As Alissa Pili nears end with Utes, her 'positive role model' approach has left mark on Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — As Alissa Pili walked out of the tunnel of the Huntsman Center Thursday afternoon, she held the hand of her youngest sister. The young girl donned pigtails and had a small T-shirt that featured a picture of her big sister on the front.

Pili looked down to her and jokingly asked: "Do you want me to sign it, too?"

There was no response.

It didn't matter; it was a simple moment in which the youngest Pili got to spend time with one of the top women in collegiate basketball — her sister. She almost certainly doesn't even know how big of a deal her older sister is in the sport; it's just pure love and admiration.

It's little moments like that, though, that shows the range and versatility of the veteran big — from fierce competitor on the court to a compassionate older sibling looking out for ones that look up to her, or to those that have supported her along her journey from her native Alaska.

Pili is no stranger to the love and adoration of people flocking to see her dominate in a game she loves. From the time she was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year in her first season at USC to being named the Pac-12 Player of the Year after a historic and monumental first season at Utah, her fame has only grown.

Everywhere she goes — home or away — Pili is swarmed by various groups of people wanting a chance to meet and interact with their favorite player. She's an icon to so many.

But none of that has changed Pili or the impact she wants to have on the lives of those who have supporter along the way. After all, it's all that support that's allowed her to succeed — outside of her actual talent.

And as she looks back on a roller coaster career that at one point left her in an unhappy state with the sport she once loved and later rekindled it in a move to Utah, she recognizes it's all part of the journey. The bad times defined her as much as the good.

As she prepares to play her last game at the Huntsman Center — barring a potential opportunity for Utah to host the NCAA Tournament — Pili hopes she's been able to leave her mark on the university in a positive way as a "role model."

"Not only just leaving my mark as a player, but as a person, and just giving back to everybody who supported me along the way, because without them, I wouldn't be here," Pili said to KSL.com. "All the fans and supporters that I've gained along the way, it just means a lot to me. And just leaving here, I want to make my mark when I make my impact on all my people from my background and everybody in Utah, and everybody who reps Utah."

It's safe to say she's accomplished that task.

But amid all the adulation and constant pressure that comes with being a star of the sport, Pili hasn't lost touch with how far she's actually come. Nothing reminds her of that more than when a raucous crowd cheers her on each time she hears her name called in the starting lineup.

Pili said she still "gets chills" each time, though she admits Saturday's senior day starting lineup announcement may be the most emotional of her career.

"I can't even imagine. ... Man, I don't know," she said, trying to predict that emotional scene. "I think it's gonna be crazy. I'm gonna have a lot of family here, too, so it's gonna be a bittersweet moment for me and my family."

But it's a good emotional response, because it's an appreciation for her time at a place that helped rekindle her love of the sport, while also propelling her into what is expected to be a future in the WNBA.

"Shoot, it's been everything for me," Pili said about her time at Utah. "Just ever since I've gotten to Utah, my life has just progressively gotten better, and my game has gotten better. I feel like I'm just living, like, doing things the right way and just doing things better. It's impacted me very much in a positive way, and I'm just grateful that I got the chance to get a fresh start, and that it turned out to be this good.

"I'm just very fortunate to have coaches and teammates that are very genuine and caring people; they've been a big part of my success here."

The job isn't done just yet for Pili or a Utah team that still sees a deep run in the NCAA Tournament as a realistic possibility — with Pili largely the central figure to Utah's opportunity to make such a run.

And though Pili is hyper focused on maintaining that goal and helping her team have success in March and further, it's difficult to not think about the next step.

"I think about it a lot," Pili admitted. "And that's honestly another — like something else that's put some pressure on me, but I try to just stay in the moment. It's hard not to think about your future, but I'm just excited to see where I end up and what team decides to take a chance on me. I'm just going to — like I did when I came to Utah — I'm just going to prove myself all over again, and just work my way up. So I'm super excited for the future."

But first, a regular-season finale against Washington Saturday, and then a Pac-12 Tournament slate next week in Las Vegas — and a recognition for a player that has helped transform Utah basketball into a formidable and worthy contender in a highly-competitive conference.

"What can you say about Alissa Pili that hasn't already been said," Utah head coach Lynne Roberts said, admitting that she's not ready for Pili's time to end just yet. "I think just her commitment to our program and to becoming the best version of herself, as a coach, that's the good stuff; that's why you do what you do."

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