INDIANAPOLIS — Most people don’t think it’s pretty when they see it. Some don’t believe what they’re watching. Briana Day thought it was a joke the first time she saw it on film.

But Chantel Osahor has unleashed her shot the same way since she was nine. She doesn’t jump. The 6-foot-2 Washington junior lumbers down the court at a slower pace than most, filling enough space on the floor to be considered a center. But 108 times she’s stopped short of the 3-point line and fired away.

She receives the ball at her chest, raises it just above her shoulders and throws her arms forward as if she were releasing a chest pass. But 36 percent of the time the ball goes through the net. And she never leaves the ground.

“I guess you could say it’s a god-given talent,” Osahor said. “If you don’t like it, then I guess it’s not a talent to you.

“People always tell me I have to ‘jump,’ … and I always tell them: ‘Don’t fix what’s not broken.’”

Osahor’s emerged as one of the most unique talents in college basketball, even on an unheralded Huskies team that finished the season unranked and fourth in its own conference. But she’s made a sizeable imprint in UW’s first-ever Final Four run, most recently nabbing a game-high 18 rebounds and scoring 24 points in an Elite Eight win over Stanford.

Teams have struggled to box her out and tame the unique, jumpless shot. No. 4 seed Syracuse will try to next with its season on the line, as the Orange (29-7, 13-3 Atlantic Coast) faces the Huskies (26-10, 11-7 Pacific-12) on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. in the Final Four at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Teammates also laud Osahor for her timely passing, something she can “see before it even happens.” Head coach Mike Neighbors said she thinks like a coach, communicating the game in ways most players can’t. Guard Kelsey Plum, the nation’s third-leading scorer, said people often don’t recognize Osahor’s decision-making ability.

But unquestionably it’s her shot that dominates the conversation. She’s figured out how to shove the ball at the net, and that’s not a bad thing. Osahor’s field-goal percentage is highest among UW’s starters.

“She’s playing chess,” Plum deadpanned, “everyone else is playing checkers.”

Her unorthodox delivery finally snowballed into the national spotlight. ESPN’s “Sports Science” showcased Osahor in a short clip last month. The math-based feature revealed she cocks her elbows back at a 55-degree angle, diverting far from the “textbook” 90-degree jumper.

Perhaps most notably is her shot-release time. Osahor gets her shot off in four-tenths of a second according to the video, the same release time as reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry.

Plum blurted out about the video in Saturday’s team press conference, and Osahor unapologetically encouraged the media contingent to watch.

“You guys should go look at it,” she said. “It’s pretty awesome.”

It gives the Huskies a quick weapon to use against a Syracuse team that can be beat in transition, when its press can’t be set. When the two teams squared off in a November tournament, SU yielded only one Osahor 3 in a game she tallied only 10 points.

Head coach Quentin Hillsman alluded to the biggest challenge when facing the junior, ambiguously listed on Washington’s website as a “Forward/Center,” is that she blurs positional lines. Her size allows her to be a defensive presence under the basket, while her touch behind the arc gives the Huskies’ offense a quick boost.

She may be the biggest obstacle in the Orange reaching its’ first national championship. All without ever leaving the ground.

“We didn’t forget about her the first time, (and) we’re not going to forget about her this time,” Hillsman said. “…We know that she’s kind of player when the ball touches her hand, she can make a play with it.”

Published on April 2, 2016 at 8:32 pm

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