Spears selected in second round of WNBA draft

The University of Colorado’s star forward Brittany Spears isn’t anywhere close to hanging up her basketball sneakers.

The senior was selected by the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of Monday’s 2011 WNBA draft. She was the 19th overall pick.

“I’m just really excited,” Spears said in a press conference after the selection was made. “I look forward to the opportunity. I still can’t believe it. It’s an amazing feeling right now.”

Spears joins Isabelle Fijalkowski (1994-95), Raegan Scott (1993-97) and Mandy Nightingale (1998-2002) to become the fourth Buffalo to be drafted by the WNBA.

She says she’s shocked and excited, but knows she still has a lot of work to do to cut it in the league.

Spears will head to Phoenix for tryouts on May 15 to try to claim one of the 11 spots on the roster. The regular season starts May 27.

“There’s 13 teams and 11 spots,” Head Coach Linda Lappe said. “That’s not a lot of spots. We’ve already talked about what it’s going to take for her to make a team, and it’s not guaranteed. I think this is an amazing day and an exciting day. Brittany’s worked really, really hard to be in this position and to have a chance to try out for a team. She’s got to enjoy this, definitely.”

The 6-foot-1 California native leaves Colorado with a long list of accolades.

She is the all-time leading scorer with 2,185 points. Her points also put her at seventh on the Big 12 Conference’s all-time list.

Spears ranks second in CU scoring average (17.2 ppg), field-goals made (796) and 3-point attempts (699). She also holds down third place for blocked shots (156) and 3-pointers made (237).

In her final season in a Colorado jersey, Spears ranked third in the Big 12 with 19.2 points and 8.1 rebounds a game. She led the conference in defensive rebounds (6 drpg) and was an All-Big 12 first team pick. She also scored in the double figures in 32-of-34 games this season, scoring 20 or more points 18 times.

In her last collegiate game (the WNIT quarterfinals), Spears tied a career high of 36 points.

Spears said she’s wanted to be in the WNBA ever since the league was formed when she was a little girl.

“This is a dream come true,” Spears said.

Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Marlee Horn at [email protected].