The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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women's basketball the right to play. As of Jan. 20, she had played in all 18 games and made 13 starts, and was averaging 4.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Driscoll's biggest strength, though, is shot blocking. She ranked third in the Big Ten with 41 blocks (2.3 per game), with 17 of those coming in Michigan's five Big Ten contests. "It's really important to have a post presence, especially when you're in the Big Ten," said Goree, who was averaging 11.6 points and 9.7 rebounds through 18 contests. "This conference has some really good, strong girls down low. "Whether you're getting in and finishing or getting a post touch to kick out and find a shooter, it's important that we can have someone down there to mix up our offense. It's not all ball screens or passing around the perimeter." Although Michigan will often go with an athletic, four-guard lineup, Barnes Arico has been experimenting with playing Driscoll and Goree together, which has yielded great results in Big Ten play. In a 70-62 win over Wisconsin Jan. 9, Goree and Driscoll combined for 19 points and 27 rebounds. "They complement each other extremely well," Barnes Arico said. "The things Cyesha is good at, Val isn't necessarily great at. Cyesha is very athletic, she offensive rebounds, and she has a good jump to her. She has a motor. Val is a tremendous shot blocker. They play off each other very well. Val does a great job of sealing, and Cyesha gets the player behind her. They are starting to look for each other in high-low situations. They give our team what they need." With the development of the two post players, Michigan is as versatile offensively as anyone in the Big Ten. The Wolverines have benefitted from strong guard play from freshman Siera Thompson and junior Shannon Smith, but a change-of-pace option down low, in the half-court offense or in transition with Goree, allows Michigan to keep opposing defenses on their toes. "I could have never guessed in a million years that we would get this type of production from them," Barnes Arico said. "Here are two young ladies that are in the tail end of their careers who have never really played or made an impact, and they're out there doing what they're doing. They're giving us tremendous minutes and playing with great confidence. "Val is a young lady who came off an ACL and worked so hard to get back into shape. She earned that start with how hard she was practicing. She never let up. She has increased her minutes every game, because of what she brings. She really alters the game inside. She's a huge factor down there for other teams. She gets tips, deflections. "Her and Cyesha are very different, and that's a nice complement. I was nervous about playing them together because I thought it would affect our speed, but they play so well off each other and they are get-