April 19, 2002
NORFOLK, VA. - Old Dominion University's Hamchetou Maiga (Bamako,Mali) was the overall 12th pick in the first round of the WNBA draft by the Sacramento Monarchs. Her teammate Lucienne Berthieu (Rennes, France) went in the second round to Seattle as the drafts 19th overall pick, guard Sharron Francis was selected in the fourth round by Minnesota, and Tiffany Thompson was picked in the fourth round by the defending Champion Los Angeles.
ODU joins Connecticut as the only team to have four players selected in thedraft. Maiga becomes the second Lady Monarch selected in the first round of theWNBA draft. The first was her soon to be pro teammate, WNBA All-Star guard Ticha Penicheiro in 1998 by Sacramento.
Maiga, a 6-1,guard/forward is a three-time All-CAA, All-CAA Defensive selection, and the League's Player of the Year in 2000-01. Maiga averaged 11.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game this season. She netted double figures 25 times this year with a season-high 21 against Delaware. She had ten double-doubles and a season-high 17 rebounds in the Lady Monarchs NCAA Tournament victory over second seed Purdue. A dean's list student and CAA Scholar-Athlete, Hamchetou received her bachelors degree in information systems in the summer of 2001 and is currently working towards a masters degree in business administration. Maiga completed her career with1483 career points and 885 career rebounds.
Berthieu, a 6-3 forward/center was named Player of the Year in the CAA for the third time, averaging 14.0 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Berthieu earned Kodak District II All-American honors and was selected to the NCAA Mideast Regional All-Tournament squad, after missing all of the 2000-01 season due to ACL surgery. Berthieu led the CAA in field goal percentage at .589, scored in double figures 26 times, including a career high 32 points against James Madison. She recorded another 30-point outburst in ODU's NCAA win over third-seed Kansas State. Berthieu registered a career high 19 rebounds in ODU's win over nationally ranked Penn State. Berthieu completed her career with 1382 career points and 734 career rebounds.
The 5-8 Francis, a two-time CAA All-Defensive selection, averaged 7.7 points, 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game. She ranked third in the CAA in steals and fourth in the league in assists. Francis completed her career with 1085 career points, 488 careerassists and 277 career steals.
Thompson, a 6-3 center started 32 of 34 games, averaging 6.0 points and 3.2 rebounds. She hit .417 from three-point range. She scored 11 points and 11 rebounds against North Carolina State and dished out eight assists in ODU's win over #3 seed Kansas State.
The Lady Monarchs under head coach Wendy Larry compiled a 28-6 record,advancing to the NCAA's Elite Eight. ODU currently has four alumni playing andthree alumni as head coaches in the WNBA. They are: Ticha Penicheiro('98) with Sacramento, Adrienne Goodson('88) with Utah, Clarisse Machanguana ('99)now with Orlando, and Mary Andrade ('99) with Cleveland. The former Lady Monarchs who are head coaches in the WNBA are Anne Donovan ('83) with Charlotte andMaura McHugh ('75) with Sacramento. Former Lady Monarchs Head Coach MarianneStanley is the head coach with Washington.