By Neil Schmidt
The Cincinnati Enquirer

COLUMBUS - At 20, Michelle Munoz seems an old soul. The Mason High grad is preparing for just her second college basketball season - her first at Ohio State. Yet for the most decorated girls player in Cincinnati-area history, one from a family that knows only athletic excellence, Munoz already thinks in terms of retribution.

Michelle Munoz begins her sophomore season with the OSU women's basketball team. (Craig Ruttle photo) | ZOOM |

"Being born and raised here and ending up back here with Ohio on your (jersey), you want to work that much harder," she said, "because those people have been there for you your whole life and have watched you grow up, and it's kind of a way to give back."

These are key themes for anyone who knows the Munozes: pride, loyalty, family.

Father Anthony played his whole Hall of Fame career for the Bengals, and his community work earned him an NFL Man of the Year award. Brother Michael starred at Moeller, and at Tennessee is the football team's first junior captain since 1944.

Michelle didn't have the same fortune at UT, leaving after one year in search of a better fit.

Visiting schools closer to home, she got quite a vibe returning to the Schottenstein Center. She went 2-0 on this court, helping Mason win the 2000 Division I state title here.

Munoz already had a few friends attending OSU, and she would bond quickly with her new teammates.

"(UT) just wasn't for me," she said. "Now I'm at a place that is for me. It's nice when you find your fit."

The 6-foot sophomore forward is expected to be a key cog for a team ranked No. 17 in preseason.

Perhaps her game has faded from memory, for it has been 32 months since she became Cincinnati's first two-time Miss Basketball award winner. Yet this is a player named a three-time Nike All-American at Mason, one whose Comets jersey hangs in the national Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

At UT, where everyone was a prep All-American, Munoz played in 27-of-34 games as a freshman, averaging 3.7 points in 9.6 minutes. She either didn't play or didn't score in 15 of UT's first 26 games, but then she scored in nine straight games, totaling six or more points four times in a seven-game stretch.

Munoz, who had a well-rounded game but was tentative, often passed up her shot, even though her 58.1 percent shooting (36-of-62) led the Lady Vols, who reached the Final Four. For OSU, she'll be asked to be a scorer.

But OSU coach Jim Foster said he doesn't want Munoz to be pigeon-holed.

"I'm not into (defined positions). She's a basketball player."

When she left UT, Munoz said that team's structured style wasn't best for her. Her versatility will be encouraged at OSU, she said, and it provides an opportunity to silence those who figured her too small to play inside and not quick enough to play outside against elite competition.

It was tough last winter sitting out because of transfer rules, and Munoz couldn't practice much because of two arthroscopic surgeries on her right ankle.

Munoz, a fashion design major, got stir-crazy and occasionally took it out on Candace Dark, her teammate and roommate. "She's really crafty and artsy, so she's always trying to give me a makeover," Dark said.

Friday, OSU begins play at home against Ohio, and all that nervous energy gets redirected to the court.

"When you have something taken away from you that you love to do, it makes it that much more exciting," Munoz said.

"I feel blessed."

Welcome home

Michelle Munoz returns to her home state, where she had one of the most decorated Ohio prep careers:

• Three-time Nike All-American, 1999-2001.

• Parade All-American, 2001.

• Named one of USA Today's top five seniors, 2001.

• One of just three Ohio girls to win two Miss Basketball awards.

• Led team to 2000 Division I state title and No. 2 national ranking (USA Today).

• Her team went 94-8 in high school, including undefeated regular seasons in 1999 and 2000.

Opening weekend

Michelle Munoz and the Ohio State women's team begins the season with two games at home:

Friday: vs. Ohio, 7 p.m.

Sunday: vs. Florida A&M, 2 p.m.

Tickets: $10.