Mekia Valentine (March 6, 1988 – March 26, 2020)[1] was a professional international basketball player. She was recruited by the WNBA and played for the University of California at Santa Barbara Gaucho team.[2]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 6, 1988 Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | March 26, 2020 (aged 32) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Greenoboro Day School Greensboro, North Carolina Dudley High School Suva, Fiji |
| College | Wake Forest (2006–2008) UC Santa Barbara (2009–2011) |
| WNBA draft | 2011: 3rd round, 34th overall pick |
| Selected by the New York Liberty | |
| Position | Forward / Center |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Sport career
editValentine was a 6-foot-4 forward. She began playing basketball in high school with Greensoboro Day School before transferring to Dudley High School for her senior year. She was named 3rd-best forward in the nation by Full Court Press.[3] She was named Dudley's MVP and 3A Conference Player of the Year.[citation needed]
She was a top-25 national recruit and earned ACC All-Freshman Honors in 2007 at Wake Forest University.
When she began playing for UCSB's Gauchos team as a junior, she averaged 12.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game and helped the team make WNIT. The following year, Valentine averaged 11.1 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.7 blocks. She had many of the school's records, including career rebound average (10.5), blocks in a game (11), blocks in a season (120) and season (.620) and career (.595) field-goal percentage.[4] She was named the Big West's Defensive Player of the Year.[5]
In 2011 she was drafted to the WNBA, by New York Liberty.[6] She chose a four-year career in international basketball, playing in Israel, Poland, Germany, and Romania.[7] In 2016 she retired from basketball and pursued nursing. She worked in patient care before transitioning to the private sector.
Wake Forest and UC Santa Barbara statistics
editSource[8]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-07 | Wake Forest | 29 | 170 | 46.8% | 0.0% | 37.3% | 4.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 5.9 |
| 2007-08 | Wake Forest | 30 | 181 | 47.7% | 0.0% | 48.1% | 4.8 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 6.0 |
| 2009-10 | UC Santa Barbara | 30 | 370 | 57.4% | 0.0% | 55.6% | 9.7 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 4.0 | 12.3 |
| 2010-11 | UC Santa Barbara | 31 | 343 | 62.0% | 0.0% | 47.6% | 11.2 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 3.7 | 11.1 |
| Career | 120 | 1064 | 54.8% | 11.1% | 48.9% | 5.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 2.7 | 8.9 |
Personal life
editValentine was originally from Greensboro, North Carolina.[9] She was the daughter of Lisa Meadows Johnson and Jerome Early Valentine III. Her grandmother, Lillian Manns Valentine, adopted her in infancy and raised her.[10]
References
edit- ^ "Mekia Valentine | New York Liberty | Women's National Basketball Association | Yahoo! Sports". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ Patton, Mark (2020-03-31). "Mekia Valentine, former UCSB women's basketball star, dies at 32". Santa Barbara News-Press. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Mekia Valentine - Women's Basketball". Wake Forest University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Mekia Valentine Chosen by NY Liberty in WNBA Draft". UC Santa Barbara. 2011-04-11. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Valentine Nabs Second Weekly Honor". bigwest.org. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "LIBERTY: Mekia Valentine Player Bio". www.wnba.com. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ Noozhawk. "Former UCSB Basketball Standout Mekia Valentine Dies at 32". www.noozhawk.com. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved 2021-05-26.
- ^ "Very Sad News Today:Mekia Valentine(Greensboro Day School/Dudley HS) has passed away at age 32:Tall Basketball Player that played high school, college and pro basketball(Former Pizza Hut Tourney MVP)". Greensboro Sports. 2020-03-31. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Mekia Shanta Valentine March 06 1988 March 26 2020, death notice, USA". United States Obituary Notice. 2020-04-09. Retrieved 2020-04-12.