Miller's up to his old scoring habits

The former Little Falls All-time leading scorer is averaging 24.7 points a game for the Huskies

Media Credit: Adam Masloski Husky junior co-captain Nate Miller goes for a lay-up against Westcon in preseason game earlier this season.

Some kids say the craziest things. Little Falls head basketball coach Kevin Jordan knows of one instance very well.

One cold, winter night almost a decade ago, a middle school boy was shooting a basketball, working on his jump shot in his driveway when his neighbor, a member of the Little Falls Flyers basketball team pulled up to his house. This was no ordinary night, however. No, on this night, Flyer ball player, Ryan Laager, had just become the all-time leading scorer of Little Falls basketball.

Unphased, the young boy yelled over to his neighbor "you better enjoy it now Laager, because I will break your record when I get up there!" That kid, six or seven years later, did just that, becoming the Little Falls all-time leading scorer with 1,680 points.

That little kid has now grown up and no longer needs to shoot hoops in his driveway on cold winter nights. That kid now practices his jump shot in the warm confines of Halenbeck Hall. That kid is five-foot-nine junior co-captain Nate Miller.

"Nate has always loved playing the game of basketball," Jordan, who coached Miller in Little Falls said. "He is what I would call a master of perfection when it comes to learning a skill."

Since the age of five Miller has had a basketball in his hands, among other assorted pieces of sporting equipment.

Through high school, Miller was a four-sport athlete and an eight-time letter winner playing football, golf and baseball in addition to basketball. His dad Rod has always helped him fine tune his skills.

"My dad was one of my coaches (growing up). He would always have (me and my sister) around the gyms, the football fields and baseball fields," Miller said. "My dad has helped me a lot, just his willingness to be there, his general support, just being there helps."

The sports gene seems to run in Miller's family, as his dad was an athlete at Southwest State University in Marshall. His sister also played hoops for the University of St. Thomas in the Twin Cities.

Coming up through high school, Miller always knew he wanted to play basketball at the collegiate level. After playing at different tournaments during the year, AAU basketball during the summer months and getting letters from college coaches during his junior and senior years in high school, Miller figured basketball provided the best chance for him to play at the next level. He stated that picking the right school came down to the right program for him and his family. Obviously, with Little Falls being just a stone throw away from the campus of SCSU, it meant Miller's family would have more chances of watching his games, and he liked the Husky coaching staff: head coach Kevin Schlagel and assistant Matt Reimer.

"It was close to home so my parents could come watch, but the coaching staff helped, too," Miller said. "Coach Schlagel is a great guy. The players on the team are generally good people and good players come into this program too."

Playing his first game in Halenbeck before donning the Husky red and white might have had something do with his decision. Miller got his first official taste of Halenbeck in 2001, when Miller's Flyers played in a packed house against ROCORI in a Minnesota State Basketball Regional Final game. Knowing the atmosphere and knowing a little bit of what it would be like helped.

"You come out on the floor and think this is where you'll be playing next year, it was fun to get used to playing on that court," Miller said.

While playing at Little Falls, Miller also gained a little recognition on the court. He was named a three-time All-Conference player and the St. Cloud Times All-Area Player of the Year.

"They're both nice honors to have," Miller said. "You can't achieve those two honors without great teammates and a lot of credit goes out to them, the staffs and being from the area. It's nice to have."

Miller's time in a Husky uniform has been time well spent.

He had a stellar first-year season in which he averaged six points per game and was a 50 percent three-point shooter. He scored a then-career high 18 points in two games. In his sophomore season, he continued to be a bright spot for the Husky backcourt. He played in all 31 of the team's games and averaged nine points per game on his way to helping the Huskies win the 2003 NCC Wells Fargo Championship, as well as being named to the 2003 Wells Fargo Finals All-Tournament team.

This season, with the losses of standouts Forrest Witt and Jason Kron, Miller has seen his time on the court expand enormously. Six games into the 2003-2004 campaign, the physical education major is averaging 24.7 ppg and is a 96 percent free throw shooter going 26 of 27 at the charity stripe. November 22, Miller arguably had his best collegiate game, scoring a career-high 41 points. Included in that was a stellar 16-of-16 performance at the line in a 97-91 overtime thriller.

"Nate has been a tremendous player for us since the first day he set foot on the court." Schlagel said. "He has fun playing the game of basketball and his enthusiasm is infectious. He has a smile on his face every time he's out there and everyone on the team feeds off of that."

Jordan agrees stating that everything Miller is doing now is what he did in high school. Jordan went on to state that Miller has always been a special player and has been able to perform up to his coaches expectations.

"It is great to see him off to a fine start while playing a bigger role on this year's team. That tells me he's getting comfortable in his new role as one of the scorers," Jordan said. "I'm really not surprised at all by his numbers thus far, but I bet a lot of the past doubters are starting to become believers. He sees something or a coach shows him something that will help his game, and he will be out there trying to perfect it. This attribute has helped him become an all-around player, not just a scorer."

Though only in his junior season, Miller has aspirations of becoming a coach after his time as a ball player is done. Miller always returns home every summer to help Jordan with basketball camps and also helps out in the Little Falls summer recreation program.

"I love helping kids and it's just something along the lines of coaching or sports management that I want to go into," Miller said.

Jordan believes Miller has what it takes to be a great coach after he hangs up his sneakers.

"Nate has always enjoyed being with kids. He talks to them whenever he is around them, and makes them feel good about themselves. He has been a great role model to the youth in Little Falls. This genuine concern, combined with the passion he has for basketball, would make Nate a very good coach," Jordan said.

Kids may say the craziest things, but some kids know how to back it up.

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