April 22, 2004
LAS VEGAS - Three players received top honors at the 2004 UNLV Basketball Postseason Banquet held Thursday night. The Lady Rebels were honored for their outstanding season, in which they advanced to the WNIT championship game and finished with the third most wins in school history with 26.
RanDee Henry, Sherry McCracklin, and Sheena Moore were dubbed the "Big Three" during the past season due to their outstanding performances on the court, and that carried over into the postseason awards, as each one was awarded one of three Big Three honors. Henry, received the Big Three "Scorer" award, after leading the Mountain West Conference in scoring for the entire season, and finished with 17.7 ppg, while also finishing second in the league with 8.0 rpg. A junior forward, she was named the MWC Newcomer of the Year, and was a All-MWC First Team Selection, and a Kodak/WBCA Honorable Mention All-American.
McCracklin, also a junior forward, was awarded the Big Three "Rebounder & Defender" honor. She led the nation in rebounding for the first two months of the season, and was named MWC Co-Defender of the Year after leading the conference in rebounding (9.7), blocks (1.4) and finishing third in steals (1.9 spg). McCracklin also averaged 12.9 ppg, and was named both All-MWC First Team, and a Kodak/WBCA Honorable Mention All-American.
Moore, a sophomore guard, was named the Big Three "Clutch-Money Player". She finished third in the MWC in scoring with 16.3 ppg, including an 18.0 ppg average over UNLV's WNIT run, and was the team's top threat from outside, hitting 37 percent from three-point range. Moore was an All-MWC Second Team selection, and was also named All-WNIT.
Several other Lady Rebels were also honored during the night. Freshman guard Kameca Simmons received the team's "6th Woman" award, as she finished her first year on the Lady Rebels sixth in scoring with 5.5 ppg, and added 4.0 rpg. Senior forward Padra Strong was named the Most Improved Player after turning in her most productive season at UNLV.
Sophomore guard Nejlah Clark was named the inaugural winner of the Constance Jinks "Spark Plug" award for the spark she brought to the team when on the court. Junior center Amy Loftus received the Best Student-Athlete award, while senior InFini Robinson, who switched from shooting guard to the point for her senior season, was bestowed with the Lady Rebel Award. Robinson finished her career at UNLV as the all-time leading free throw shooter (87.6%), and lead the MWC for the entire season as well.
UNLV finished the season with a 26-8 record, and a school record 10 MWC wins (10-4, third place). The Lady Rebels advanced to the championship game of the WNIT, winning four games before falling at Creighton in the finals.
