Newcomer Rodriguez was thrust into an important role early on in much the same way as some of her teammates are now. Rodriguez became a key contributor for Utah as the team went all the way to the NIT Championship Game. She started 35 of the Utes’ 37 games and averaged nearly 24 minutes per contest, but she insists it wasn’t easy.
“I felt like it was especially hard,” Rodriguez said. “Having to know all of the positions, having to know where everybody else is supposed to be. So I get the frustration when [the current freshmen] mess up or are just struggling at first. It took me time to get it, too. That is why I am not worried about it, because I know the times it takes to get it. It just needs to come quick.”
Games with two halves
In all but one of their games thus far, the Utes have held the lead going into the second half. For the season, they are plus 14 in that department. They also have often had the edge in just about every statistic going into halftime of each contest.
The second halves of games have been a different story, however, as Utah is minus 31 in the final 20 minutes of contests. Rodriguez said the team’s drive tends to fade during the second half until it is too late to mount a comeback. She pointed to the need for having a greater desire to win than the opponent.
“We have been up going into halftime. We come out the second half, I just think we need to bring out that same energy like the first half,” Rodriguez said. “I do not think that is a hard thing to do. We just need to come out ready and expecting teams to come out and play as hard as they do the next half.”
On Saturday, the Utes will face a Nevada team that has had similar second-half troubles. The Wolf Pack is being outscored 321-301 in the final frame of games so far this season.
Plouffe continues to climb record books
Senior forward Michelle Plouffe became Utah’s fourth all-time leading rebounder after grabbing 11 boards against UNLV last week. She now has 934 career rebounds. At her current pace, she would finish her career tied with fellow Canadian Kim Smith for third all-time in school history.
Plouffe is currently averaging 20.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and two steals per game, all which lead the team by a wide margin. She is also second on the squad in assists and blocks. Plouffe mentioned earlier in the year that she doesn’t pay much attention to her numbers, because she is focused more on the team’s success. Even so, she still sees it as a blessing to be considered one of the best of all time at Utah and to have her name be placed with that of players such as Smith, her former teammate on the Canadian Olympic team.