For as long as Michele Matyasovsky can remember, there has been basketball.
First there was the Dr. J hoop in Matyasovsky's house which she would dunk on. But that's not all. She played while wearing a blue Tupperware bowl on her head, thinking it made her taller.
While in grade school, her father took her to watch her older cousins play and practice with their high school basketball teams. There was her driveway and sidewalks where she learned to dribble with both hands. When she mastered a new skill, she would excitedly run to her father to show off.
At age nine, Matyasovsky joined the Hot Shots, a recreational league designed to prepare girls for the junior high level. But it wasn't until eighth grade when she realized she was real good-that's when she was first visited by a coach from Georgia Tech.
Soon enough she was playing for a Philadelphia AAU team and starring on her high school team.
It's almost as if Matyasovsky was born with a basketball in her hands.
"I just really love the game," Matyasovsky said. "I would go watch [my cousins'] games and watch them practice and I just really loved it.... I started playing when I was seven, but was dribbling at three."
And in just a few months, Matyasovsky's career will take the next step as she enters the world of collegiate basketball as a Blue Devil.
Her future coach Gail Goestenkors couldn't be happier. Goestenkors believes the years of experience will pay big dividends for Matyasovsky, and Duke, right away.
"Michele really understands the game very well," Goestenkors said. "She does a little bit of everything, she's kind of like Georgia Schweitzer. She's a great three-point shooter, she can also drive to the basket; excellent passer, but just has a really great knowledge of the game."
While growing up in New Jersey, Matyasovsky constantly worked on developing new skills. Through her efforts, she successfully developed an impressive, well-rounded game. She can take the ball up the court, she can shoot the three and she can even post up.
Goestenkors expects to play her at small forward, but knows she can play just about anywhere.
Matyasovsky, put simply, is just comfortable on a basketball court.
"She used to casually walk up and down the pavement dribbling through her legs, dribbling with both hands," said George Matyasovsky of his daughter. "It got to the point where she didn't even realize she was doing it anymore. It became pretty natural for her.
"She's enjoyed basketball and she's enjoyed being competitive her whole life.
The six-foot-one standout from Triton High School was the first player to commit to Duke's fourth-ranked recruiting class. She announced her decision last summer, following a camping trip in North Carolina.
While in Greensboro, Matyasovsky convinced a teammate to make the short drive to Durham with her. It was just her second unofficial trip to Duke, but Matyasovsky "fell in love with Duke" as her coach Dave Storms said.
"I liked their program, how it was set up, how it's up and coming," Matyasovsky said. "I loved Coach G, all the coaches, all the players and felt real comfortable with all that. I also really liked the blend of academics and athletics at Duke. I just really liked it."
Matyasovsky made the decision early so that she could concentrate on playing her senior season without the constant hassle of being one of the nation's top recruits. And although her family wished she had looked at a few more schools, Michele was sure she made the right decision.
"She never wanted to go for the whole recruiting scene as far as coming to the house and all that," her father said. "She didn't like that, which is why she decided to commit early. She had seen enough schools and knew what she was looking for. She wanted to eliminate that whole scene for the most part. It does get overwhelming after awhile."
But even with recruiting out of her mind, Matyasovsky's senior year would not be easy. Triton was left shorthanded after one center transferred to a rival school and another was kicked off the team for disciplinary reasons.
Storms told Matyasovsky that she would have to be the new center and score 25 points a game for the team to have any chance of winning. Playing with her back to the basket, Matyasovsky averaged 25.5 points per game, and despite an 0-3 start, Triton won its first conference title in 28 years.
"She really rose up to the occasion. I think in the past, there were enough other good players around she just played her game. But I think this year, she really stepped up another level. Even other people would say when they watched her play, 'She's a different ballplayer than she was last year.'"
Matyasovsky called the season the best of her four at Triton and said it was a great way to leave high school. It was also the year she scored her 2,000th career point and grabbed her 1,000 career rebound.
"It was an awesome season," Matyasovsky said. "It was probably my best season of all my four years. It was amazing; we just all played so hard."
And when her record-breaking season finished, Matyasovsky was able to enjoy her future teammates' record-breaking season as Duke shocked the nation with its incredible tourney run.
"Oh my God, it was awesome," Matyasovsky said. "I was so happy for them. It felt really good knowing I was going to be there next year. It was just so exciting watching them play."
And in a few years, people might be saying the same about her.
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