Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Eastern Kentucky on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 58, to, 72
Final Score
Women's Basketball
58
at Eastern Kentucky
72
The University of Utah Athletics
From O Canada to Ute Proud
1/9/2017 2:04 PM | Women's Basketball
SALT LAKE CITY – Utah women's basketball rich tradition and success with Canadian student-athletes continues this season with three Utes hailing from our neighbors to the north.
Paige Crozon, Emily Potter and Daneesha Provo left their country for college in hopes of expanding their basketball knowledge and competing at the highest level.
"I grew up watching college basketball. Since I was 8-years-old I had the mindset of playing Division I basketball," said Potter, a native of Winnipeg, Manitoba. "At the time, where Canada was with basketball – now they're really on the rise – I felt like I had to be a little bit selfish and get the skill development and the exposure of playing in the states playing against really high-level competition."
Head coach Lynne Roberts, in her second season at the helm of the Utah women's basketball program, is a fan of the Canadian influx of players.
"It's been good to Utah and it's been a successful pipeline," Roberts said. "Elaine Elliott, who was the coach here for years, got that started and she did a great job. It's interesting, there's a lot of colleges trying to get into Canada for recruiting, a lot more than there used to be, but we feel like we still have a leg up because of all the history here. The Canada Basketball Olympians who have come through this program, it has really helped us – it doesn't matter if you're from Nova Scotia or British Columbia – they know Utah. We have brand recognition there and we're going to continue hitting that pipeline hard."
One of the program's most recent success stories is Michelle Plouffe from Edmonton, Alberta. Plouffe completed her Utah career with a plethora of honors: three-time All-Pac-12 selection, 2014 Pac-12 All-Defensive Team, espnW National Player of the Week on Dec. 16, Pac-12 Player of the Week on Dec. 16, Naismith Award Early Season Watch List selection, Sporting News Preseason All-American Third Team, NCAA Senior CLASS Award nominee, Associated Press honorable mention All-American in 2012 and 2013, 2,100 career points and a school-record 1,155 rebounds.
Plouffe's success as a Ute allowed her to play at the professional level of women's basketball when she was selected in the second round (19th overall) of the 2014 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm. Her Canadian career started when she played on the Under-19 National Team in 2009.
Much like Plouffe, current players Crozon, Potter and Provo have played at various levels of the Canadian National Team. This past summer Potter spent time with the senior team in France and Spain before joining her two Utah teammates on the Development Team.
"It was so nice," Potter said. "I had been traveling all summer because I was with the senior team. We had just come in from traveling, had a few days off then joined the Development team. I came in midway through training camp, but I was really missing all my teammates from Utah so it was really nice to see Paige and Daneesha."
The time together in the summer gave these three a unique opportunity to be teammates outside of the collegiate atmosphere, but still learn new ways to play with one another.
"I had never played with Daneesha in game prior to playing in Canada because she was redshirting," explained Crozon, a Humboldt, Saskatchewan native. "We played in practice, but it's different in a game so we were able to learn how each other plays which helped us. The three of us getting to play together was a big help and something special. We also gained insight, getting to play internationally and seeing different styles of basketball."
The journey to Utah was a little different for Provo. Originally from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Provo attended Kent School in Connecticut for high school in hopes to be seen by American schools.
"I left Canada when I was 14 to go to boarding school in Connecticut to keep my options open and have a better chance to play in the US," Provo said about her journey to Utah. "That's really the main reason why I went to high school in the States. I wanted to be recruited and play here."
Provo was originally recruited by Clemson and she spent two years with the Tigers before transferring to Utah.
"There have been a lot of Canadian players who have been successful and played on the (Canadian) National Team who've come through Utah," Provo said. "I got to play with Emily Potter on the National Team when I was 16 so I knew her so I didn't feel like an outsider or anything. There was more of a Canadian connection out here."
Coach Roberts expects to maintain the success of the Canadians through Utah when she added height to her second singing class with 6'5" post player Maurane Corbin. The Canadian plays in Montmorency, Quebec under coach Martin Fortier. Corbin spent 2016 as a member of the Development National team, averaging 12.2 minutes and 2.8 rebounds in five exhibition games in the Prague Open. She played in 17 games in the 2015-16 season scoring 9.7 points per game, while grabbing 8.8 rebounds and dishing out two assist per contest.
"Maurane is a tremendous 'get' for our program. She is tall, long, extremely mobile, athletic and active. She played this past summer with 3 current Utes on the Canadian National Developmental team, and her signing with us keeps our Canadian recruiting as strong as ever," Roberts proclaimed. "Maurane is a true post player, but also has potential to play on the perimeter with her shooting ability. She brings experience and a maturity to our program and we are confident she will be an impact player in the Pac-12."Â
Crozon is in her final year of eligibility after the 2016-17 season, but is excited for Utah to continue recruiting Canadians.
"It's definitely important that Utah maintains the relationship with Canada," Crozon said. "We've obviously have had really good success. It's really special to get to play with someone here then get to also be teammates on the Canadian National Team. It was very special to be able to experience that with some of my closest friends."
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Paige Crozon, Emily Potter and Daneesha Provo left their country for college in hopes of expanding their basketball knowledge and competing at the highest level.
"I grew up watching college basketball. Since I was 8-years-old I had the mindset of playing Division I basketball," said Potter, a native of Winnipeg, Manitoba. "At the time, where Canada was with basketball – now they're really on the rise – I felt like I had to be a little bit selfish and get the skill development and the exposure of playing in the states playing against really high-level competition."
Head coach Lynne Roberts, in her second season at the helm of the Utah women's basketball program, is a fan of the Canadian influx of players.
"It's been good to Utah and it's been a successful pipeline," Roberts said. "Elaine Elliott, who was the coach here for years, got that started and she did a great job. It's interesting, there's a lot of colleges trying to get into Canada for recruiting, a lot more than there used to be, but we feel like we still have a leg up because of all the history here. The Canada Basketball Olympians who have come through this program, it has really helped us – it doesn't matter if you're from Nova Scotia or British Columbia – they know Utah. We have brand recognition there and we're going to continue hitting that pipeline hard."
One of the program's most recent success stories is Michelle Plouffe from Edmonton, Alberta. Plouffe completed her Utah career with a plethora of honors: three-time All-Pac-12 selection, 2014 Pac-12 All-Defensive Team, espnW National Player of the Week on Dec. 16, Pac-12 Player of the Week on Dec. 16, Naismith Award Early Season Watch List selection, Sporting News Preseason All-American Third Team, NCAA Senior CLASS Award nominee, Associated Press honorable mention All-American in 2012 and 2013, 2,100 career points and a school-record 1,155 rebounds.
Plouffe's success as a Ute allowed her to play at the professional level of women's basketball when she was selected in the second round (19th overall) of the 2014 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm. Her Canadian career started when she played on the Under-19 National Team in 2009.
Much like Plouffe, current players Crozon, Potter and Provo have played at various levels of the Canadian National Team. This past summer Potter spent time with the senior team in France and Spain before joining her two Utah teammates on the Development Team.
"It was so nice," Potter said. "I had been traveling all summer because I was with the senior team. We had just come in from traveling, had a few days off then joined the Development team. I came in midway through training camp, but I was really missing all my teammates from Utah so it was really nice to see Paige and Daneesha."
The time together in the summer gave these three a unique opportunity to be teammates outside of the collegiate atmosphere, but still learn new ways to play with one another.
"I had never played with Daneesha in game prior to playing in Canada because she was redshirting," explained Crozon, a Humboldt, Saskatchewan native. "We played in practice, but it's different in a game so we were able to learn how each other plays which helped us. The three of us getting to play together was a big help and something special. We also gained insight, getting to play internationally and seeing different styles of basketball."
The journey to Utah was a little different for Provo. Originally from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Provo attended Kent School in Connecticut for high school in hopes to be seen by American schools.
"I left Canada when I was 14 to go to boarding school in Connecticut to keep my options open and have a better chance to play in the US," Provo said about her journey to Utah. "That's really the main reason why I went to high school in the States. I wanted to be recruited and play here."
Provo was originally recruited by Clemson and she spent two years with the Tigers before transferring to Utah.
"There have been a lot of Canadian players who have been successful and played on the (Canadian) National Team who've come through Utah," Provo said. "I got to play with Emily Potter on the National Team when I was 16 so I knew her so I didn't feel like an outsider or anything. There was more of a Canadian connection out here."
Coach Roberts expects to maintain the success of the Canadians through Utah when she added height to her second singing class with 6'5" post player Maurane Corbin. The Canadian plays in Montmorency, Quebec under coach Martin Fortier. Corbin spent 2016 as a member of the Development National team, averaging 12.2 minutes and 2.8 rebounds in five exhibition games in the Prague Open. She played in 17 games in the 2015-16 season scoring 9.7 points per game, while grabbing 8.8 rebounds and dishing out two assist per contest.
"Maurane is a tremendous 'get' for our program. She is tall, long, extremely mobile, athletic and active. She played this past summer with 3 current Utes on the Canadian National Developmental team, and her signing with us keeps our Canadian recruiting as strong as ever," Roberts proclaimed. "Maurane is a true post player, but also has potential to play on the perimeter with her shooting ability. She brings experience and a maturity to our program and we are confident she will be an impact player in the Pac-12."Â
Crozon is in her final year of eligibility after the 2016-17 season, but is excited for Utah to continue recruiting Canadians.
"It's definitely important that Utah maintains the relationship with Canada," Crozon said. "We've obviously have had really good success. It's really special to get to play with someone here then get to also be teammates on the Canadian National Team. It was very special to be able to experience that with some of my closest friends."
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Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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/ Women's Basketball
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