- Ticha Penicheiro
Ticha Penicheiro (full name Patrícia Nunes Penicheiro, OIH,
September 18 ,1974 inFigueira da Foz ,Portugal ) is a professionalbasketball player in the WNBA. She currently plays for theSacramento Monarchs .cite web| title = Ticha Penicheiro Bio at wnba web site| url= http://aol.wnba.com/playerfile/ticha_penicheiro/bio.html|accessdate = 2008-01-09]College years
Penicheiro has played for professional clubs since her young teens, although she did not play at senior level until after she starred in U.S. college basketball at
Old Dominion University .WNBA career
In
1998 , Penicheiro joined the Sacramento Monarchs as a rookie, finishing third in theWNBA Rookie of the Year award voting. She is a four-time WNBA All-Star player. She has twice tied the WNBA's record with 16 assists in a single game. In1999 , she was selected as a WNBA first team player. This was also the year she set her WNBA high in points, with 27 against theMinnesota Lynx . In2001 , she was selected as a member of the WNBA's second team.She had, as of
June 19 ,2003 , 1,027 career points in the WNBA; for an average of 6.8 per game, 1,121 assists; for a total of 7.5 per game, 615 rebounds; for a total of 4.1 per game, and 322 steals, for a total of 2.15 per game.Ticha is the all-time WNBA leader in assists and holds the WNBA record for most steals with 10 in a game.
Penicheiro is well known for her consistently flashy style of play. In 2005 she helped the Sacramento Monarchs win their first ever WNBA championship title.
International career
She is a member of Portugal's national women's basketball team.She also is on the Spartak Moscow Region team, with Tina Thompson, Sue Bird, and Diana Taurasi.
Misc Facts
Ticha is an ardent supporter of the Special Olympics and supports ovarian cancer research, to honor one of her best friends who was diagnosed with the disease.Besides her native Portuguese, she speaks English and conversational Italian.She is an avid collector of watches and clothes.Father, João, was a former basketball player and now coaches an older brother, Paulo, who plays professionally in Portugal.She completed degrees in communications and interdisciplinary studies at Old Dominion.She enjoys listening to R&B music.
Vital statistics
*Position: Guard
*Height: 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)
*College:Old Dominion University
*Team(s):Sacramento Monarchs References
External links
* [http://www.wnba.com/playerfile/ticha_penicheiro/index.html?nav=page WNBA Player Profile]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
