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For Pearson, tournament MVP doesn't do justice
HOLLAND, Mich. -- DePauw senior Ellie Pearson was name the most valuable player of the 2013 NCAA Division III women's basketball national championship tournament on Saturday. It was an easy choice.
Her stats were impressive and she is extremely deserving based on her play.
"It's a tremendous honor," Pearson said. "It's a great way to end my senior year and career. I've worked. Basketball has been a huge part of my life and for me to end up with my teammates on top is just incredible."
I could run off her tournament averages, or mention all the school and NCAA records she set this postseason. I could use stats to show her impact defensively, but those things can't describe what Pearson meant to the Tigers.
"She does all the small things in games that sometimes go unnoticed," DePauw junior Ali Ross said. "She deserved it. She's one of the hardest working players I've played with and I have ultimate respect for her."
Pearson is an unbelievable, legendary, phenomenal player. She does everything -- everything -- her team needs. She can, more or less, do whatever she wants on the court.
When she decides, for instance, that she's going to grab 18 rebounds, then that's what she'll do. When she decides her team needs points, she'll score 20, and do it efficiently and within the flow of the offense.
Pearson has had games this postseason in which she led DePauw in points, rebounds, assists, steals or blocks. She is the most complete player in Division III basketball.
Nobody scores on her because she loves to defend. Nobody boxes her out because she won't let them.
When DePauw came out nervous -- scared -- against Williams in the national semifinal on Friday, Pearson was fearless. When veteran guards passed up shots, Pearson called for the ball.
The undefeated season and the quest for the national championship was on the line. DPU faced it's biggest deficit of the season. Not even Marvin's could deliver with that much pressure.
Ellie did.
An 18-footer with a hand in her face? No problem.
A drive to the lane past a girl four inches taller? I got this.
Pearson even has the jump-ball to start the game down to a science. I'll do my best to describe it.
She's left-handed and lines up like she's going to try to tip it back with her left hand. Her left foot is forward, her strong arm raised.
When the referee tosses the ball into the air, she turns out of the way to avoid getting hit. That's when Pearson cheats uses her cunning. She contorts her body, spinning to put her right arm forward. As that's happening, she uses her left hand to grab her opponents arm and pull it down.
It's virtually impossible that she could lose a jump ball. She does this every time, and it's perfect. She was 28-6 in jumpballs this season.
The referee who throws the ball up immediately turns away and can't see what happened. The clock hasn't started, so is it really a foul?
Pearson says she doesn't even realize this happens. She says that during games she experiences a "black out."
She doesn't remember what happened; doesn't know what she did to get the win; just plays and plays hard.
"There are moments when I can't hear the crowd and I'm just so focused on the play and on the possession," she says.
Saturday was Pearson's final game. It's was the national championship. It was the defining moment of her college career and something she can look back on for the rest of her life, and she was again the biggest star on the biggest stage.
But the value Pearson brings to her team and to everyone around her is about more than that.
She's the most athletic player on the team, but she's also one of the hardest workers in practice. It's not about that, either.
"I can trust her in the games and off the court," Ross said. "She's a great friend. She's there for me whenever I need something. She's just a kind person and she's got a big heart."
Pearson makes time for everyone.
When a professor asks her to sit with him during the men's game, she of course holds her seat for both halves. When an annoying reporter asks her for "just one more question?" and all she wants to do is celebrate with her teammates, she turns the question into a conversation.
Pearson has never said the word "No" in her entire life. I can't prove this, of course, but in all my recordings and all my memories of talking with her, I can't prove that she has, either.
If she had the talent of Diana Taurasi and Maya Moore and Brittney Griner all rolled together, she would still be a better person than she is a player, and it wouldn't be close.
Her personality isn't the reason she was named MVP, she did that with her play. But without an awards at stake, and without touching a basketball, Pearson would deserve praise.
Pearson was the best player on the best team in the country. No matter how focused she gets, doing whatever she does in the future, she won't be able to black that out.