She doesn't think about it much, not even as it's constantly brought to her attention that she is a rookie starting at point guard for the second-ranked North Carolina women's basketball team.

"It really doesn't faze me," she said. "It hasn't crossed my mind."

For the record, the 5-foot-6 native of Cullowhee believes the Tar Heels have more important things to worry about than her classification. But as UNC (32-2), the top seed in the New Orleans Regional, faces fourth-seeded Louisville (26-9) in the NCAA Tournament round of 16 today at New Orleans Arena, DeGraffenreid holds a significant role on a team seeking its third consecutive trip to the Final Four.

And as UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell calls upon her team to show more intensity, to wake from the malaise that beset the Heels in the first and second rounds, DeGraffenreid is the catalyst for their transition style.

When Hatchell starts yelling for the team to "push, push, push," the pace, she will be talking to DeGraffenreid, who in her seemingly unflappable manner has helped a team known for speed to go faster.

DeGraffenreid is joined on the perimeter by fellow freshman teammates Italee Lucas and Rebecca Gray.

"I knew they were going to be good, but they've probably done a little better than I thought they would," said Hatchell, whose team needed replacements after senior All-America guards Ivory Latta and Camille Little graduated.

The fastest player with the ball on the team, DeGraffenreid has played the most minutes per game (30.6) this season, along the way demonstrating the maturity of a more experienced point guard.

The word "poise" is often associated with DeGraffenreid, who was forced into the lineup after senior Alex Miller suffered a season-ending knee injury. DeGraffenreid never appeared scared and has shown no signs of nerves in the NCAA Tournament.

DeGraffenreid is one of five Heels players averaging double figures (11.8 points) and is tied with junior Rashanda McCants with a team-leading 3.2 assists per game and 75 steals.

"She's as good as I've seen," said first-year Louisville coach Jeff Walz, who spent time in the ACC as an assistant at Maryland. "I think she does an outstanding job of leading the team. And she gets the ball into the hands of the people who need to have it."

Those who watched Latta, the colorful guard who rewrote the school's record book, thought there might be several years before another game-changing point guard asserted herself.

"It's never easy replacing a superstar," ESPN analyst Nancy Lieberman said. "[DeGraffenreid's] never missed a beat."

Lieberman gave the freshman high marks for ball distribution, ball-handling, penetration and aggressive defense, while saying her shooting percentage (43.7) and overall ability will blossom with each season.

"There will be a point in time when she'll be in Detroit and I'll be handing her my award," said Lieberman, a former standout point guard whose name is attached to the trophy given to the nation's best point guard.

UNC assistant coach and director of recruiting Tracey Williams-Johnson observed DeGraffenreid at Smoky Mountain High and thought that she might help the Heels sooner rather than later.

"Anytime her team was down, all they needed to do was get her the ball and she was going to take over a game because she knew what to do," Williams-Johnson said. "She's just that kind of player that at the end of the game you want the ball in her hands because she'll know who to get it to."

DeGraffenreid, who wants to be a judge and has the even temperament of someone who hears lots of cases, shows very little emotion on the court. She said it gives her the upper hand. If she's upset, she may raise her eyebrows.

Alphonzo DeGraffenreid, her father and childhood coach, said his daughter has always kept a cool head. He said he never worried because she thinks it's just a game.

"She's the kind of kid if you asked her at the end of the game how many points she's scored, she couldn't tell you," he said. "She's never been worried about stats. She just loves to play."

For obvious reasons, DeGraffenreid admired Allen Iverson as a younger player. She dribbles and cuts cat-quick like the NBA All-Star.

"He was smaller than everybody else," she said. "I've been smaller than everybody else my whole life. I just like how he didn't play like he was smaller."

Not even as a freshman.