366 and counting: Despite the distractions, Tamar Singer continues to dominate the hardwood

The conflicts in the Middle East seem to be a faraway geopolitical struggle, but for one RedHawk, it's a struggle that is inextricably linked to her story.

Twenty-two-year-old Tamar Singer’s story begins far away from the Oxford city limits, in Haifa, Israel, a coastal city that has recently become directly involved in the ongoing struggle. Before she could find her home on the Millett hardwood, Singer fell in love with basketball.

The sophomore point guard’s passion for the court sparked in 2009, when Tamar needed something to do before her mom could pick her up from school. At just 5-years-old, she would begin to play the game that would bring her to Miami.

Singer would play basketball through the end of her senior year at Ironi Hey High School before joining the Israeli Defense Force. During her two year service, Singer coached basketball in her spare time while also representing Israel on the international basketball circuit.

After her military service, Singer looked ahead to what was next. One of Singer’s closest friends Yarden Garzon, a guard at the University of Maryland, told her about what it was like to play college basketball in America.

After the European women's basketball championships in 2023, a nervous Singer would get a call from Miami head basketball coach Glenn Box as he tried to build his first recruiting class as a RedHawk. It only took a week for Coach Box to convince her to sign.

“It was really, really quick,” Singer said. “When you feel it, you feel it. I really liked him as a coach.”

Coach Box believed in Singer’s ability and has started her in every single game she has played in a RedHawk uniform. In a recent press conference, he described Miami’s offensive and defensive game plans as “tailor made for her.”

“[Coach] Box gave me all the opportunities that he could give me,” Singer said. “He was fighting with me, he lost with me, and he won with me. I really appreciate it.”

The trust in his point guard has paid off. Singer sits at fourth in assists in NCAA Division I women's basketball, averaging 7.1 per game. This season, Singer broke the Miami single-season assist record and has already climbed to ninth place in career assists as a RedHawk with 366.

“I know how they like to get the ball and I just find them,” Singer said. “I know where they like to be when they're on the floor, so I try to make their job easier.”

As dominant as she is on offense, Singer’s defensive ability stands out as well. Leading the team in steals, she is just as effective in ending opponents’ possessions as she is extending Miami’s.

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“The thing that separates [Singer] from everyone else is her ability to defend the ball and initiate the defense,” Box said. “Her ability to create havoc is something most programs struggle to have.”

Under Singer’s leadership, Miami women’s basketball has consistently increased its win total each season. The team is having fun and loving the basketball they play.

“I [would] say it’s fun because we’re winning,” said Singer. “It’s always nice to win, but we’re actually playing for each other, and we’re happy for each other. It’s incredible that we’re just playing simple basketball.”

For Singer though, the absence of her close-knit family is at the front of her mind.

“I didn't have my people around me, and in the beginning, it was really, really hard,” Singer said. “I was talking over the phone [to friends and family] for 4 hours every day.”

After the first game, Singer felt alone as her teammates spent time with family and friends in the post-game. Without any family to turn to in person, she approached her strength coach, James Carsey, and asked him for a dad-like hug. That moment clicked for her.

“It’s nice now I have my people, and even the coaches’ kids, they are like my family here,” Singer said. “But if I could change one thing, I’d like to have my family here.”

Throughout her time at Miami, Singer has missed her family and friends back in Israel. The conflict involving her homeland has only continued to expand these feelings. Through it all, Oxford has become a second home for her — full of a new family — where her basketball ability can do the talking.

@themeneghetti

meneghcj@miamioh.edu