Colorado University Athletics
Brooks: Meagan Malcolm-Peck's Motor Always On
December 18, 2009 | Women's Basketball, B.G. Brooks
In both freshmen, Hardy saw a shared attitude of "so when does the hard part start?" - a mindset that fills the dreams of a strength and conditioning coach.
After their summer arrival on the Colorado campus as members of the women's basketball team, the Malcolm-Pecks' attendance for Hardy's off-season weight training was perfect. No sessions ditched, no excuses made.
"They're not the kind of girls you would ever catch cutting a 'rep' - either one of them," Hardy said. "Both are driven; if I told either one of them to do 500,000 pushups and a million sit-ups, they'd start . . . .
"But Meagan might tell me, 'Hey, just so you know, I've got an exam in the morning.'"
In a short Q&A session published last spring in the late Rocky Mountain News, Meagan described herself as the more responsible of the pair, with Brenna claiming to be the more serious and the oldest - by a full 27 minutes.
They both labeled themselves then as sloppy and wondered what an ever-present mess their dorm room might be. They didn't have all of their classes together in CU's fall semester, but that's been remedied for the spring term.
"We're always together," Meagan said. "We didn't even consider going to college separately."
This is way, way into the future, but they've entertained the idea of ultimately opening a business together, even musing that it could be hoops-related - something like "teaching basketball at a high-end resort."
CU's roster lists each at 6-foot-2, but Meagan (No. 14) is a shade taller and has a slightly fuller face and frame than Brenna (No. 24), according to coach Kathy McConnell-Miller.
"Six weeks ago, I had to look hard at them to tell them apart," McConnell-Miller said, noting their posture on the court also is among the traits she uses to identify each. "Now, I don't even think they look alike. It's amazing to me."
(On a related note, McConnell-Miller will be dealing with a similar ID issue next season when Ashley and Brittany Wilson, of Long Beach, Calif., join her team. The Wilson sisters are 5-8 guards.)
Through the Buffs' first eight games, Meagan has made the bigger impact, mainly because Brenna continues to battle a stomach condition that has curtailed her practice time and limited her to 22 minutes in five games (1.2 points, 0.4 rebounds).
Brenna continues to undergo testing with family and school medical personnel. Meagan said her sister is "really good at battling through pain," but neither player nor their coach wants that to be Brenna's biggest challenge.
"We need her to be healthy," McConnell-Miller said. "We feel like she can be just as much an impact player as Meagan has been. But we have yet to have Brenna healthy since games have started and we've yet to have her for a full week of practice.
"There's the belief from our staff that she can be just as effective as Meagan. They're different, though, and I'm really starting to learn the differences. Brenna is good off the bounce. The similarity is that they're always around the ball, always around the rim."
An eight-game starter, Meagan is averaging 7.6 points and 5.8 rebounds, with 27 of her 46 boards coming on the offensive end. Those stats underscore the areas of her game she believes are the strongest: "Hustling, getting offensive rebounds and hitting open shots."
Defensively, she concedes she's a "work in progress," with the majority of that work needed in learning how to play post defense and trying to shore up her defense when confronting a shooting guard or forward.
"I can be a little quicker if I'm guarding a three or the two, and I know I have to get more physical and stronger in the post," she said. "I'm not used to playing defense in the post. I'm adjusting because the coaches are showing me what to do, how to guard in there."
"She's got a tough assignment," McConnell-Miller admitted. "Alyssa Fressle (5-10 sophomore guard) typically earns the best offensive player (to guard). Meagan goes from the big to guarding a guard. There's a transition there that she's just not accustomed to."
Offensively, the transition has been smoother, primarily because Meagan rarely shifts into a lower gear. When McConnell-Miller and her staff watch tape of games or practice, the Meagan is perpetual motion. She never goes unnoticed.
"There's one thing you see and you feel like you have to have her on the floor because of it: she never stops playing," McConnell-Miller said.
One stat kept every game by a team manager is deflections, which player gets a hand on the ball the most and most disrupts the other team's offense. Meagan is the pacesetter in that category.
"She did it in our scrimmages and she's doing it in our games," McConnell-Miller said. "Plus, she's constantly going to the offensive boards; every time a shot goes up she's the first one to the rim. She keeps plays alive, she makes things happen on the floor, she can hit open shots."
But she's not a finished product on the offensive end. Stronger overall play, drawing contact on second-chance shots rather than avoiding it, will get her to free throw line more often.
"Instead of fading and trying not to get fouled as opposed to taking it strong back up and getting to the free throw line - that's something we've identified on film and showed her," CU's coach said.
Since their early high school years or before, the Malcolm-Pecks never have been far from a basketball court. They had an outside court at their Boulder County mountain home, but Meagan said she, her sister and father tired of shoveling or sweeping snow from it.
He decided to convert a barn into a half-court hoops facility with a pair of rims, which solved the snow and cold weather issues and created a winter destination for the Malcolm-Pecks' basketball-starved high school and club sport pals.
"It's really nice; I love it," Meagan said. "Brenna and I were out there all the time during high school . . . there were some fun times.
"It definitely beats the outdoor court; it was cold and the rims were crooked."
Beginning with Saturday's game against Southern Utah (7 p.m., Coors Events Center), the Buffs have five games to polish themselves for Big 12 Conference play. Those five, as well as the league opener on Jan. 9 against Missouri, all are at home.
McConnell-Miller recognizes the importance of the home stand for her team overall and young players such as the Malcolm-Pecks.
"We knew we were going to have some players who hadn't had a lot or any minutes in the Big 12," McConnell-Miller said. "We knew it would be important to get some momentum and get some confidence with some home games and just get a good flow.
"Hopefully, we can build that over the next couple of weeks."
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
