Versatile guard/forward Meagan Malcolm-Peck is making Colorado women’s basketball fans do a double-take when she steps on the court.
Malcolm-Peck has been making her mark this season, particularly during the week of Dec. 21-27, 2009, when she was named the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Freshman of the Week.
However, the 19-year-old, 6-foot-2 twin isn’t dwelling on the past. The Boulder native says she prefers to keep herself in check by continuously working hard every time she’s on the court, and pushing her teammates to do the same.
“You just want to work hard every possession,” Malcolm-Peck said. “I don’t think you can ever think you’re doing well or doing badly or anything because every possession is a new play. Every practice is new.”
Malcolm-Peck and the rest of the women’s basketball team can look to the future as they host the No. 12 Oklahoma State Cowgirls at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Coors Events Center.
Working beyond her early accolade, Malcolm-Peck has shown her hard work has made a difference in her all-around game and resourcefulness in the 17 total games the Buffs have played, all of which she has started.
Head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller said the newcomer has become an important asset for the team.
“She can rebound, she can shoot the three, she can defend guards, she can defend posts,” McConnell-Miller said. “She is a guard with great versatility.”
Regardless of her strong start, Malcolm-Peck still sees room for improvement.
Although Malcolm-Peck said her offensive rebounding in Big 12 Conference games has been sub-par, McConnell-Miller said it has been her biggest improvement throughout this season.
“I think her rebounding is improving, and that’s a strong need for us,” McConnell-Miller said. “That’s something she does well for us. The better she does, the more success we have.”
Although she only scored two points in CU’s 63-57 win against Kansas State on Wednesday, Malcolm-Peck proved the coach’s words to be true. She grabbed an offensive rebound off Chucky Jeffery’s missed free throw and knocked down two free throws with 17 seconds to play to help the Buffs get the road win. In conference games, Colorado is fifth in free-throw percentage, shooting 72.6 percent.
Malcolm-Peck hopes to get herself more open on the court and said she believes her lack of open shots limited her scoring against K-State.
On the other hand, McConnell-Miller prefers to look at what the true frosh did do well.
“She defended,” McConnell-Miller said. “Although she didn’t score, she came up with a key rebound on the free throw, and she made her two free throws down the stretch.”
She also said she believes that other than the points Malcolm-Peck puts on the scoreboard, she brings attitude and improvement.
“She’s playing with a lot of confidence and she’s playing a lot of minutes,” McConnell-Miller said. “She’s like the utility player. She does the little things that you don’t necessarily see on the stat sheet.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Marlee Horn at Marlee.horn@colorado.edu.
