time in a week, the Michigan women’s basketball team will be looking to use a home rivalry game to build some momentum in the Big Ten.
Just seven days after a thrilling nine-point victory over then-No. 24 Michigan State, the Wolverines welcome another rival to Crisler Center in Sunday’s matchup with Ohio State.
The Buckeyes, who finished last season with a 5-11 conference record, come to Ann Arbor with three Big Ten victories and an 11-5 overall record. Their most impressive victory, an 85-68 rout over No. 24 Rutgers in Columbus, came against an opponent that beat Michigan by 13 on Wednesday.
The Wolverines (2-2 Big Ten, 10-5 overall) nearly pulled off the upset in Piscataway, at one point eliminating a 19-point deficit to tie the score midway through the second half. But Michigan ultimately dropped the game, 81-68, and according to coach Kim Barnes Arico, it was her team’s inability to contain the Scarlet Knights in the paint that cost it the game.
The Wolverines will face a similar defensive challenge on Sunday. Ohio State’s roster features two guards scoring over 20 points per game: freshman Kelsey Mitchell and junior Ameryst Alston. Mitchell has averaged 25.7 points, more than any other player in the country.
But while Michigan is lacking in offensive power, it has a dramatic advantage in experience. The Wolverines boast a trifecta of talented senior starters in guard Shannon Smith, forward Nicole Elmblad and forward Cyesha Goree, while nine of the Buckeyes’ 12 players stand at sophomore status or lower.
Along with Alston, junior guard Cait Craft is one of two upperclassmen in the Ohio State starting lineup. Through three seasons in Columbus, Craft has endured a coaching change — coach Kevin McGuff is in just his second year — and become a role model for a young team on the rise.
The Daily sat down with Craft at Big Ten Media Day in October to discuss her role in the program, her team’s young talent, and of course, her brother Aaron, the former Buckeye basketball star.
The Michigan Daily: What’s it been like playing for an up-and-coming program with a second-year coach?
Cait Craft: It has been different. The whole style is different here from my first year at Ohio State, but I definitely like it a lot better. I think it fits our team better. Especially with the recruits they brought in, his style of play fits our team better than the old style of play I was once a part of. It is different, but I think everybody has adapted to the change. We have such a young team that this style of play is all they know, so it’s really not a transformation for them at all.
TMD: Looking at the roster, it seems like last season’s record was indicative of inexperience more than anything else. Do you feel like this team is getting better with more experience?
CC: Yeah, I do. I have high hopes that it will get better. Last year, it just seemed like we would let up for a couple minutes every game, and all of a sudden, we were just out of the game. It seemed like it took us until the end — we had a lot of older girls who were still adapting to the change. They went three years with a different system and all of a sudden they had a whole new system to learn. Hopefully this year people adapt a little bit faster, because last year, we don’t want a repeat of that.
TMD: You’re considered a veteran on your team now. How do you feel about taking on a leadership role?
CC: It is different — Ameryst (Alston) and I are the oldest two members of the team. But the younger girls are so engaged, and they have so much trust in us that it makes it easy to be a role model. They’re not questioning what we have to say. They just come to practice every day, they come to workouts, they show up, they’re hungry, so they make our job easy.
TMD: Playing guard at Ohio State, I’m sure you get asked a lot of questions about your brother Aaron. How do you feel about your parallel stories, and do you think it’s cool or annoying to be asked about?
CC: It’s cool to be compared to him. Personally, I think Aaron is one of the best people that I know. To be compared to him as a player and a person, honestly, to me, it’s a huge blessing and an honor. Certain people get annoying — certain people ask questions I really don’t have answers for. But it is nice to have him. Now that he’s gone, it’s kind of awkward for me, honestly. I haven’t adjusted to it very well yet, it’s different. It’s weird not having him.
TMD: Now that Aaron has graduated, are you excited at the opportunity to make your own name for yourself without being tied to your brother?
CC: I am. Around campus, it’s like you should just introduce yourself as, “Hey, I play basketball,” or, “Hey, I’m Aaron’s sister,” because that’s all people see. People don’t really know just me as myself. In that respect, it’s kind of nice to be my own person now, not, “Oh, you’re still just Aaron’s sister.” As nice as that is, I like to be known for me.