GREEN BAY – The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay women’s basketball team received a second shot to get Natalie McNeal and did not miss it.
UWGB coach Kevin Borseth had hoped to land the former Germantown star out of high school before she committed to play for St. Louis University.
When she entered the NCAA transfer portal in 2022 after two seasons with the Billikens, it didn’t take long for the Phoenix to reach out to the 5-foot-8 guard.
“Oh, immediately,” said Borseth, whose team beat Northern Kentucky 67-51 on Thursday at the Kress Center to improve to 18-5. “As soon as her name came on that portal, we were there. It didn’t take us 30 seconds, if it was that much time. We made phone calls immediately and thrilled that she decided to come here.
“Not only a great player, but a great person. A great teammate. Kind of fits right into the culture really well.”
UWGB originally recruited McNeal as a point guard during her dominant prep career.
She had 1,593 points, 763 rebounds and 293 assists in four seasons at Germantown and was a mentor to young teammate Kamorea “KK” Arnold, who has started 18 games as a freshman at UConn this season.
McNeal was the Greater Metro Conference player of the year as a sophomore and junior and a first-team all-state selection as a junior and senior.
The Phoenix didn’t need her at the point when she arrived in Green Bay, not with a player like Bailey Butler holding down the position.
But she still can hit a pull-up jumper with the best of them, which is what she has been doing her first two seasons at UWGB.
McNeal was a key piece off the bench in 2022-23 for a Phoenix team that won 28 games and the Horizon League regular-season title.
She has been an even bigger factor as a starter this season as UWGB hopes to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
McNeal had her first double-double of the season with 12 points and 16 rebounds against NKU.
She entered the weekend leading the team in scoring (13.2 ppg) and rebounding (6.5 rpg) while tied for second in steals (22), fourth in minutes (25.4 mpg) and shooting percentage (50.8%) and fifth in assists (43).
McNeal has been particularly dominant since the new year, scoring double figures in nine straight games.
The run includes a career-high 30 points in a loss to Cleveland State last Saturday, a contest in which she shot 14-for-22 and had 9 rebounds.
Backup. Starter. It doesn’t matter to McNeal.
She loves that with this Phoenix team, nobody must shine every night.
The spotlight tends to be on someone different during most games. When it’s her and she is making shots, then it’s her. If it’s not, she’s OK with that, too.
“For me, it’s just playing basketball,” McNeal said. “I think I’ve always fully believed whatever the team needs, I am going to bring to the table and I’m going to do my best to fill that role. Whether that’s me playing 5 minutes, me playing no minutes or me playing 40 minutes, I’m just there to show up and do my best for the team.”
McNeal is excited to be back in Wisconsin after two years in Missouri. Her parents and grandparents attend every game.
She had plenty of in-state recruiting interest during high school, but there was a desire to experience something different from home.
McNeal played 17 games as a freshman for the Billikens before emerging as a sophomore. She started 24 of 27 games and averaged 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists.
When she decided to enter the portal, it wasn’t only Borseth who hoped McNeal would play at UWGB. She felt the same.
“The whole state of Wisconsin knows Green Bay is a dominant program, not only in their culture but also their winning,” McNeal said. “So, I definitely had in the back of my mind being able to come closer to home and play for a very successful coach with a group of girls that care about a lot of the same things I do.”
McNeal is like several teammates in that she already was in college in 2020 when the NCAA granted student-athletes an additional season of eligibility because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It remains to be seen who will take the fifth year — former Luxemburg-Casco guard Cassie Schiltz said earlier this season she plans to return — and who might decide to graduate and move on.
McNeal isn’t sure what her future holds quite yet.
“I think I’m just playing it as it goes,” she said. “I’m focused on the present and where I am now. If it comes to it next year and I decide to come back, great. If I don’t, that’s OK, too. We will see.”
Kevin Borseth hits another milestone
Borseth is one of just 20 women’s basketball coaches in Division I, Division II or NAIA with 800 or more career wins, a milestone he celebrated with a victory over Illinois-Chicago in December.
He enjoyed another one Thursday after the win against the Norse, which was the 500th of his career with the Phoenix after previous stints at Michigan Tech (1987-1998) and Michigan (2007-2012).
“Is that the next one? It means a lot,” said Borseth, who joked when asked about it before the game. “The next one is the biggest one, right? We kind of take it for what it’s worth. Every chance we get a chance to win a game, whatever number it is, doesn’t make a difference. It’s the next one, and it’s an important one.”
McNeal wasn’t aware of the newest milestone for her coach, but she figured it couldn’t happen to a better person.
“It’s so much fun, it’s so much fun,” McNeal said of playing for Borseth. “I can’t even put into words. I have so many nice things to say about that man. He has given me a lot of opportunities, given a lot of other people opportunities.
“He’s funny. He cares about you outside of basketball. It’s not just about the numbers you are putting up on the stat sheet to him. It’s about how else you are contributing and who you are as a person. I think that’s part of the reason why he has seen so much success.”
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Germantown’s Natalie McNeal finds home with UWGB women’s basketball
