April 29, 2004
LAS VEGAS - Brittney Thomas has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the UNLV Women's Basketball team starting in the fall of 2004-05, head coach Regina Miller has announced.
Thomas, a 5-7 point guard and native of Carson, Calif., spent the past season playing for Cerritos College (Norwalk, Calif.), and was named South Coast Conference Player of the Year after averaging 17.0 points and 4.5 assists per game while leading them to a 21-9 overall record. An all-state JC player, Thomas set a school single-game scoring record with 39 points this year, and also scored 36 in another game, the third-highest in Cerritos history. She was named Tournament MVP of the San Diego Mesa Tournament, and also named to the College of the Sequoias All-Tournament Team. Thomas spent her freshman season at Xavier, where she appeared in 10 games and averaged 1.1 ppg for the team as they finished 20-10 and advanced to the 2003 NCAA Tournament.
A standout at both Bishop Montgomery High (1999-2000) and Artesia High (2001-02), Thomas was a four-time All-Suburban League First Team selection, as she led her teams to the CIF and league title each season. Her senior season, she averaged 26 points, five rebounds, and five assists, and was named CIF Division 3AA Player of the Year, Suburban League MVP, and First Team All-State. Thomas was a three-time First Team All-CIF honoree, and was second team as a freshman
"Brittney will fill in the void at point guard with the graduation of InFini Robinson, and we think she'll do an outstanding job in running and directing the team on the court," said Miller. "She's a smart player and is also a very good shooter from outside, which should keep the defenses honest when playing us. Brittney brings not only leadership both on and off the court, but also the experience of playing in the NCAAs, and she can help give our current players the knowledge of what's needed to accomplish our goal for next season of making the NCAA Tournament, as we have just one returning player that has played in it before."
UNLV returns four starters and 12 players for the 2004-05 season, after finishing 2003-04 with a 26-8 record, tied for the third-most wins in school history, and a first-ever appearance in the WNIT championship game.
