Penn State women’s basketball head coach Carolyn Kieger announces the addition of two-time All-American and first round WNBA draft pick Shenise Johnson as an assistant coach on her staff. Johnson brings Division I collegiate playing experience as a four-year letterwinner at the University of Miami and professional basketball background as a player in the WNBA for the nine seasons. She has also represented the United States as a member of the 2009 USA U19 Team that won a gold medal at World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand.
“We are thrilled to welcome Shenise Johnson to our Lady Lion staff,” said Kieger. “As a former collegiate standout and WNBA veteran, Shenise brings a wealth of knowledge, leadership and high-level experience to our program.”
Kieger and Johnsons’ paths first crossed when Johnson was a student-athlete at Miami from 2008-12 during which time, Kieger served as an assistant coach for the Hurricanes.
Kieger said, “I had the honor of coaching Shenise during her college career and now to work along side her as a colleague is a full-circle moment. Her competitive spirit, integrity and passion for developing young women make her a tremendous addition to our staff and an invaluable resource for our student-athletes.”
Throughout her time at Miami, the Henrietta, N.Y. native compiled 2,262 points, 1,020 rebounds, 556 assists, 401 steals and 90 blocks in four seasons at Miami. She sits third all-time in total points and seventh in career scoring average in the Hurricanes’ record book. The standout player also holds the all-time Miami women’s basketball career steals record. Johnson made an immediate impact from the minute she stepped on campus, starting in all 131 games of her career, the most any player has started in a Canes uniform. She began collecting accolades her freshman campaign, landing on the ACC All-Freshman team as the only player in Division I to lead her team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals during the 2008-09 season. She continued her early success through her sophomore year, earning a spot on first team All-ACC as well as the ACC All-Defensive Team. That season, she was also named to the Naismith Trophy Midseason List and was named a State Farm All-Region Nominee.
Johnson’s junior campaign in Coral Gables was her breakout season, being named an All-American by four different entities as well as securing the ACC Player of the Year title along with first team All-ACC honors for the second-straight season. She averaged a career best 19.6 points per game and 8.3 rebounds per contest throughout her third collegiate season. Johnson rounded out a standout college basketball career with a final remarkable season for the Hurricanes. She landed on five different All-America lists her senior campaign including WBCA first team, WSBWA first team, Associated Press second team, NetScouts.com and College Sports Madness as well as earning her third first team All-ACC recognition. Johnson was one of 15 players named a Wooden Award Finalist during her final college basketball year.
Her playing career did not end in college, earning the fifth overall pick in the 2012 WNBA Draft, selected by the San Antonio Stars. Throughout her nine seasons in the professional league, Johnson spent three with the Stars, after which she played for the Indiana Fever for five seasons, one of which she was sidelined due to injury. She finished her career with the Minnesota Lynx for the 2020 campaign. Johnson played in a total of 205 games in the WNBA and averaged 8.2 points and 3.6 rebounds per game throughout her eight seasons.
Before hanging up her basketball shoes to pursue coaching, Johnson played overseas in Slovakia, Israel and Turkey.
Upon retiring from the “W”, Johnson returned home to serve as the Coordinator of Player Development for the Canes in 2020-21 and was hired as an assistant coach ahead of the 2022 season. During the same year, she was also inducted into the UM Hall of Fame. During her three seasons as a coach in Coral Gables, she helped the team to an Elite Eight appearance in 2023 while mentoring four All-ACC Team members.
Johnson also coached in the inaugural Unrivaled Season as an assistant coach for Rose Basketball Club. She helped guide the team to win the inaugural Unrivaled Championship this year.