April 15, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State Lady Lions seniors Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas) were among the 36 players selected in the 2013 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm. Bentley, who was one of the 12 players in attendance at the WNBA Draft at ESPN Headquarters in Bristol, Conn., was the first to hear her name called by the Atlanta Dream with the 13th overall pick. Greene then added her name to the long line of Lady Lions to be selected in the WNBA Draft when she was selected 26th by the Phoenix Mercury.
Bentley and Greene are the first Lady Lions to be drafted since Tyra Grant was the 24th overall pick in the 2010 WNBA Draft by the Phoenix Mercury. Additionally, Bentley going 13th in the WNBA Draft is the highest pick for a Lady Lion since Tanisha Wright was the 12th overall pick by the Seattle Storm. Additionally, Bentley and Greene are the first tandem of Lady Lion players selected in the draft since 2004 (Jess Brungo and Kelly Mazzante). Penn State has now had 14 players drafted by WNBA teams since 1997, the most in the Big Ten Conference.
A native of Indianapolis, Ind., Bentley capped off a fantastic career with honorable mention All-America accolades from the WBCA and Associated Press. The three-time All-Big Ten first team selection accounted for 14.1 points, 3.5 assists, 3.4 steals and 3.4 rebounds per game as a senior. Additionally, Bentley's 109 steals this season are seventh on the program's single-season charts. Additionally, she finished in the top 15 in the Big Ten in scoring (11th - 14.1), assists (9th - 3.5), free throw percentage (9th - .815) and assist-to-turnover ratio (3rd - 1.8).
Bentley was selected as the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award winner for the nation's outstanding female collegian 5-8 and under, joining Suzie McConnell and Helen Darling as the award winners for the Lady Lions. She will leave Penn State second in school history in steals (325), tied for sixth in assists (567) and eighth in scoring (1,786). Bentley is just the fourth player in Big Ten history to accumulate 1,500 points, 500 assists and 300 steals. She finished her career in the Top 10 in school history in steals (2nd - 325), assists (T-6th - 567) and scoring (8th - 1,786).
Greene quietly became one of the best centers in Penn State's storied history as she became the first player record 1,000 points, 900 rebounds and 200 blocks. Greene became the 35th 1,000-point scorer in school history with her nine-point performance at Minnesota on Jan. 24. She broke the school record for games started and consecutive games started having jumped for the tip in all 131 games of her career. Greene finished her career ranked second in blocked shots (215), fourth in rebounds (994) and 30th in points scored (1,132).
A native of Diboll, Texas, Greene garnered All-Big Ten third team accolades after averaging 9.2 points and 8.5 rebounds. She also registered 39 blocks in her senior campaign. Greene finished fifth in the Big Ten in rebounding, seventh in field goal percentage (.485), 10th in blocked shots (1.2), second in offensive rebounds (3.7) and 11th in defensive rebounds (4.8). Greene earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors for the week ending Jan. 22 for a double-double performance of 23 points and 14 rebounds to go along with two blocks in the Jan. 17 victory over Wisconsin.
The Lady Lions hold several camps throughout the summer. There is a Lady Lion Basketball Camp available for girls of all ages, ranging from shooting camp to elite camp. The 2013 Lady Lion Basketball Camp schedule is as follows: Experience Camp (June 9-11), Elite Camp (June 22-23), Total Package Team Camp (June 20-22) and Games Galore Team Camp (August 2-4). For more information on Lady Lion Basketball Camps, please visit GoPSUsports.com/camps and click on Girls Basketball Camp under Summer Camps.
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