UA freshman Maya Nnaji is improving at just the right time with Stanford coming to town

Maya Nnaji’s number was called in Sunday’s game against USC.

She was ready and didn’t let the opportunity slip away.

The freshman post stood tall — all 6-4 of her — and swatted three balls, pulled down eight rebounds and knocked down the biggest basket of her UA career to tie the game at 68-68 to send it into the second overtime.

Nnaji entered the game with a little more than two minutes left in the first overtime when Esmery Martinez fouled out. Over that short span she blocked a shot, pulled down a defensive rebound and took a jumper just inside the 3-point line in the corner.

In the second overtime, she blocked another shot and pulled down offensive and defensive rebounds.

Nnaji showed some good moves earlier in the game, and UA coach Adia Barnes said that is what earned her the minutes down the stretch. Barnes could have played small in that moment, but she trusted her young forward.

“It was huge,” Nnaji said of Barnes’ vote of confidence. “I just didn’t want to let her down or let the team down because I knew Esmery was in foul trouble. It’s just always next man up. You’ve got to hold the rope, have each other’s backs and be there for each other. I just knew I had to step up, take the role and play hard. And not play like a freshman. Really go out there and do my best for the team.

“I wasn’t really thinking while I was out there. I was just playing basketball. … I just went back to my roots of things I’ve learned, things I’ve practiced and worked on. I knew I’d be able to do what I do and do it well.”

The 17th-ranked Wildcats hope Nnaji will continue to play like an upperclassman when they host No. 6 Stanford at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at McKale Center. The game will be televised on ESPN.

Nnaji has taken every minute she gets on the court to play hard and contribute. Her growth is evident game by game and even within games. If she makes a mistake, you don’t see her making it twice.

Some of it is being a fast learner; some of it is having the right mindset. Nnaji came to Arizona as its highest-rated recruit ever — No. 9 by ESPN’s HoopGurlz. That created a lot of expectations and a lot of pressure to perform right from the start.

Nnaji pushes all that noise out and just controls what she can.

“Whatever I can contribute to the team’s success I want to do. Whether that’s rebounding, blocking shots, defending, scoring, making layups — whatever it is, I want to do that,” Nnaji said. “When I go into games, I really focus on little, small details that I can add. That will just help me build on to the next year, where I have a bigger role, and then the year after that, where I’m one of the top players in the country.

“That’s always my goal. I have to start small. I’m starting here, and that’s fine. But obviously my ambitions and my goals are a lot bigger. This year is my learning year where I get my foundation, I get the skills. ... I just want to see that growth through every game and through every year.”

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Nnaji understand the process. It takes time and experience in big-game situations like Sunday’s.

Her teammates weren’t surprised by Nnaji’s performance. They’ve seen her growth in practice.

“She has been working relentlessly in practice,” fifth-year senior Jade Loville said Wednesday. “She makes us better every day. She swipes our shots. I think it all is just translating for her finally. (To) be able to go out there with the experience that she has under her belt now towards the end of the season is amazing. She’s so talented.

“I was actually talking to Lauren (Fields) yesterday on the sideline, watching her like, ‘Wow! She’s going to be great.’ I think you’re obviously seeing that already. I couldn’t be prouder of her.”

Nnaji, who is averaging 14 minutes per game, has missed three games this season because of a concussion, including the home weekend against the Oregon schools in January. That start-and-stop after the concussion wasn’t easy.

The concussion came after a light practice when she was doing extra skill work with UA assistant coach Salvo Coppa ahead of the Oregon State game. They were working on guarding the post when the Beavers seal for a lob. She said that while the Wildcats go half-speed in that situation, the practice players go all out.

“(The practice player) was backing me down, and he tried to do a fake. I didn’t bite on it. He spun right into me (and) hit me in the head. I just went down,” Nnaji said. “I was so mad. Instantly, I knew I had a concussion.

“I was really upset, but I always say, ‘Never get too high with the highs or too low with the lows.’ I think if you don’t have hard times, you won’t appreciate the good ones. I feel like everything happens for a reason. Injuries come, but just staying positive for the team. Never becoming selfish or going inwards, and continue to work hard and stay ready for whenever my name gets called to go in for big opportunities like I had last weekend.”

Nnaji’s symptoms included a headache, sensitivity to light and a black eye. It was her first concussion. She didn’t want to sit out, but Barnes is very careful when it comes to bringing players back after concussions. Barnes slowly worked Nnaji back into the rotation.

The difference pre- and post-concussion in Nnaji’s numbers is quite clear. In the first 11 games of the season, Nnaji averaged 6.7 points per game and pulled down 51 rebounds. When she was easing back in after the concussion, over the next eight games, she averaged 2.3 points and pulled down 14 rebounds.

All of that made the performance Sunday even more meaningful. Nnaji played 27 minutes — the first time she has played more than 20 minutes since Dec. 29 against ASU.

“Being able to start getting my groove back is nice,” Nnaji said.