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COACHES LADY VOLS THE NCAA THE SEC HISTORY RECORDS UNIVERSITY
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the first time in her career. She joined the L.A. Sparks’ Candace Parker (2008) as former Tennessee Lady Vols to have reaped league MVP honors after finishing as the award’s runner-up in 2003, 2009 and 2010. She was also among the top three for the honor on five occasions and among the top five in balloting after eight different seasons. Catchings led the Fever to the top seed in the Eastern Conference, averaging 15.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists, and became just the sixth player in WNBA history to reach the 5,000-point mark and the first with 5,000 points, 2,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists in a career. She was also the top vote-getter for the WNBA All-Star game in 2011 for the third time in her pro career and is the WNBA’s all-time steals leader with 775 thefts. In 29 regular-season games for the eventual WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx, Hornbuckle averaged 1.1 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.6 assists per contest in 7.2 minutes per game. She registered a seasonhigh-tying seven points in just eight minutes during a conference semifinal match-up against the Silver Stars. Parker was cruising along for the Sparks into her seventh game in 2011 before tearing the meniscus in her right knee against the Liberty on June 26. She eventually returned to action against the Dream on Aug. 26, scoring 15 points and nabbing 10 boards in 26 minutes. She finished out her fourth season in the league averaging 18.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 17 games played. Parker posted a seasonhigh 32 tallies on 13-of-25 shooting from the field against the Mercury on Sept. 3. In helping the Storm to the conference semifinals, Robinson, in her fifth full season in Seattle and eighth in the WNBA, registered a careerhigh 3.8 points and 3.9 rebounds per contest over an average of 17.1 minutes in 34 games. She recorded a double-double of 14 tallies and 10 boards against the Sky back on July 19. After three years with the Lynx, Anosike made the move to Washington for the 2011 campaign. In 34 contests for the Mystics, she posted averages of 7.0 points and 7.2 rebounds, while logging 27.2 minutes per night. Her overall carom average was good enough to rate eighth overall in the WNBA, while Anosike also recorded 2.4 offensive rebounds per contest to rank ninth in the league. She posted four doubles-doubles for Washington with a stand-out effort of 29 points and 13 boards in a 98-90 win over Atlanta on June 9. Ely put up 3.1 points and 2.2 rebounds over 33 games for the Fever, joining Bobbitt (3.9 points, 1.7 assists per contest over 31 games) and Catchings in helping the Fever to the Eastern Conference title.
REVIEW
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OPPONENTS
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OUTLOOK
The 2011 WNBA season began with 11 former Lady Vols sporting the uniforms of a WNBA franchise. The 11 former Tennessee basketball stars were employed by nine different teams, including Nicky Anosike (Washington Mystics), Angie Bjorklund (Chicago Sky), Shannon Bobbitt (Indiana Fever), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever), Shyra Ely (Indiana Fever), Alexis Hornbuckle (Minnesota Lynx), Kara Lawson (Connecticut Sun), Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks), Ashley Robinson (Seattle Storm), Michelle Snow (Chicago Sky) and Sidney Spencer (New York Liberty and Phoenix Mercury). Since the WNBA burst onto the scene in 1997, the University of Tennessee has produced 31 WNBA players and 12 first-round draft picks. The 2003 selections of Kara Lawson and Gwen Jackson as the No. 5 and No. 6 picks, respectively, moved UT ahead of Uconn at that time for the most ever first-round draft picks. Overall, Tennessee and the University of Connecticut tied for the most active players in the WNBA in 2011 with 11 each. Five of the eight teams that made the postseason displayed at least one former Lady Vol on roster with Indiana boasting three. Minnesota, which earned the West’s top seed by posting a league-best 27-7 overall record, featured Hornbuckle. The Lynx stormed through the playoffs with a 7-1 overall record on the way to the 2011 WNBA title. Indiana, led by Catchings, Ely and Bobbitt, won the Eastern Conference crown before being eliminated by the No. 3-seed Atlanta Dream in the conference finals, 2-1. Phoenix, boasting former Lady Vol Spencer, entered the playoffs as the third-seed in the Western Conference and was knocked out by the Lynx in the conference finals. Lawson’s Connecticut Sun and Robinson’s Seattle Storm reached the conference semifinal round of the playoffs but were eliminated by the Dream and Mercury, respectively. The three teams that did not have a former Lady Vol on the roster were eventual WNBA finalist Atlanta and conference semifinalists and fourthseeds New York and San Antonio. For the first time in her illustrious 10-year pro career, Catchings was chosen as the WNBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2011 after helping Indiana to a 21-13 regular season mark. The 6-1 forward picked up 292 total points, including 21 first place votes, in picking up the award for
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