Michael Divens and the Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team have certainly come a long way over the past four years.

Divens, a Penn-Trafford graduate, describes his first season at CMU -- a 9-16 campaign -- as "miserable."

But if that 2001-2002 season had some bad days, this season has been rolling in good times.

The Tartans are 11-2, having won a school-record nine games in a row. Divens, a senior guard, has been one of the main cogs, averaging 14.2 points a game and recently becoming the 15th player in CMU basketball history to go over 1,000 points for his career.

"It means something [scoring 1,000 points]. I'm just glad it came this season when we're playing so well," said Divens.

There have not been a lot of winning seasons in recent Carnegie Mellon basketball history. The 14-11 mark the NCAA Division III Tartans produced last year was CMU's first winning campaign since the 1995-1996 season.

Divens said he didn't totally despair after that 9-16 mark his first year. After all, seven of CMU's players that season were freshmen.

"We could see as long as we stayed together and no one quit, we could get better," said Divens.

CMU's starting lineup this season consists of three seniors and two juniors. Four of the five starters average in double figures and the squad is experienced.

But even on a veteran team featuring balanced scoring, Divens' style of play sticks out a bit.

Although he's 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, Divens likes to go inside to score his points and doesn't mind guarding and going up against bigger players. His trademark shot is a left-handed hook from short range.

In the game he went over 1,000 points, an 86-69 win at Brandeis on Jan. 9, Divens spent the afternoon guarding the Brandeis center -- Bryan Lambert, a 6-foot-8, 240-pounder. Divens is second on CMU in rebounding (7.5 a game) and blocked shots (10).

"We're a team of hybrids," said Carnegie Mellon coach Tony Wingen. "We have a 6-2 guy, Divens, who is really a guard but does his scoring in the post. And we have a 6-6 guy, Nate Maurer [15.4 points a game], who scores from the perimeter."

Divens moved toward 1,000 points by averaging 6.6 points a game as a freshman, 11.7 as a sophomore, and 16.6 as a junior.

"Michael always had a knack for scoring, but not always a knack for defense or playing with intensity," said Wingen, in his 15th year as the Tartans' head man. "The last couple years, though, he's become a better practice player, a better defender. He really does welcome challenges. He's been fun to coach -- not always easy, but always fun."

Wingen said Divens' strength as a player is his "knack for scoring."

"Some guys just have an instinct," said the CMU coach. "He has a very quick first step, deceptive moves in the post. He's a unique guy who can score around the basket. He can also score from mid-range -- 12 to 16 feet. And, he can make the open 3-point shot."

At Penn-Trafford, Divens averaged 14.4 points a game as a senior as the Warriors went 16-8. He was also the quarterback on the school's football team, passing for 1,245 yards in 2000 and helping the team to a 9-1 season (7-0 in conference).

Divens' father, Bob, who died when Michael was in 9th grade, played college football at North Carolina State (1971-1974). At first, Michael was going to play both football and basketball at CMU, but just before football practice was to start his freshman year, he decided he would concentrate on just basketball.

"I asked myself 'What can't I live without?' I decided it was basketball," said Divens. "I wanted to play for four years. I knew these might be my last four years of basketball."

Wingen said it's very easy to see Divens' quarterback skills take over on the basketball court.

"There's a toughness there, a little bit of riverboat gambler that a lot of quarterbacks have," said Wingen.

A chemical engineering major, Divens said he's enjoyed the CMU basketball experience. The Tartans play in perhaps the glamour conference of NCAA Division III -- the University Athletic Association. They travel by plane to meet other top academic institutions in big cities such as New York (NYU), Chicago, Atlanta (Emory) and St. Louis (Washington University).

"We get to see these major cities," said Divens. "We travel like a Division I school, stay at great hotels, eat at great restaurants."

On the flip side, Divens said he often spends a great deal of time in those great hotels studying his chemical engineering courses.

It's paid off, as he has a job with PPG Industries lined up once he graduates.

It's also been a worthwhile experience on the basketball court -- the Tartans going from nowhere to thinking of a UAA title (CMU is 3-0 in conference play) and an NCAA Division III tournament bid.

A steady four-year climb helped in large part by a tough 6-2 guard from Trafford.