Report courtesy Victoria Dyson, Nottingham Wildcats

 

Former High Point University (HPU) women's basketball standout, 22 year old Shamia Brown, has signed a contract to play for the Nottingham Wildcats - their first overseas signing for the new season. 

 

Shamia is only the second player from HPU in North Carolina, USA, to sign an overseas contract in the university’s Division I era.

“I am very excited to have this chance to travel abroad and play professionally in England,” Brown said. “This is something that I have wanted to do since I started playing basketball. I can't wait to experience a different culture and play in a professional league. I am just ready to get over there and start practicing.”

Brown finished her HPU career as the Panthers' Division I leader scoring with 1,590 points and rebounds of 745. She is just the third player in the school's Division I era to eclipse both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.

“I cannot begin to describe how happy I am for Shamia,” HPU women's basketball head coach De Unna Hendrix said. “I truly believe that good things happen to great people and she is most definitely one of them. Shamia will go down as one of the best players to come through here and she is an even better person. There was no doubt in my mind that this was in her future.”

Brown led High Point to one of its most successful seasons in 2011/12, helping the Panthers to a 20-13 overall record and a berth in the Women's National Invitational Tournament. Brown also led High Point in scoring, averaging 16.2 points per game, and was second in rebounding with 6.8 per game. The forward earned All-Conference honours for the second-straight season, when she was named first-team ‘All-Big South’.

 

Chris Prior, head coach and chairman of Nottingham Wildcats Arena, said: “I am very pleased to welcome Shamia as part of the Nottingham Wildcats basketball family. Her versatility as a player will be a great asset to the success of our team, as will her strong character which will be vital for building a great team ethos on and off the court. I look forward to working with her and supporting her continued success at Nottingham Wildcats.”