ORONO, Maine — The University of Maine's women's basketball team is exactly where it expected to be this year. The Black Bears are 12-1, have already played the number of games needed to play in the America East tournament, and the team's key players are contributing on the floor.
None more than Blanca Millan. Her 22 points and 7.6 rebounds per game lead the team this season. Millan is no stranger to the stat sheet or record book.
As the fifth-year guard enters the home-stretch in her final season, she took the time to reflect back on her career in Orono which began after a successful overseas recruiting mission conducted by her future coaching staff.
“I wouldn’t be honest with you if I told you I knew what she was going to do and what she has done, but we knew she was a very good basketball player," UMaine head coach Amy Vachon said.
A native of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Millan remembers speaking with Vachon over the phone constantly before she came to Maine in the summer of 2016.
Making the transition to the American style of basketball was tough at first, Millan said. The game was more physical and took getting used to.
“Practices were three hours, plus lift, plus conditioning, I couldn’t believe it, like my body wasn’t ready at all," Millan said.
Even though it was an adjustment, Millan found herself on the floor, a lot. As a freshman, she started in all 34 games and was named to the America East Rookie Team. The season was impressive considering no. 22 in blue hadn't come out of her shell just yet.
“My freshman year, it’s funny because I didn’t talk at all, I didn’t even talk to my teammates," Millan said.
“(Millan) came here not wanting to speak at all, she was very nervous, she was very shy," Vachon added.
Millan's success continued as the team began to position itself as the one to beat in conference play. UMaine won back to back conference championships in 2018 and 2019.
Millan was named to the all-tournament team both years and was named the America East Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the year in 2019.
As she and the team were getting ready to defend those titles in 2020 a torn ACL sidelined Millan before the COVID-19 pandemic canceled Maine's matchup with Stony Brook in the 2020 America East Championship game.
For the first time in her career, Millan did not go home to Spain after the season. Instead, she spent the summer rehabbing and training in Orono.
“My thought process was to get back as good as I was or as I left, and I knew it was an opportunity to get stronger," Millan said.
Vachon said she didn't see that offseason work in person, but saw the results when the team joined together last fall to prepare for this unusual pandemic season.
“To see her drive and her determination to come back better than she was before was really inspiring," Vachon added.
Growing up, Millan said she watched the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), NBA, and pro basketball in Spain. Her father was a professional player back home so Millan has always been around the game.
She mentioned she models her game after Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant. Which is fitting in more ways than one, Durant suffered a season-ending achilles injury in 2019 and this is his first year back on the floor.
When seniors, or fifth years like Millan, enter their final semester of college, it's impossible not to think back on the years spent with the team and the memories shared, but for Millan, she still has goals to accomplish.
Number one, winning her third America East Championship ring and number two, advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March. That would be a rare 'first' for the UMaine star.
“She’s going down as one of the five best players at Maine, I don’t think anyone can argue that," Vachon added.
With more games scheduled in February, and in March, Vachon will have more time to spend with Millan on the court but the time will be cherished. Vachon has not been the head coach of the program without Millan on the court.
“I’ll remember the person, I’ll remember who (Millan) is, how, what a great teammate she is, and how, what a joy she is to coach," Vachon added.
For Millan, she doesn't want the UMaine community to remember how many points she's scored, or games she's won.
“I want people to think I gave it all to the program, night in night out, even in my worst games, I gave it my all," Millan added.
As for what's next, Millan mentioned she will explore the possibles of playing in the WNBA or in a European professional league after this season.
With two more goals to be checked off her list, the book of Millan's legacy isn't over yet.