Entering the season there was one word that was always used to describe sophomore point guard Mila Hollway: selfless.
As a freshman, she did her best to live up to expectations of her position and ensure opportunities for her teammates. Yet, those around her knew that there was even more that awaited Holloway in her second year in Michigan’s offensive scheme.
“The first thing she looks at is her assists,” Wolverines assistant coach Justine Raterman said Oct. 30. “ ‘How am I getting people shots? I could have passed this. My pass could have been a little bit better here. It’s got to be on time, on target.’ And at the end of the day, we’ve got to remind her she could score the ball. She’s a great scorer as well.”
Since October, Holloway has taken that note. Prolific performances against Michigan State and UCLA have carved out space for Michigan’s third scoring option, allowing her to claim a large share of the shot map. And against No. 15 seed Holy Cross, Holloway’s season of offensive growth placed itself centerstage in the second-seeded Wolverines crushing first-round victory.
While Holloway’s 20 points solidified her as the top point scorer on Friday, she hasn’t had a constant — or, at least easily earned — stream of success of late. Just two weeks ago in the Big Ten Tournament, Holloway’s shots simply weren’t falling. Periods of scorelessness plagued her in both matchups against Oregon and Iowa, including going 1-for-7 in the first half against the Hawkeyes. And yet, by the end of each game, Holloway managed to balloon her point total up into the double digits, hustling for contested layups and remaining confident in her 3-point game, despite the miscues.
“I’ve definitely been struggling with my shot in the past few games, but I mean our confidence and belief in one another never wavers,” Holloway said after Friday’s win. “And it’s constant positive touches, just our constant belief in one another just kind of boosted me to hit those shots today.”
She brought that confidence against the Crusaders, but this time, she didn’t need to bolster it with resilience. She erupted all night for those 20 points — 15 of which came from downtown. Stepping into shots with the resolve that numerous tall tests had taught her, Holloway’s accuracy sharpened, allowing her to go 5-for-9 from beyond the arc.
“With us having such great players on our team, I mean, they draw a lot of attention, so it kind of opens up a lot of scoring opportunities for me, and I’m just glad that I can be able to deliver tonight,” Holloway said. “They found me in the right spots. I think we did a great job of just moving the basketball today.”
When shooters like sophomore guards Olivia Olson and Syla Swords make up a roster, it’s fitting that they command a great deal of the defense’s attention. The downside of this approach is that often a team’s third-best guard gets matched up against Holloway — something she is eager to exploit.
All night, she hit her spots. Whether it was finding the right kick-out passes for threes or leaping down low to collect defensive boards and fuel the team’s transition game, Holloway’s positioning opened up Michigan’s offense.
“I knew since she was in high school that she could score,” Wolverines coach Kim Barnes Arico said. “So I challenge her to find that balance every day. I think that’s an incredibly difficult thing for point guards to figure out and for her to be a sophomore and to find her spots and still have seven assists and still find her teammates, I think, is really special.”
Even with her heightened scoring role, Holloway’s command as the Wolverines’ floor general hasn’t let up, remaining their top facilitator all season. And she firmly held those reins against Holy Cross.
After two quarters of stagnation from Michigan’s offense, Holloway was the maestro behind the Wolverines’ fourth quarter surge. Not only was she actively tallying on the points, but she was also directing every member of the rotation, even setting up the plays that resulted in her own 3-pointers.
Michigan has punched its ticket to the next round of the NCAA tournament and Holloway will have even more big moments to step into. But even with just the snapshot taken on Friday, her growth throughout the season is in full focus.
