This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

There are very few things in life or basketball that rattle Utah's Michelle Plouffe.

She once lost her cellphone in an airport. Instead of buying another one, she waited three months while playing with the Canadian National under-19 team and claimed her phone when she returned.

Last March during the Mountain West Conference title game, Plouffe played her worst first half of the year against TCU. She finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds as the Utes upset the Horned Frogs.

It could be past games in the driveway with her sisters, Katherine and Andrea, both Division I players themselves. It could be all of the time she's spent with high school and current teammate Taryn Wicijowski. But whether it's on or off the court, Plouffe seems to have a certain something that allows her to perform her best when the stakes are the highest.

"She's one of the best players that I've been around," Wicijowski said. "There's nothing that she can't do on the court. She has so much skill."

That explains why Plouffe is a headliner for Utah as the Utes head into Sunday's season opener against Southern Utah at the Huntsman Center. As a freshman, she was nothing short of remarkable, taking over the scoring reins midway through the year, nailing multiple game-winners, and earning MWC Freshman of the Year honors.

She did all of that as a power forward who was too quick for bigger opponents and too big at 6-foot-4 for smaller players.

Now, she gets to prove herself all over again as she moves to small forward full time to make room for Wicijowski, who is coming back after missing all of last season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

She's never played the position regularly. But she has the ballhandling and the shot from the perimeter to make it work. Plus, her ability to rebound from that spot could be invaluable as the Utes move to the Pac-12, where the frontcourts will be much bigger than the ones in the Mountain West.

"I'm ready and I'm excited to play small forward," Plouffe said. "I may not have the quickness advantage that I enjoyed last year, but I feel that I can make that up in other ways. I think my strength will work for me, and I can take smaller players in the post more often."

Plouffe established herself last year as a premier player. She was second-team all-conference. She led all Mountain West freshmen in scoring and rebounding. She scored in double figures 27 times.

And she turned it up in big games. She scored the winning basket against San Diego State. She dropped 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds against BYU during the regular season, and then she beat the Cougars in the MWC tournament with a smooth 18-footer at the buzzer.

This summer, Plouffe trained with Canada's Senior Women's National Team, featuring ex-Ute greats Kim Smith and Shona Thorburn.

Plouffe had 24 points and eight rebounds to lead Canada's U-19 team over the United States 64-52 in group play at the world championships in Chile on July 27.

Understandably, Utah coach Anthony Levrets is in love with Plouffe's game, as well as her demeanor.

"She's a future pro," Levrets said. "The impressive thing about her is that she's nowhere near her ceiling as a player. That game over the summer when she scored 24 points? She was playing against UConn and Tennessee players, and for that game she was the best player on the floor. She could be one of the best players to play here. She's so versatile, and she wants to get better." —

Plouffe file

• Her twin sister, Katherine, plays at Marquette.

• Her sister Andrea played at Washington.

• Started 34 games for the Utes as a freshman.

• Scored a career-high 30 points in February against UNLV.

• Hit game-winners against San Diego State and BYU.

• Played for Canadian National under-19 team.