BATON ROUGE, La. — January. February. Elise Stuck.
“It’s like synonymous,” sophomore guard Jordan Hobbs said. “I mean, Elise has just killed it since March 1 hit.”
The junior forward has intensified her impact in every game for the No. 6 seed Michigan women’s basketball team ever since postseason play opened on March 2 at the Big Ten Tournament. And in an NCAA Tournament first round win over No. 11 seed UNLV, Stuck put on a show once again.
“I just bring the same mentality that I’ve tried to bring this whole year,” Stuck said. “And I think now that I’ve had an opportunity to showcase that, I’m just trying to kind of just add on to what I brought at the Big Ten Tournament and hopefully just be able to just continue to bring energy and effort.”
Prior to the Wolverines’ win over Penn State to open the Big Ten Tournament, Stuck averaged just 8.8 minutes and 1.6 points per game. But in that tight contest against the Nittany Lions, Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico turned to her with 37 seconds remaining in the first half — as the fifth person off the bench. Stuck finished a buzzer-beating layup heading into the locker room and continued to impact the game up until the final seconds, scoring a personal-best 11 points in 18 minutes of play.
“When you can get in the game and stay steady, get a couple of good things going for you, it just makes playing so much easier,” Stuck said. “You feel more free. So yeah, I think that game really just set a spark for me individually.”
Against Ohio State the next day, Stuck was the first person off the bench after sophomore guard Laila Phelia. Stuck snatched five rebounds and added a three-point play minutes after checking in against the Buckeyes. Despite the loss, Stuck gained valuable experience and confidence in a career-high 22 minutes on the court.
And Friday afternoon against the Rebels, Stuck was the first player off the bench five minutes into the game. Earlier in the season, her presence on the floor may have sparked concern or a flashed weak point in the Wolverines’ defense. Not in March.
“I feel like she’s definitely stepped up a lot and just being able to be that person everyone can count on,” Phelia said.
As soon as Stuck stepped on the court, she made an immediate impact. She deflected passes that led to steals and transition buckets. She blocked shots and knocked passes out-of-bounds. She tore away tough rebounds and boxed out aggressively, preventing UNLV from gaining extra offensive possessions.
Before Stuck entered the game, the Rebels had three offensive rebounds on the same possession. They finished the game with eight.
“I felt like she just plays with so much confidence and she plays so freely,” Phelia said. “…At this point, it’s like she’s not scared of it at all. She just goes out there and just busts her ass.”
Stuck was on the ground doing just that, diving for loose balls and knocking them in the direction of her open teammates in transition.
With less than a minute remaining in the first quarter, UNLV forward Desi-Rae Young got past her defender and drove into the lane. Stuck slid over from her defender in the corner, establishing position and going down when Young knocked into her. Stuck looked up at the ref from the ground as they slowly raised their hand, and as soon as they signaled a charge, she pumped her arms and yelled.
That offensive foul returned possession to the Wolverines. At the other end of the floor, Stuck looped in a crafty spin-move layup.
Right after that, with just three seconds remaining in the quarter, Stuck’s intense pressure forced a travel, setting up a buzzer-beating layup that sent the Wolverines into the quarter break with an eight-point lead.
That sequence of hustle defense and an aggressive take recapitulate the improvement Stuck has showcased in March. Her confidence has skyrocketed and she is playing fearless.
“She’s been ready for this moment,” Hobbs said. “And I think she’s just taking full advantage of it and all her minutes that she’s getting. … It’s finally showing how good she really is.”
While her contributions don’t always appear on the stat sheet, like her deflections and help-side defense, they make all the difference in shifting momentum. The Wolverines will need to build and sustain momentum for the rest of the tournament, and Stuck is the spark that can do it.
Because Elise Stuck is synonymous with March.