MINNEAPOLIS -- Janel McCarville has become one of the best post players in country, and without her huge contributions in the NCAA tournament Minnesota probably wouldn't be headed to the Final Four.
"The way she's playing right now," teammate Shannon Schonrock
said, "nobody can stop her."
Without the attitude adjustment McCarville made at the beginning
of last season, the Gophers might not be in this position, either.
"It took her a few months," coach Pam Borton said, "but she
finally bought in to what we were trying to do with her."
Minnesota (25-8), which plays two-time defending champion
Connecticut in the national semifinals Sunday night in New Orleans,
was given a No. 7 seed after a late-season fade caused mostly by
the absence of star guard Lindsay Whalen.
The Gophers beat the top three seeds in the Mideast Region --
Duke, Kansas State and Boston College -- because Whalen is back in
form after a broken hand and McCarville's performance.
In four tournament games, the 6-foot-2 junior is averaging 19.8
points, 17 rebounds and 4.8 assists. In the regional semifinal
victory over Boston College, McCarville added seven blocks and
four steals.
"She's unbelievable," Whalen said. "We always knew she had
it. She would dominate in practice all the time. Now she's taken it
to the national level."
McCarville, from Stevens Point, Wis., was the Big Ten's Freshman
of the Year in 2001-02 under Brenda Oldfield (now coaching at
Maryland under her maiden name Frese).
When Borton was hired as Minnesota's next coach, she immediately
began challenging McCarville -- to improve her defense, to become
more of a power player than just finesse and flash and to be more
committed to conditioning.
The admittedly stubborn McCarville met Borton's edict with
skepticism.
"Why do I need to change? Why do I need to do anything
different, because I was already successful," Borton said,
summarizing McCarville's reaction. "Well, you've got to take that
next step as a player, and I think that's what we were trying to
get her to do."
McCarville, also affected last season by a hip pointer, would
often call home to complain. It was her mother, Bonnie, who helped
set her straight.
"She brought me back down," McCarville recalled. "Moms know
best."
Bonnie McCarville was diagnosed with colon cancer in August, and
the bond with her daughter has since grown. Janel has a small
tattoo of her mother's initials -- "BDM" -- on the inside of her
left forearm.
The whole family is headed to New Orleans this weekend.
"This is as good treatment for her as any," Janel McCarville
said. "She's always sitting up there in the stands with a smile on
her face. Well, maybe not in close games. She's probably biting her
nails."
McCarville showed up this fall considerably lighter and in much
better shape. Having a solid season until Whalen got hurt,
McCarville found the absence of the Gophers' senior leader
difficult for a few games.
It took another deep discussion with the head coach to set
things straight.
"I just felt like there was a lot on me," McCarville said. "I
felt like everybody needed me to step up."
She has, indeed, making Minnesota a dangerous team now that
Whalen has returned.
"If people were surprised, they haven't seen me before,"
McCarville said.
No, McCarville has never been short on confidence -- or
personality.
Her teammates call her "Shaq," and on Thursday someone asked
if her recent rebounding prowess should suggest a nickname more
along the lines of a different NBA great -- like Charles Barkley.
"I'm making a name for myself, pretty much," she said with a
smile. "I want to rebound like JANEL."