April 9, 2024

NYU shooting guard Erica Miller is the quintessential basketball gym rat. “I love the intensity of the game,” the Northern California native offered. “The practice, the lifting, the grind, the shooting for sure, and even the pain.” That relentless drive, paired with a silky three-point touch paid off big time this year for the 5’ 8” guard. She played a key role in the Violets magical run to an undefeated season and the 2024 Division III National Championship.

Now, as she prepares to finish the first of a two-year Master’s Degree in environment and energy policy at the School of Global Affairs, the new EcoAthletes Champion is ready to grind again. This time, though, it will be in a new venue. “Nothing will be achieved of real consequence on major climate action without meaningful policy,” she stated. “I know that policy changes take time. I’m ready to do the work in energy or sustainable development.”

Miller’s love for basketball and her journey to a NCAA title began in third grade, with her dad as her coach. “I had a short attention span back then,” she recalled. “Basketball is high energy and fun and the hard work drew me in and kept my attention. From that point on, I was never far from a basketball court.”

And much of her time on the court is spent shooting the three.

“I made my first three in a game in sixth grade and it felt good,” she rhapsodized. “So, then I worked on shooting threes off stagger screens, step backs, and especially in transition — hitting a three on a fast break is a dagger to the opponent and I loved it.” Her three-point shooting proficiency drew the attention of local coaches starting in middle school. Miller played for an eighth grade AAU club while in seventh and made her high school’s varsity team as a freshman. And college coaches started to reach out to her as a sophomore.

“I played in the Nike summer circuit my junior year behind some great players who would go on to top Division I programs,” recalled Miller. “I realized that they were at another level, so I had to adjust my sights. There was no doubt in my mind that I could play in college, I just had to find the right fit.”

That fit turned out to be 3,000 miles away in New York City’s Greenwich Village at D-III NYU. “Everything about the school felt right,” she said. “I loved New York City as well as the way NYU played basketball, with an up-tempo style.”

Her on court career got off to a slow start; a broken leg short circuited her freshman season and the COVID pandemic eliminated her sophomore campaign. So, as a junior, Miller and the Violets were ready to rock when the 2021-22 season came around. “This was such a great year because we didn’t know how good we were and neither did the teams we played,” she said with a smile. “We were unselfish, played hard and surprised everyone, winning our league for the first time in 20 years, making it to the NCAA D-III Elite Eight.”

Pressure was ramped up in 2022-23 as the Violets could no longer sneak up on anyone. NYU, ranked #3 in the preseason, was ready for the pressure. “There was a target on our backs and every team we played gave us their best shot,” stated Miller. “We fought through adversity, avenging the two losses we suffered early in the season. Again, we got to the Elite Eight and again we lost, falling to on the road to Transylvania (Kentucky), who ended up winning the title. In the locker room that night we committed to not only getting to the Final Four but winning the whole thing.”

Miller; now a grad student, was part of a laser-focused, veteran 2023-24 team that featured All American junior guard and fellow EcoAthletes Champion Belle Pellecchia, senior National Player of the Year Natalie Bruns, and stellar grad transfer Morgan Morrison. Expectations were through the roof as the Violets were ranked #1 nationally heading into the season. 

The team more than lived up to the billing, winning the National Championship in a dominant undefeated, 31-0 campaign. All but two of NYU’s wins, aided by Miller’s strong 38 percent three-point shooting, were by double digits. It was a season for the ages.

“Since the beginning of my time here, I believed we could do something very special,” she related. “This season? I knew we would go all the way and so did my teammates. Sure, there are a lot of great teams out there. But we had this special mix of talented players and devoted coaches all striving for the same goal. That we came up a bit short the last two years heightened our resolve to do what we could to win the championship this season — make that extra pass, take that charge, grab that loose ball — and we did it. Committing to give your all to the team and having it finally payoff is just SWEET!”

Miller’s commitment to making climate action her career traces back to her high school days in California. “I took marine biology, learning about biodiversity loss and coral reef degradation,” she noted. “It was a real eye opener and got me started on this journey.” When she arrived at NYU, Miller started out as a sports business major but that didn’t feel quite right. Then as a sophomore she took environmental economics and loved it. Minoring in environmental studies was a precursor to her master’s in environment and energy policy. Now, she is on a path that will bring her champion’s pedigree to the worlds of climate policy or clean energy.

EcoAthletes CEO and founder Lew Blaustein is certain that Miller will make a real difference on the #ClimateComeback.

“Erica’s tenacity, intelligence, and passion, so evident on the hardwood, will serve her well in the climate policy arena,” he enrthused. “And that will benefit all of us. We are thrilled to have her as an EcoAthletes Champion!’

You can follow Erica on Instagram