By ROBERT CESSNA
Eagle Columnist

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OKLAHOMA CITY -- It was a long bus ride for Morenike Atunrase to the Los Angeles airport after Texas A&M's season-ending 59-47 loss to George Washington last year.

Atunrase didn't score a point in 24 minutes, missing all eight shots in the second-round NCAA Tournament game at the Galen Center. She hadn't played much better in a 58-50 first-round victory over Texas-Arlington with four points and three turnovers.

It was downright sad.

Atunrase had been the Aggie women's basketball team's poster player as a freshman and sophomore. Coming back from L.A. at the end of her injury-plagued junior season, she might not have made the team picture's front row. She broke her left foot, then suffered a high sprain on her right ankle, her game limping down the final stretch of a lost season. Atunrase averaged a mere six points a game over the final 10, shooting under 30 percent from the floor and less than 25 percent from 3-point range.

Things looked so bleak for Atunrase that even her senior season had as much doubt as hope in it. There was a chance she might lose her starting position to incoming freshman Tyra White, a McDonald's All-American.

That became more of a reality when the stress fracture in Atunrase's right leg was slow to heal. She missed the first nine games of the 2007-08 season after doctors inserted a titanium rod into her leg to strengthen it.

She came back four games earlier than expected but with a noticeable limp. Atunrase struggled for more than a month, but the Aggies needed her on the court. White had suffered a season-ending knee injury in the opener, and senior perimeter players Katy Pounds and LaToya Gulley had to take medical redshirts because of injuries.

Through the struggles, Atunrase gradually improved. So did A&M. Her rejuvenation coincided with an Aggie hot streak, for A&M has come out of its 1-4 start to the Big 12 season to reach the Sweet 16 for only the second time in school history.

A&M has won 11 in a row and 15 of its last 16, and over that stretch, Atunrase is averaging 11.8 points a game, shooting 42.5 percent from the field and a solid 40 percent (23 of 57) from beyond the arc.

More than anything else, she looks like her old self.

"I can tell [the difference]," Atunrase said. "The big thing is my footwork."

Atunrase has settled into her role as A&M's sixth man, running the floor with no hint of injury the way she did her sophomore season. She also credits associate head coach Vic Schaefer for helping make her a defensive force again. With the program's career record in blocks (174) under her belt, she also is approaching milestones in rebounds (495) and steals (198).

But it's her offense that's keyed A&M's late-season surge heading into Sunday's Sweet 16 matchup with Duke.

A&M head coach Gary Blair calls Atunrase the team's "Instant Offense" or "Miss Fix It." She is 26-of-50 shooting in the postseason, including 10 of 14 on 3-pointers.

Looking like a maroon blur, No. 21 flew around the court for 53 minutes last weekend in the first- and second-round games in Baton Rouge, La. She scored 32 combined points, pulled down eight rebounds, didn't commit a turnover and helped the Aggies to a pair of lopsided victories -- all off the bench.

"The X factor is No. 21," Duke head coach Joanne McCallie said. "She's an incredible player. [She] can shoot off the pass, has range, and she has a great deal of confidence right now."

Atunrase said her only goal during rehabilitation was to become the player she had been.

Luckily for A&M, she might have exceeded those expectations.

• Robert Cessna's e-mail address is robert.cessna@theeagle.com.

TEXAS A&M WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

NO. 2 TEXAS A&M VS. NO. 3 DUKE

NCAA REGIONAL SEMIFINALS

WHEN/WHERE: 6 p.m. Sunday at Ford Center in Oklahoma City

TV/RADIO: ESPN2, Ch. 28/KZNE, 1150 AM

RECORDS: A&M (28-7), Duke (25-9)

TEXAS A&M-DUKE LINEUPS

NO. 2 TEXAS A&M (28-7)

NAME POS. HT. CLASS PPG RPG

Takia Starks G 5-8 Jr. 16.8 4.5

A'Quonesia Franklin G 5-3 Sr. 7.7 *4.7

Patrice Reado F 6-0 Sr. 8.1 4.7

Danielle Gant F 5-11 Jr. 15.0 7.2

La Toya Micheaux C 6-3 Jr. 3.6 5.2

NO. 3 DUKE (25-9)

NAME POS. HT. CLASS PPG RPG

Chante Black C 6-5 Jr. 14.0 7.0

Abby Waner G 5-10 Jr. 10.1 *3.9

Joy Cheek F 6-1 So. 9.7 5.3

Wanisha Smith G 5-11 Sr. 9.4 3.2

Jasmine Thomas G 5-9 Fr. 8.1 2.7

*assists per game

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