After an offseason of tumult in Ann Arbor, freshman Syla Swords has steadied the ship

But the moment never overwhelmed Michigan freshman Syla Swords, the top recruit in program history. Against a South Carolina team that will likely once again compete for a national title, she carved the Gamecocks up. She finished the evening with 27 points, 12 rebounds and plenty more eyeballs on her than when the night began.

The Wolverines lost the game, 68-62. On some level, though, that felt secondary. In spite of the defeat, it felt like for the first time in a while, Michigan could breathe. The Wolverines, with an almost entirely new roster, had just gone toe-to-toe with the No. 1 team in the country.

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Few programs have been as consistent as Kim Barnes Arico’s Michigan Wolverines since she took over 12 years ago. She’s the winningest coach in program history and has taken her teams to every NCAA Tournament since 2017-18.

That’s what made this past offseason all the more jarring. Laila Phelia, one of the focal points of the offense the last two seasons, transferred to Texas. Cameron Williams, who averaged 7.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game last season, left for Miami (FL). Barnes Arico also watched as several of her depth players departed as well: Chyra Evans, Taylor Williams, Taylor Woodson and Elise Stuck.

Combined with the loss of Lauren Hansen to graduation, things looked bleak — from the outside at least.

“I think it was an interesting time for Michigan women’s basketball,” Barnes Arico told The Next at Big Ten media day in October, “but I think it really was eye opening and will help with our growth.”

Then came Swords’ double-double against South Carolina, her subsequent 20-point effort against Lehigh and a renewed sense of hope.

“I wouldn’t say I put a lot of expectations on myself in terms of scoring or anything like that going into a game. It’s more just, I want to make a [positive] impact,” Swords told The Next. “Whether it’s my day to go off, whether it’s Jordan Hobbs … I just try and be the best I can to help our team win.”

Swords name dropping Hobbs first among all of her teammates is no accident. In October, Barnes Arico singled out Hobbs as the leader who emerged after the mass exodus of players, looking to build a new foundation.

Swords corroborated her coach’s perspective. That senior stability meshing with young talent has produced a whole new environment.

“I came out of one practice one day and just saw all the ESPN notifications, transfer here, transfer there, and Jordan Hobbs was the first person to call me and just make sure that I was OK, telling me that she was still confident in the program,” Swords said. “Her starting off that culture with the new group of people from the jump — and I’m sure she called the rest of the five freshmen on that day too — really just set a standard of, we’re proud to be Wolverines, we’re proud to say ‘Go Blue.'”

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Perhaps Swords’ strong start to the season should come as no surprise. After all, she wasn’t the highest-ranked recruit in Michigan’s program history by accident. But in a college basketball world that’s more volatile than ever, few things are a given.

Her experience playing for Team Canada in the Paris Olympics this summer elevated her game tremendously as well. As the youngest Canadian to ever play in the Olympics at 18 years old, there was much to learn.

“I played with girls who’ve been playing professional basketball for longer than I’ve been playing basketball my whole career,” Swords said. “Just taking as much as I can to learn and bring that back to Michigan.”

Among her teammates was her now assistant coach, Natalie Achonwa — which has made for both a smooth and occasionally awkward transition.

“We have an interesting relationship now,” Swords joked. “She can talk to me, she swears at me sometimes, but always with good intent, always with good messages.”

In some ways, it’s a welcomed levity in a program that easily could’ve entered the 2024-25 season deflated. But Swords, along with four other freshmen (including Olivia Olson who scored 17 points against Lehigh), have helped reset things and reignite the Wolverines’ mission to play in an NCAA Tournament.

“I tell Coach Arico every day how great a job she does at recruiting not only great basketball players but great people as well,” Swords said. “They just genuinely care about each other and the success of the team. We all have very different personalities, but somehow it all works out.”