Nearly three years ago, then-freshman Paige Mott scored seven points as a starter in Northwestern’s 62-51 postseason win over UCF — the program’s first NCAA Tournament win since 1993.
Mott, one of only two remaining players from that 2020-21 squad, now enters her senior season as a second-year captain, a vocal leader and a dominant force in the paint.
The Philadelphia native took a major step forward last season, averaging a career-best 8.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game on a team-leading 52.7% shooting. Starting in mid-January, Mott scored in double digits for seven consecutive games and averaged 12.2 points and 5.1 rebounds over the last 13 games of the season against Big Ten competition.
Mott, however, didn’t expect to bear the offensive load she ended up shouldering for most of her junior season, prompting her to take on a more involved role and transform her game in the process.
“Before junior year, I never thought of myself as a scorer. I thought of myself as more of a defensive player,” Mott said. “When (guard Melannie Daley) was unable to play in the beginning of 2023, I realized that my team needed somebody else that can score and I was basically just like, ‘Why not me?’”
As a freshman, Mott joined a team that was fresh off its first Big Ten title in 30 years and a program-record 26 wins. The 2019-20 Wildcats were poised to make a competitive run in the NCAA Tournament that year but were left hanging as the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With a shot at redemption, Mott’s new squad looked to repeat as Big Ten champions, led by future WNBA guards senior Lindsey Pulliam and junior Veronica Burton.
Mott, the daughter of former WNBA player Andrea Garner, entered the season having averaged a double-double as a senior at Abington Friends School. The freshman was then immediately thrust into the spotlight when starting forward Courtney Shaw was injured and finished her first season having started 16 out of 25 games.
“It was definitely scary. I say this all the time, they threw me into the fire,” Mott said. “But I was just so excited to be able to learn from players like Lindsey Pulliam, Jordan Hamilton, Lauryn Satterwhite and Veronica Burton, and I ended up becoming really great friends with them. They taught me a lot about how to lead a team and the expectations that this team has.”
Mott averaged 3.6 points and 3.4 rebounds on 16 minutes a game, the sixth-most on the team. After defeating the Golden Knights in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament, seventh-seeded NU fell to second-seeded Louisville in the round of 32.
With Shaw’s return to the lineup, Mott dropped to the bench during her sophomore year and saw slight decreases in her per-game statistics, though her efficiency held up.
The ’Cats likewise saw a downturn, finishing with an overall record of 17-12 and 8-8 in conference play, good enough for seventh in the Big Ten.
In Mott’s junior season, her first as a captain, the ’Cats saw an even steeper decline in team play, despite the forward’s breakout year. The team ended the season with a 9-21 record and 2-16 conference finish, by far the worst marks during Mott’s time at NU.
“Not gonna lie, it was really hard,” Mott said. “It’s hard to not start pointing fingers at each other when we were losing that bad.”
With last season in the rearview mirror, Mott looks to lead by example as a hardworking player on both sides of the floor.
Coach Joe McKeown noted Mott’s dedication to honing her craft, which paid dividends throughout last season.
“You could see it every day. Just her attitude in practice, the work ethic,” McKeown said at October’s Big Ten Media Day. “She got so efficient in the way she practiced, and I think that was a big difference.”
With their 11-day preseason trip to Spain, the ’Cats were able to invest into team culture and camaraderie, something that Mott hopes will manifest in their play this year. In NU’s first competition of the year, an exhibition against Division II Lewis last week, Mott put up 10 points and seven rebounds on the way to a 26-point victory.
As a captain alongside senior guard Jasmine McWilliams and sophomore guard Caroline Lau, Mott carries a renewed mindset heading into what may be her last season with the ’Cats.
“I feel like there’s been a lot of stuff in the media going out against us,” Mott said. “We can’t worry about social media and worry about who’s there watching us. (We can) only worry about ourselves and control what we can control during the game.”
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Twitter: @lucaskim_15
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