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SAFE TO SAY THAT Skylar Diggins is done flying under the radar. This past season, she leſt her mark on women's college basketball and she's far from finished. Although the rising junior All-American chose not to attend UConn or Tennessee – which are the typical choices for any high-profile lady baller of her caliber – Diggins has proven that she deserves the spotlight.
Being from Indiana, she's on her way to becoming somewhat of a local superstar. In the past year she's led Notre Dame to their second championship game in school history, turned 5,000 Twitter followers into 100,000-plus and pulled off a stun- ning upset in a Final Four game against a national power- house in UConn – officially becoming the new face of women's basketball. And she isn't going anywhere until she settles her "unfinished business." Needless to say, Skylar Diggins gets busy on the court – just ask Lil Wayne.
DIME: I know you're an Indiana native. What has it been like to stay home and play for Notre Dame? SKYLAR DIGGINS: Staying home definitely meant a lot. Coach [Muffet McGraw] offered in eighth grade, so at the time just getting offered was extremely huge for me. I always grew up around the city, and had been around the university often. I loved being around the ND community, and I've always loved the atmosphere here. Having my family and friends close was big for me. Being from Indiana, staying home and playing made it special for the fans and community. Giving them the opportunity to watch me play at ND was huge for the program.
DIME: Tell us a little about the learning curve you've gone through so far in your career. SD: I struggled a lot my freshman year – the most I'd ever struggled in my life. The transition from high school to college is a difficult one to make. The game is a lot faster. As much as anyone can tell you, you still have to go through it on your own, make your own mistakes and learn from them. My fresh- man year I made the transition from shooting guard to point guard so that didn't make it any easier. Lucky for me, I had a great coaching staff to help me adjust. They really helped me improve my mental approach to the game. It's an overwhelm- ing transition and it really gets difficult because there are so many plays you have to perfect. My coaching staff really helped me learn the offense and think about the game better. To be successful your basketball IQ has to be high, and I think that's where I made my biggest improvements.
DIME: After making that transition, do you feel more com- fortable at the point or on the wing? SD: I don't like to confine myself, but I like the point better. Playing at the one helps me understand my teammates better. It worked out well for me because I like to have the ball in my hands. I'm a bit bossy, and I'm good at directing and taking
control. I like to create and I look to score every time down the floor. Not just to shoot, but to score – whether it's my teammates or me that's shooting. I love getting my team- mates good shots, and I love to push the tempo. I've come to realize now that I'm naturally a point guard. Coach [Niele] Ivey helped me a lot with making the switch. She was really like a second mother to me. We would be in the office watching film every single day. We spent a lot of time studying the competi- tion, but studying my teammates' games even more. Watching film helps me really get a feel for their games, where they like the ball, and just running offense inside-out. I made a giant leap with my basketball IQ this year.
DIME: This past season was somewhat of a breakout year for both you and your team. What do you think was the primary reason for your success? SD: We really just focused on one game at a time. We knew that we were a young team so we approached it accordingly. We lost our other four starters from the previous season, which left me as the only returning starter. We had to learn to play with patience and to be more mentally focused than we were. We had to challenge ourselves, but what we lacked in patience we balanced with competitiveness. Coach made sure we didn't overlook anyone, and I think that was important. Usually at the beginning of the season we circle UConn or Tennessee on the board, but this year we played every team like they were the best team in the country. We had the experience in our staff that we lacked in our roster, and that really helped us develop.
DIME: Needless to say, you led your team to somewhat of a historical run last season, becoming the first team to ever defeat both Tennessee and UConn in the same tournament. What was it like to finally overcome those obstacles and take the next step toward your ultimate goal? SD: It was definitely huge for us. Going into the tournament we knew we had one of the toughest routes to the champion- ship, so we knew what it was going to take to win. We set the bar high for ourselves. Also, we knew that the Final Four was in Indiana, right down the street, so we used that as inspira- tion. Once we got past Utah and Temple we just kept on rolling. Then came Oklahoma, who lost to in the Sweet 16 last year. We definitely felt like we had something to prove against them. I wanna give kudos to our fans that traveled as well – they gave us the support we would have at home right in Dayton. We played with such a chip on our shoulders against
PHOTO. MATT CASHORE