sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Nikki Kesangane McCray-Penson (born December 17, 1971) is the former head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team[1] and a former professional women's basketball player. She played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) for eight seasons. In 2008 after leaving the WNBA, McCray joined the coaching staff as an assistant coach for the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.[2] McCray-Penson was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.

Nikki McCray-Penson

Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Position	Assistant Coach
Personal information
Born	(1971-12-17) December 17, 1971 (age 50) Collierville, Tennessee
Nationality	American
Listed height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Listed weight	158 lb (72 kg)
Career information
High school	Collierville (Collierville, Tennessee)
College	Tennessee (1991–1995)
Playing career	1996–2006
Position	Point guard
Number	15
Coaching career	2006–present
Career history
As player:
1996–1997	Columbus Quest
1998–2001	Washington Mystics
2002–2003	Indiana Fever
2004	Phoenix Mercury
2005	San Antonio Stars
2006	Chicago Sky
As coach:
2006–2008	Western Kentucky (assistant)
2008–2017	South Carolina (assistant)
2017–2020	Old Dominion
2020–2021	Mississippi State
2022-Present	Rutgers (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
As coach: C-USA Coach of the Year (2020) As player: 3x WNBA All-Star (1999–2001) ABL MVP (1997) 2x SEC Player of the Year (1994, 1995) 2x Kodak All-American (1994, 1995)
Stats at WNBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
Medals Women's basketball Representing  United States Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta Team competition 2000 Sydney Team competition World Championship 1998 Germany Team competition

Playing career

A 5-foot-11-inch (1.80 m) guard from the University of Tennessee, McCray was a member of the Washington Mystics, the Indiana Fever, the Phoenix Mercury, the San Antonio Silver Stars, and the Chicago Sky. She was named to three WNBA All-Star teams (in 1999, 2000, and 2001) and scored 2,550 career points. Prior to joining the WNBA in 1998, she was a star in the now-defunct American Basketball League. While playing in the American Basketball League, McCray was named Most Valuable Player for the 1996–97 season.

McCray has also played basketball at the international level. She won gold medals at the 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics, and she participated on America's 1998 FIBA World Championship team.[3] She made a name for herself in women's basketball as a world class defender by shutting down a number of the world's best players.

In 2000, she was named a member of the President's Fitness Council,[4] and was also chosen for the 2000 USA Olympic basketball team.

Coaching career

Previously McCray was an assistant coach at University of South Carolina. She made a new home for herself at the University of South Carolina with a former teammate as head coach, Dawn Staley. Staley said about McCray: "Nikki is hungry for success, and that comes from playing at Tennessee where the coach never settles for anything less than being number one at whatever she's doing. That mentality is instilled in Nikki, and I want people around me like that. She is energetic, confident and engaging – all qualities that you need when you're coaching and recruiting. We spent two Olympic Games together and have shared being successful in the very best arena there is to test yourself."[2] She resigned as head coach at Mississippi State in October, 2021 citing health reasons.[5]

Other work

In addition to her career on the court, McCray also created a name for herself in the realm of community service. In the year 2000 Nikki McCray was hand-picked by President Bill Clinton to be made a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.

In 1999 The Library of Congress selected Nikki McCray to be the keynote speaker for the Women's History Month Address. "We are pleased to have Ms. McCray with us to kick-off our month long celebration of women's history," said Federal Women's Program Manager Jean Parker. "As an employee of the first women's professional basketball team in the nation's capital and through her community service, Ms. McCray is a wonderful role model for young people."[6]

Tennessee statistics

Source[7]

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Year	Team	GP	Points	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1992	Tennessee	31	215	50.0%	20.0%	73.6%	3.7	0.8	1.9	0.0	6.9
1993	Tennessee	32	349	46.5%	0%	72.2%	4.5	1.9	2.7	0.1	10.9
1994	Tennessee	33	537	50.6%	0%	70.3%	7.0	2.5	2.5	0.1	16.3
1995	Tennessee	31	471	49.2%	13.3%	68.0%	5.9	2.6	2.0	0.1	15.2
Career		127	1572	49.2%	16.0%	70.5%	5.3	2.0	2.3	0.1	12.4

Head coaching record

Statistics overview

Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Old Dominion Lady Monarchs (Conference USA) (2017–2020)
2017–18	Old Dominion	8–23	6–10	12th
2018–19	Old Dominion	21–10	10–6	5th	WNIT First Round
2019–20	Old Dominion	24–6	14–4	2nd	Postseason not held
Old Dominion:		53–39 (.576)	30–20 (.600)
Mississippi State Bulldogs (Southeastern Conference) (2020–2021)
2020–21	Mississippi State	10–9	5–7	9th
Mississippi State:		10–9 (.526)	5–7 (.417)
Total:		63–48 (.568)
National champion         Postseason invitational champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference tournament champion

References

External links

• WNBA.com profile
• Coaching profile

На других языках

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- [en] Nikki McCray

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[it] Nikki McCray

Nikki Kesangane McCray, coniugata Penson (Collierville, 17 dicembre 1971), è un'ex cestista e allenatrice di pallacanestro statunitense, professionista nella ABL e nella WNBA.

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[ru] Маккрей, Никки

Никки Кесангане Маккрей (англ. Nikki Kesangane McCray; также известная как Никки Маккрей-Пенсон (англ. Nikki McCray-Penson); род. 17 декабря 1971 года, Коллиервилл, штат Теннесси, США) — американская профессиональная баскетболистка, выступала в женской национальной баскетбольной ассоциации. Она была распределена на драфте расширения ВНБА под третьим номером в команду «Вашингтон Мистикс». Играла на позиции атакующего защитника. По окончании спортивной карьеры вошла в тренерский штаб команды NCAA «Питтсбург Пантерс». В данное же время является главным тренером студенческой команды «Олд Доминион Леди Монархс».

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