WNBA legend and two-time Olympic gold medalist DeLisha Milton-Jones has been promoted to head coach of the Pepperdine University women’s basketball program, Director of Athletics Dr. Steve Potts announced today.
Milton-Jones retired from playing professional basketball in the summer of 2016 and joined Pepperdine as an assistant coach for this past season.
“DeLisha had an amazing collegiate, professional and Olympic basketball career,” said Potts. “She is a natural-born leader and has an unparalleled passion for the game. DeLisha’s commitment to Pepperdine’s Christian mission, to the academic well-being of student-athletes and to building a championship caliber women’s basketball program make her a perfect fit for us.”
She will be the seventh head coach in the program’s history. Pepperdine has made four NCAA Tournament appearances, and has had 13 postseason berths of any kind.
“I first and foremost want to thank God for this wonderful opportunity,” said Milton-Jones. “I also want to thank President Benton, Dr. Steve Potts and Karina Herold for entrusting me with such a prestigious honor of being captain of this ship. I am honored and excited to be the person to take this program to new heights.”
Milton-Jones played 17 seasons in the WNBA and established the league’s career record for games played with 499. She also ended her career with the ninth-most points in WNBA history (5,571), the fifth-most steals (619), sixth-most rebounds (2,574) and 15th-most blocks (339).
She was named to three WNBA All-Star teams and helped the Los Angeles Sparks win back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002. The 6-foot-1 forward averaged 11.2 points and 5.2 rebounds in her WNBA career.
Milton-Jones was also a long-time member of the U.S. National Team, highlighted by gold medals at the 2000 and 2008 Olympics. She won a pair of FIBA World Championships with Team USA (1998 and 2002) and a 2007 Tournament of the Americas title as well.
Milton-Jones also spent time playing overseas, competing in Russia, Italy, Spain, Czech Republic, Turkey and South Korea. She was a two-time Euro League champion and ranked third for most points scored in Euro League history. She spent a total of 16 seasons abroad, in which she was named the best foreign player twice and league MVP in numerous countries.
She played four collegiate seasons at Florida, earning SEC Player of the Year as a senior in 1997. Milton-Jones also took home the Wade Trophy and the Honda Sports Award as the nation’s top player that same season. She was a first-team All-American and a two-time All-SEC honoree, leading the Gators to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
http://www.pepperdinewaves.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/032917aaa.html
