The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1517673
44 THE WOLVERINE ❱ APRIL 2024 BY ANTHONY BROOME H ead coach Kim Barnes Arico came into the season not knowing ex- actly what to expect from a team that had lost a ton of foundational pieces over the last few years. When the dust cleared, her Michigan women's basket- ball program earned its sixth straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and headed to Los Angeles as a No. 9 seed against eighth-seeded Kansas for a March 23 first-round matchup. The winner of that contest will likely meet No. 1 seed USC, which drew No. 16 seed Texas A&M Corpus Christi in its first-round matchup. Barnes Arico reflected on the jour- ney through the season shortly after the Wolverines' postseason bracket slot be- came official. "We knew that we were going to have a lot of new pieces this year," Barnes Arico told the media. "We knew it was going to be a work in progress. We knew there would be some ups and downs, but we knew we could have a talented team. If they could put it all together, we would be able to accomplish some great things." Michigan grabbed a pair of wins over Minnesota and No. 12 Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament that all but assured it an NCAA berth. But after the team was held out of the NCAAs in 2017, Barnes Arico admitted to a bit of PTSD from the situation and did not want media or cameras in the room when the matchup was announced. "I've been coaching for a long time," she said. "That might've been the most surprised or excited our group has been when our name was announced. I had a stomachache all week just because I still haven't gotten over 2017. "In 2017, we hadn't had any top-25 wins. We hadn't had any top-50 wins. And now, we beat Ohio State, and we beat Indiana. We had six top-50 wins. "Back in 2017, we had never beaten a top-10 team. Now we beat top-10 teams. And I'm wondering, 'Oh, are we still good enough? Or are we going to get in?' "And we didn't do that [allow media in this year] because I think I will always have PTSD from it. That was one of the toughest days of my coaching career." M i c h i ga n , wh i c h m a d e i ts 1 2 t h NCAA Tournament appearance in pro- gram history and seventh overall un- der Barnes Arico, finished the regular season 20-13 overall and 9-9 in Big Ten play. It compiled an 11-4 record at Crisler Center, 5-6 record on the road and 4-3 mark in neutral site contests. "I was pleased at the way we played in the Big Ten Tournament and hope that we can keep that momentum moving forward into Los Angeles," Barnes Arico said. "We weren't sure if we would get in. We knew that the way we played in the Big Ten Tournament definitely helped. The Ohio State win helped, and the strength of our league certainly helped. "When Michigan came up on the screen, we just erupted. I'm pleased for our program, and our league, to have continued to make the progress that we have. People recognize the strength of our league, and that's really helpful moving forward." A defining trait of this year's squad has been resilience, and Barnes Arico appreciates that her players never had to be talked into putting the work in. "The coaching staff never felt like we'd get to the gym after a tough loss and have to keep them motivated and keep them pumped up," she said. "They wanted to get ready for the next game and felt they could have been better in the game that we had lost. That makes it really easy when you don't have to motivate a team, even when they've lost a couple of games. "Down the stretch, we lost some tough ones before March came, and our team said that we know what we need to do." ❏ ❱ WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Michigan Women Headed To Their Sixth Consecutive NCAA Tournament Appearance Junior guard Laila Phelia (5) earned first-team All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Tournament honors this season and was the driving force behind getting U-M back to the NCAA Tournament. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY