Women's basketball timeline - University of Kentucky Athletics

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RETIRED JERSEY—VALERIE STILL
UK’s All-Time Leading Scorer and Rebounder, UK Hall of Fame Charter Class
UK Great Valerie Still
Some programs have a once-in-a-lifetime player
who serves as a standard for all future student-athletes.
An exceptional personality. An outstanding
role model. A great basketball player. For Kentucky,
that player is Valerie Still.
Although Still played long ago (1979-83), she
remains the “Top Cat” in UK women’s basketball
annals. She was honored as such on January 12,
2003 with a jersey retirement ceremony at halftime
of the Alabama game. She became the first
female letter winner in any UK sport to have her
jersey retired.
Still is the leader among all Wildcats (men or
women) for career scoring (2,763) and rebounding
(1,525). She was a consensus All-American.
She led the program in scoring four straight seasons
with a career average of 23.2. At one point
during the 1981-82 season, she led the nation in
both scoring and rebounding before finishing second
in both categories (24.8 ppg and 14.3 rpg).
She led the Cats to their highest national
ranking (4th) in 1983 and helped UK roll up a
30-game home court win streak from 1980-82.
In 1983, Still led the sixth-ranked Cats to an
80-66 upset over powerhouse Old Dominion
before a record crowd of 10,622 in UK's
Memorial Coliseum.
After leaving Kentucky, Still had a successful
career in the Italian Professional League. While in
Italy, Still was a television actress and hosted her
own TV show, "Still Basket." She is also an
accomplished print model and a professional caliber
jazz, pop and concert pianist.
Upon her return to the United States, Still
became a charter member of the American Basketball
League for Women and was a two-time MVP
of the ABL Championship Series. Still later played
for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA before
retiring from basketball. She also was an assistant
coach for the Orlando Miracle for two seasons.
Still returned to Lexington to complete her
degree in animal sciences and graduated with
honors in 2001. She went on to earn a master’s
degree in African American and African studies
at The Ohio State University and is currently
working on a doctorate in sports and humanties
from there as well.
In September 2005, Still was inducted into the
charter class in the newly created UK Athletics
Hall of Fame. She was the only female of the 88
inductees.
Still lives in Powell, Ohio with her son,
Aaron. Along with teaching and completing her
doctorate at OSU, Still runs The Valerie Still
Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that
works to ensure that girls are encouraged and
instructed to develop their talents.
HONORS
(Above:) UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart and UK President Dr. Lee Todd Jr. present Still
with her Hall of Fame honor in September 2005.
(Below:) Still was presented with the key to the city of Lexington in 2003 by Mayor Teresa Isaac.
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