“We are very excited about the addition of Michelle Snow to our roster,” said Silver Stars head coach Sandy Brondello in a statement. “She has always been a player that was difficult for us to stop in the past and she has all the skills that will make her a great asset to our team. At 6′ 5” she is a player who will give us a dominant low-block presence on both ends of the floor as well as helping us to be a better rebounding team. Her mobility makes her a perfect fit for our 2010 campaign.”

The Houston Comets selected Snow in the first round (10^th overall) of the 2002 WNBA Draft, Snow has accumulated averages 9.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.0 blocks per game in 266 career games played. She currently plays in Russia for Dynamo Kursk.

Ivanyi, a native of Hungary, has played five seasons in the WNBA – four of which were in San Antonio (1999, 2000, 2005, 2006) – and averaged 1.4 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 106 career games played. Currently, she is playing in Hungary for MiZo Pécs and helped her team reach the EuroLeague Women Eighth Finals. Ivanyi averaged 11.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.9 steals and 32.1 minutes per game in 13 games played for MiZo Pécs 2010.

The Silver Stars open the 2010 regular season on May 15 with a 7 p.m. tip-off against the visiting Atlanta Dream.

The WNBA Tulsa Shock signed former track star Marion Jones. Although drafted by the Phoenix Mercury in 2003, she never suited up for the team and will be considered a rookie free agent in the league.

WNBA president Donna Orender attended the team’s press conference announcing the signing. Jones, a 34 year-old who gave birth to her third child last spring, had an individual workout with Shock head coach Nolan Richardson on Saturday in Tulsa. He offered a chance to join the team a few days later.

I’m extremely excited to join the team and the WNBA,” Jones said.  “After a lot of thought, I realized this is a great fit for me because of Coach Richardson’s uptempo style of play.  I can’t wait to start training camp and learn more about the city and team I’ll be representing.”

Coach Nolan Richardson planned to put Jones through another workout before making a decision to offer her, but said he saw all he needed in the first workout.

“Watching her go through drills, I saw a player who’s perfect for our system,” Richardson said.  “The one thing I do know is she can run, and any player on my team who wants to be successful needs be able to run.”

Prior to her Olympic career in track and field, Jones starred on the basketball court at Thousand Oaks High School and led the team to a state championship in 1992 before being named the California Division I Player of the Year as a senior.  She attended the University of North Carolina on a basketball scholarship, where she started at point guard and helped the Tar Heels to a 92-10 record over three seasons.  Jones ranks fifth on the school’s career assists list, third in steals and seventh in blocks.  Jones was drafted by the Phoenix Mercury in the 2003 WNBA Draft (3^rd Round, 33^rd overall) but never played for the team.  She won three gold medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics, but was later stripped of those medals because of her admission to using performance-enhancing drugs and consequently served time in prison.

Tulsa Shock President Steve Swetoha said Jones is a great addition to the franchise and is deserving of another chance to succeed in athletics.

“She made some ill-advised decisions in the past, but everyone deserves a second chance to excel at something they love,” Swetoha said.  “The city of Tulsa gave a struggling franchise from Detroit a second chance, and I’m confident it will do the same for Marion.  We couldn’t be happier to have her on board.”

She worked out with San Antonio Silver Stars head coach Sandy Brondello and assistant Olaf Lange this past winter.

“I may not be your typical rookie in this league, but I’ll still bring that rookie energy,” Jones said.  “I’m looking forward to competing against the best female athletes in the world.”

The Tulsa Shock home opener is May 15 against the Minnesota Lynx.

Related:

• Tulsa Shock to sign former track star Marion Jones
• Marion Jones seeking a pro basketball career

Around the Web:

• WNBA’s Shock announces signing of Olympian Marion Jones (Tulsa World)
• Ex-Olympian Marion Jones works out for Shock (Tulsa World)
• Sandy Brondello helps Marion Jones in new career bid (Herald Sun)

Stanford-bound prep star Chiney Ogwumike is the winner of the 2010 Morgan Wootten Player of the Year Award for her accomplishments on and off the court. McDonald’s along with Morgan Wootten, legendary coach and McDonald’s All American Games selection chair, named her the ninth annual winner of the award.

Ogwumike, the three-year all-state selection from Cy-Fair High School in Cypress, Texas, joins Maya Moore (2007), Tina Charles (2006), Candace Parker (2004) and Ivory Latta (2003). Ogwumike won the honor over Bria Hartley (North Babylon High School – North Babylon, N.Y.), Kaneisha Horn (Ramsay High School – Birmingham, Ala.), Natasha Howard (Toledo Waite High School – Toledo, Ohio) and Odyssey Sims (Irving MacArthur High School – Irving, Tex.).

The Morgan Wootten Award is given to the best male and female McDonald’s All American players who exemplify outstanding character, exhibit leadership and embody the values of being a student-athlete in the classroom and the community. McDonald’s established the Award in Wootten’s name to pay tribute to his unprecedented achievements as a teacher and coach. The official presentation will take place at the McDonald’s All American Games awards banquet, March 30 in Columbus, Ohio.

Ogwumike is the top-ranked female player in the 2010 class and a 2008 state championship highlights her many on-court accolades. Off the court, she organized a charity dance event that raised money to help stop child abuse, volunteers for Cypress Assistance Ministries, as well as her church. Ogwumike will attend Stanford  in the fall.

“I am extremely honored and grateful to receive this recognition,” said Ogwumike in a statement. “I’m indebted to everyone who had faith in me to get to this point — from my coaches and teammates to my family, friends and school. My entire basketball experience has been amazing, bringing discipline and leadership into my life.”

The 2010 McDonald’s All American Basketball Games will be played March 31 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The Girls Game begins at 5:30 p.m. ET, and will broadcast live on ESPNU. The Boys Game will tip-off at 8:00 p.m. ET, and will broadcast live on ESPN.

Proceeds from the 2010 McDonald’s All American High School Basketball Games will go to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio. Millions of dollars have been raised since the first Game was played in 1978.

During Wootten’s 43-year career as head basketball coach at DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, Md., he earned a reputation for being an excellent basketball coach and mentor. In addition to his five national high school championship titles and 33 conference championships, Wootten had the unique distinction of having every DeMatha senior player receive a four-year college scholarship during his final 30 years of coaching.

Now retired, Wootten was the first basketball coach, at any level, to reach 1,200 wins. He is the author of numerous books and is a famed basketball speaker and mentor. Coach Wootten has served as head of the selection committee for the McDonald’s All American Games since its inception in 1977.

Related:

• 2010 McDonald’s All American Basketball Games rosters announced

Big news from coach Richardson tomorrow at 10 am! Watch the news!

Nearly an hour later, WNBA president Donna Orender tweeted that she was in Tulsa.

Just checked in in Tulsa – tuned in to sportsnight Oklahoma on tv and they were previewing the high school girls tournament – gotta love it

Shortly afterwards, news reports revealed that the cryptic message from the Shock was in reference to the signing of disgraced American sprinter Marion Jones who has been working her way back into shape with the hope of starting a pro basketball career.

She trained with the new head coach of the San Antonio Silver Stars, Sandy Brondello and assistant Olaf Lange this past winter. She was in Tulsa recently working out with the Shock’s head coach Nolan Richardson.

The news conference announcing Jones’ signing takes place at 10 a.m. CT in Tulsa.

Jones is no stranger to basketball. She helped North Carolina win the NCAA basketball championship in 1994 when she was just a freshman. She red-shirted her sophomore basketball season to concentrate on track.

She was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2003 WNBA Draft by the Phoenix Mercury.

After admitting in 2007 that she took illegal steroids before the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics, Jones was sentenced to six months behind bars. She began serving her sentence on March 7, 2008. She left prison on September 5, 2008.

The Shock commence the 2010 season May 15 at home against the Minnesota Lynx at Tulsa’s BOK Center.

Related:

• Marion Jones seeking a pro basketball career

Around the Web:

• Ex-Olympian Marion Jones works out for Shock (Tulsa World)
• Sandy Brondello helps Marion Jones in new career bid (Herald Sun)

Post Game Press Conference, Sun Belt Championship Game – Middle Tennessee vs. University of Arkansas-Little Rock, March 9, 2010

From the Sun Belt Conference:

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Alysha Clark scored 48 points, including the winning layup with 1.8 seconds left in overtime, to lead Middle Tennessee to a 70-68 victory over Arkansas-Little Rock in the Sun Belt tournament title game Tuesday.

Clark set the tournament’s single-game scoring record for a third straight game and finished with a three-game total of 132 points. The Blue Raiders (25-5) needed every basket to hold off top-seeded UALR (26-6) and earn their 13th NCAA tournament bid.

The Trojans, who had won 21 straight games, fought back from a seven-point deficit in overtime to tie it on Channon Haywood’s two free throws with 29.4 seconds remaining.

With the shot clock off, Middle Tennessee found Clark, who was guarded under the basket but managed to score with a quick, powerful move.

For two days, Clark had been trading scoring records with UALR’s Chastity Reed. Clark’s 40 points in the quarterfinals Sunday set a tournament mark, which was broken the following day when Reed scored 41 in the early semifinal. Clark answered with 44 in the second semifinal.

Clark easily broke her own tournament record of 92 total points from last year, and her final shot was a typical one. At 5-foot-10, she can score with both hands and doesn’t need much time or space to get a shot off inside. She carried her team for lengthy stretches Tuesday and received just enough help down the stretch to give Middle Tennessee its sixth title in seven years at this tournament.

Middle Tennessee was playing in its eighth straight Sun Belt title game.

UALR led 52-44 with 7:20 remaining in regulation after Reed made a shot from around the free throw line while drawing Clark’s fourth foul. Reed missed the ensuing free throw, and Clark answered with eight straight points to tie it. Brandi Brown then sank a 3-pointer — her first points of the game — to put the Blue Raiders ahead 55-52, and Clark’s two free throws pushed the lead to five.

The Trojans fought back, though. Asriel Rolfe made a 3-pointer and then a driving layup to tie it at 59, and neither team scored for the rest of regulation. Middle Tennessee’s Jackie Pickel missed from the perimeter in the final seconds of the second half.

Middle Tennessee led 68-61 in overtime before UALR made one last push, scoring seven straight points.

Middle Tennessee beat UALR by 20 in last year’s title game, but the Trojans won by the same margin when the teams played earlier this season.

The Blue Raiders not only snapped UALR’s long winning streak, but they extended their own to 16.

After a weekend of six games marking the end the regular season for Big 12 teams, the seeding for this week’s tournament in Kansas City, Missouri is set. Unbeaten Nebraska leads the pack at No. 1 followed by No. 2 seed Iowa State, No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 4 Texas A&M

The entire list:

1. Nebraska
2. Iowa State
3. Oklahoma
4. Texas A&M
5. Texas
6. Baylor
7. Oklahoma State
8. Texas Tech
9. Kansas State
10. Kansas
11. Colorado
12. Missouri

First round games will be televised by Metro Sports in Kansas City, while the quarterfinals through the final will be aired on FSN.

The Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship returns to Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo., for the ninth time in Conference history. Kansas City hosted the first six women’s postseason events from 1997-2002, in addition to the 2005 and 2008 championships.