Rachel Coffey took charge. Coming out of a timeout, Syracuse was in disarray as its opponent caught the Orange off guard with a change in defense. But the sophomore point guard stayed calm and directed her teammates to their positions on the floor.

Though Iasia Hemingway can’t recall the specific game in which that scene played out, the forward said the moment struck her as a turning point in Coffey’s development as a point guard and an extension of head coach Quentin Hillsman on the floor.

‘She started being more involved, talking to coach, asking coach, ‘What’s this, what’s that?’ Hemingway said. ‘Telling us where to go, even though I am a senior and I’m supposed to know certain situations, she makes sure I’m still there.’

Coffey has emerged as the unquestioned point guard for Syracuse this season, starting the last 15 games for the Orange. The sophomore has averaged 29.4 minutes per game in SU’s last five contests. In that span, Coffey has displayed the playmaking ability that made her a highly touted recruit coming out of high school with 15 assists, but she has also shown her inexperience with 17 turnovers.

Still, the up-and-down play a year removed from playing just 8.3 minutes per game represents encouraging progress for Coffey. She’ll lead Syracuse (15-10, 4-7 Big East) into a conference matchup with No. 20 Louisville (17-7, 6-5 Big East) on the road Saturday at 2 p.m.

Hillsman said the Cardinals — which are 9-1 at home this season — are a talented basketball team that plays at a fast pace on both ends, pressuring the ball on defense and looking to get out in transition. The head coach said protecting the ball and getting good looks on offense will be key for Syracuse to pull the upset.

That means the Orange will need Coffey to play at the high level she has proven capable of in Big East play.

‘She’s been steady, and she’s been logging big minutes, and she’s been doing pretty well on the floor,’ Hillsman said. ‘So we just got to continue to put the ball into her hands and let her mature in her role.’

Syracuse placed its trust in Coffey against No. 3 Connecticut in the Carrier Dome on Jan. 25, with fellow guards La’Shay Taft and Shanee Williams benched for what Hillsman called a ‘coach’s decision.’

And the sophomore rose to the occasion, scoring eight points to go with five assists, and committed just three turnovers in 39 minutes of action in SU’s 95-54 loss.

Coffey controlled the Syracuse offense with confidence despite facing constant full-court pressure from the UConn backcourt. The point guard was unfazed and patiently worked the ball up the floor, turning her opponent with crossovers to reach half court and set the offense.

‘She looked like a veteran out there, like she’d been doing this for a while,’ Hemingway said. ‘She’s real confident and comfortable at what she was doing, and with her having that mentality, it’s going to help us for the long road.’

And after playing a solid floor game for the first 20 minutes against the Huskies, Coffey dazzled the crowd and her teammates with a highlight-reel play while time was running out in the first half.

She dribbled the ball to the right wing beyond the 3-point line with two Huskies in pursuit. The point guard then split the defenders to get into the lane along the right side before dropping off a pass to center Shakeya Leary for a wide-open layup on the left block.

‘Sometimes I say I like double teams because I like splitting them even though you’re always not supposed to,’ Coffey said. ‘But somehow I always split them. So I just try to open up the floor.’

But that aggression also comes with the risk of turning the ball over, something she has struggled with throughout her career. For every stunning sequence, Coffey can have an equally confounding one.

In that same game against UConn, she tried to loft a pass to Leary under the basket from three-quarter-court with two Huskies defenders already back. Center Kelly Faris easily picked off the ill-advised pass that displayed Coffey’s occasional immaturity.

While Coffey continues to work on keeping her turnovers to a minimum, she is pleased with her development thus far. And she’s ready for any challenge Louisville throws her way Saturday.

‘I’m kind of used to people guarding me, one person, two people,’ Coffey said. ‘So I’m just trying to get the ball, be as patient as I can, get the ball, not force anything.’

rjgery@syr.edu

 

Published on February 9, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu