LaTaunya Pollard explained

LaTaunya Pollard
Height Ft:5
Height In:10
Birth Place:East Chicago, Indiana, U.S.
Highlights:

Lataunya Pollard Romanazzi (born 1960) is a former college basketball player who played for Long Beach State from 1979 to 1983. With Long Beach, Pollard scored 3,001 points and was the 1983 recipient of the Wade Trophy. During this time period, Pollard played for the American team that qualified for the 1980 Summer Olympics before the United States withdrew from the event. While on the American team, Pollard won silver at the 1981 World University Games and 1983 FIBA World Championship for Women. Outside of America, Pollard played basketball in Europe from 1983 to the early 1990s. Pollard was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001 and Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.

Early life and education

In 1960,Pollard was born in East Chicago, Indiana.[1] Growing up, Pollard tried out for a high school basketball team when she was in grade eight. Upon being chosen for the team, Pollard had to wait a year before she could play as she was under the age requirement.[2] While at East Chicago Roosevelt, Pollard was awarded the 1979 Indiana Miss Basketball.[3] After 93 games, Pollard accumulated 1,739 points. In 1985, Pollard was third for the most points scored by a girls basketball player in Indiana.[4] [5]

Career

In 1979, Pollard started her college basketball career with Long Beach State.[6] During the 1980 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship, her team reached the quarterfinals.[7] [8] Her team also made it to the quarterfinals in the 1981 AIAW Division I event.[9] [10] As part of the NCAA, Pollard's team won the Western Collegiate Athletic Association conference in 1982.[11] That year, Pollard reached 2,000 career points in women's basketball.[12] At the 1983 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, her team reached the regional finals.[13]

During her time at Long Beach, Pollard led the season in points four times and blocks three times.[14] After ending her time with Long Beach in 1983, Pollard had appeared in 128 games and scored 3,001 points.[15] That year, Pollard held the season and career points record as part of the 16 statistics she led with Long Beach.[16] In 2022, Pollard continued to be first in career points record with Long Beach and had remained in first for almost forty years.[17]

Pollard was named most valuable player at the 1979 U.S. Olympic Festival after she scored 82 points in the event.[18] [19] In international events, Pollard scored 72 points at the 1980 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament as part of the American team that qualified for the 1980 Summer Olympics.[20] Pollard did not compete at the Olympics after the United States decided to not participate in the Games.[21] While on the United States team, Pollard won a silver medal at the 1981 World University Games and 1983 FIBA World Championship for Women. In these events, Pollard scored 106 points at the World University Games and 88 points at the FIBA World Championship.[22] [23] Outside of the United States, Pollard began playing basketball in Italy in 1983 and continued to play there until 1991. While competing in Italy, Pollard consistently led in points each season include a 1985 points record of 39.5.[24] [25]

Long Beach State statistics

Source[26]

YearTeamGPPointsPPGFG%FT%
1979–80Long Beach State3466019.451.8%74.5%
1980–81Long Beach State3473321.654.0%68.6%
1981–82Long Beach State2970124.254.1%76.0%
1982–83Long Beach State3190729.352.1%77.1%
Career128300123.452.9%74.6%

Awards and honors

Pollard was on the All-America Team twice for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association during the early 1980s.[27] In 1982, Pollard was a co-recipient of the USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year award alongside Cindy Noble.[28] In 1983, Pollard was nominated for the Naismith Trophy.[29] That year, she won the Wade Trophy and was a finalist for the Honda Sports Award for Basketball.[30] [31]

By 1990, Long Beach retired Pollard's jersey.[32] For hall of fame inductions, Pollard was named into the Long Beach State Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001.[33] [34] In 2005, she joined the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the National High School Hall of Fame.[35] [36]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ninth Pan American Games -- 1983 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150907034844/http://www.usab.com/history/pan-am-womens/ninth-pan-american-games-1983-1.aspx . dead . September 7, 2015 . USA Basketball . 25 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  2. News: Haskell . Ryann . Two of a kind enter Hall . 13 November 2019 . The Times of Northwest Indiana . 11 January 2005.
  3. News: E. Chicago Roosevelt's Pollard Named Indiana Miss Basketball . The Courier-Journal . April 10, 1979 . Louisville, Kentucky . Indiana . D5.
  4. News: Austin girl top career prep scorer . The Indianapolis Star . February 21, 1985 . 38.
  5. News: Graves . Scott . California State To Acquire LaTaunya Pollard . The Times . April 25, 1979 . Munster, Indiana . 49.
  6. News: Pollard Scores 20 in Debut for 49ers . Los Angeles Times . 9 November 1979 . Part III p. 20.
  7. News: Long Beach Women Out of Tourney . The Los Angeles Times . Times Wire Services . March 19, 1980 . Part III p. 10.
  8. News: McLain . Jim . Techsters head north after quarterfinal win . The Times . March 19, 1980 . Shreveport, Louisiana . 1-C.
  9. News: Old Dominion advances to AIAW semis . The Des Moines Register . Associated Press . March 25, 1981 . 4B.
  10. News: Long Beach Women Lose . The Los Angeles Times . March 25, 1981 . Part III p. 6.
  11. News: Roberts . Rich . Long Beach Wins Another Title — It Wasn't Easy . The Los Angeles Times . March 3, 1982 . Part IIII p. 3.
  12. News: Gruppie . Guy . Pollard Scores 2,000 Point as 49ers Win . The Los Angeles Times . March 7, 1982 . Part III p. 12.
  13. News: Hirsch . Alan . ODU Active Host In NCAA Tourney Next Year . Daily Press . March 20, 1983 . Newport News, Virginia . 20.
  14. Web site: 2022-23 Long Beach State Women's Basketball Record Book . Long Beach State University Athletics . March 18, 2023 . 58, 61 . December 7, 2022.
  15. Web site: Pre-NCAA Women's Basketball Records . NCAA . 13 November 2019 . 2.
  16. News: Matsuda . Darryl . Pollard Brings Wade Trophy to West . The Los Angeles Times . April 8, 1983 . Part III p. 14.
  17. Long Beach State University Athletics 2022, p. 48
  18. Web site: Women's U.S. Olympic Festival All-Tournament Teams . https://web.archive.org/web/20220716215337/https://www.usab.com/history/additional-usa-basketball-history/usof-women/womens-us-olympic-festival-all-tournament-teams.aspx . dead . July 16, 2022 . USA Basketball . 24 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  19. Web site: Women's U.S. Olympic Festival Records . https://web.archive.org/web/20220705142043/https://www.usab.com/history/additional-usa-basketball-history/usof-women/womens-us-olympic-festival-records.aspx . dead . July 5, 2022 . USA Basketball . 24 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  20. Web site: 1980 Women's FIBA Olympic Qualifiying Tournament . https://web.archive.org/web/20210802145533/https://www.usab.com/history/national-team-womens/olyq-1980.aspx . dead . August 2, 2021 . USA Basketball . 24 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  21. Book: Guardabascio . Mike . Trevino . Chris . Basketball in Long Beach . 2015 . History Press . Charleston . 9781609499754 . 63 . 24 May 2020.
  22. Web site: Eleventh World University Games -- 1981 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150907024112/http://www.usab.com/history/world-university-games-womens/eleventh-world-university-games-1981-1.aspx . dead . September 7, 2015 . USA Basketball . 24 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  23. Web site: Ninth World Championship -- 1983 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150426092106/http://www.usab.com/history/national-team-womens/ninth-world-championship-for-women-1983.aspx . dead . April 26, 2015 . USA Basketball . 24 May 2020 . June 10, 2010.
  24. News: Munoz . Theresa . Few Fast Breaks : Top Female Basketball Players Finally Have Choice of Viable Pro Career, but It Means Going Overseas . 13 November 2019 . Los Angeles Times . 14 July 1991.
  25. News: McKee . Pat . Scoring another honor . Indianapolis Star . 1 May 2005 . C10.
  26. Web site: 2020-2021 Women's Basketball Record Book. dead. 6 June 2021. longbeachstate.com. 5 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220705184109/https://s3.amazonaws.com/longbeachstate.com/documents/2021/1/4/20_21_Record_Book.pdf.
  27. Web site: Coaches’ All-America . Women's Basketball Coaches Association . August 16, 2024.
  28. Web site: USA Basketball Athlete of the Year Award . https://web.archive.org/web/20150313172943/http://www.usab.com/history/usa-basketball-annual-awards.aspx . dead . March 13, 2015 . USA Basketball . 6 April 2019.
  29. News: Davidson . David . Green added to trophy list . The Atlanta Constitution . February 17, 1983 . 3-C.
  30. Web site: The Wade Trophy . April 10, 2022 . Women's Basketball Coaches Association . en.
  31. Web site: Basketball . The Collegiate Women Sports Awards . August 16, 2024.
  32. News: Wagner . Dick . A Number He Had Hoped Was History . March 18, 2023 . The Los Angeles Times . December 6, 1990.
  33. Web site: LaTaunya Pollard . Long Beach State University Athletics . 6 April 2019.
  34. Web site: LaTaunya Pollard . Women's Basketball Hall of Fame . 6 April 2019.
  35. Web site: Lataunya Pollard Romanazzi . Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame . 6 April 2019.
  36. National High School Hall of Fame 30th Anniversary Commemorative Program 1982-2012. 2012. National Federation of State High School Associations. 16. 23 September 2020.

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