Jennifer Harris picked 20th by Chicago Sky in WNBA

BOSTON, Mass. -- Washburn’s Jennifer Harris, the 2005-06 WBCA/State Farm Division II Player of the Year and MIAA Most Valuable Player, became the conference’s first player selected in the Women’s National Basketball Association Draft when she went in the second round as the 20th overall pick to the expansion Chicago Sky. Harris will report to a rookie orientation in Chicago on April 20 and start camp on April 23.

Harris was the first player from a Kansas or Missouri school selected in the 2006 draft, and only one Big 12 Conference player, Baylor’s Sophia Young (fourth overall to San Antonio), went before her. She also was the first non-Division I player selected.

Harris is also trying to become the second player in MIAA history to play in the WNBA, which enters its 10th season in 2006. Emporia State’s Aneta Kausaite was signed to the WNBA player pool in 1998 and assigned to the Detroit Shock, where she played 10 games and scored 14 points in her only season. Like Chicago, Detroit was an expansion team when Kausaite played for the Shock.

Harris was named the National Player of the Year by the Women’s Division II Bulletin, the Daktronics, Inc., NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball All-America team selected by members of CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Year as well. Harris took part in the "Night of Stars" at the NCAA Division I Final Four on Saturday, April 1 and scored 13 points off the bench.

Harris led the Lady Blues and NCAA Division II in scoring at 24.2 points per game. He was named the player of the year in both the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association and the South Central Region.

Harris went over the 20-point mark 15 times this past season including a then-career-high 33 points against No. 2 ranked Drury on Dec. 17. She scored a school-record 39 points against Northwest Missouri on Jan. 4, with 22 points in the second half against the Bearcats. Against No. 3 Emporia State on Jan. 4, she scored 20 points in the final 9:23 of the game finishing with 28 in the 72-70 win in Emporia. She scored 30 points in the second half of WU’s 75-71 win over CMSU in MIAA championship game and 30 of her 33 points against CMSU in the second half of the NCAA South Central Regional Semifinals. Harris became the 19th Lady Blue to go over the 1,000 point mark with her 28 points against Missouri Southern. Her point total now finished at 1,314 points, which is 10th on the all-time chart.

Her 797 points this season, which is the most in Washburn single-season history and a new MIAA’s single season record passing Melissa Grider’s of Missouri Southern who scored 737 points during the 1995-96 season. Harris also broke MIAA records this season for the most field goals made and attempted in a season.

In 2004-05, the junior led the Lady Blues in scoring with 14.4 points per game and earned South Central Regional Most Valuable Player, as well as honorable mention All-MIAA and named to the MIAA All-Tournament Team helping the Lady Blues to the 2005 NCAA Division II National Championship.

Chicago opens the season with a pair of home preseason games on May 9 against the Los Angeles Sparks and May 12 against the Seattle Storm in Chicago at the UIC Pavilion.

The regular season starts May 20 with a trip to Charlotte to play the Sting.