READFIELD — Christine Miller’s career accomplishments are virtually unmatched at Maranacook Community High School.

The senior center scored over 1,200 career points, second behind only Toby Martin on the school’s all-time list. She won back-to-back Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B Player of the Year awards the last two seasons and led the Black Bears to their first KVAC championship this year. Her crowning achievement was leading Maranacook to the first regional title in the school’s history and its first appearance in a state championship game.

Miller did all of this even as opposing defenses locked in on trying to stop her night after night. She did it by sharpening all of the tools in what was already a versatile skill set and became an even better all-around player, while making those around her better in the process. For her efforts and accomplishments, Miller is the Kennebec Journal Girls Basketball Player of the Year for the second year in a row.

The 5-foot-11 Miller averaged 17 points and seven rebounds while also leading the team in assists and steals. Those numbers actually dipped from last year, but it was because Miller’s supporting cast was eager to take some of the pressure off of their best player.

“We all had a lot more confidence this year,” Miller said. “We were a little bit older, a little more experienced. We knew what to expect. If it was a close game we always felt like we would win.”

The Black Bears went into the season knowing getting everyone more involved at both ends of the floor would be the key if the Black Bears were going to take the next step after reaching the Western C semifinals last year. So Miller did what she could to help her teammates along, whether it was boosting junior Catherine Sanborn’s confidence running the point or fellow senior Liz D’Angelo’s boldness in the paint.

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Miller said D’Angelo’s emergence inside, in particular, allowed her to use more of the floor.

“It made it a lot easier on me,” she said. “I knew I wouldn’t have to be inside all of the time. This year, I got to experiment with my game and play outside more.”

While her teammates put in the work to maximize their contributions, Miller spent the off-season continuing to work on her foot speed and her already dangerous outside shot to become a more well-rounded offensive threat.

Her father, Ben, an assistant coach for Paradis the last two years and Christine’s middle school coach, helped her with advice or just by being there to rebound the ball. Miller also inherited an understanding of the game that few players possess.

“Christine is just a very smart all-around basketball player,” Paradis said. “She doesn’t just play one position. She can play many, depending upon how teams played us. If they were bigger, I could move her outside to give her more range to work in.”

Miller did perhaps her best work when it mattered most.

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In a critical mid-season game against Medomak Valley, she tied the game three different times in the final 30 seconds of regulation or overtime and scored 32 points before fouling out. When the Black Bears had a chance to clinch the No. 1 seed in Western C, she took over in the third quarter and scored 24 points to help them rally to a win at Gardiner. She increased her scoring average to over 20 ppg in the postseason. In the first state championship game in the school’s history, she set a state championship record with five 3-pointers and poured in a game-high 31 points before fouling out late in their 59-51 loss to Houlton.

Paradis saw her best player come through time and time again in the biggest games throughout her career.

“Even as a freshman, nothing seemed to rattle her,” Paradis said. “I’ve been coaching a long time and she is by far one of the best mental players I’ve coaches. She loves to compete. She loves to try and make things happen and see if other people can stop her.”

“When the game is more important or there is more on the line,” Miller said, “I get a deeper determination than just a normal game.”

Miller will follow in her brother Seth’s footsteps and enroll at Emmanuel College to study biochemistry. She will also play basketball and hopes her burgeoning perimeter game can secure her significant playing time as a freshman.

Wherever college takes her, Miller already has left behind an unmatched legacy at Maranacook.

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“It’s not just what she did for us her senior year. It’s what she’s done for the Maranacook girls basketball program,” Paradis said.

Randy Whitehouse — 621-5638

rwhitehouse@mainetoday.com

Twitter: @RAWmaterial33


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