Dec. 11, 2006
LAS VEGAS - Erica Helms, Kalie Scanlon, and Fanny Tirtiaux have signed national letters of intent to play for the UNLV Women's Basketball team starting in the fall of 2006-07, head coach Regina Miller announced on Monday.
Helms, a 5-7 point guard of Antioch, Calif., is a four-year starter who helped Deer Valley to the state championship as a freshman, and to two Nor-Cal championship titles. A three-time Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-American, Helms has earned all-league honors as well all three years thus far. She reached 1,000 career points in her junior year, during which she averaged 19 points, 3.2 steals, three assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game.
"Erica has the potential to make an immediate impact in our program," said Miller. "She has the ability to hit the open shot, dribble penetrate and score through contact, as well as dish to the open player on offense. Her quickness and defensive savvy will provide a spark to our style of play."
Scanlon, a 5-9 shooting guard of West Salem, Ore., is a two-time Valley League Player of the Year for West Salem High. Twice named first-team all-league, Scanlon was also a third-team all-state selection as a junior after averaging 18 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. She also led West Salem to back-to-back league championship titles, and to the state playoffs the last two seasons.
"Kalie is a versatile guard with size, and we feel she will be a good fit in our system," said Miller.
Tirtiaux is the first foreign recruit for UNLV since Petra Glasser and Linda Frohlich from the 2001-02 squad. Standing 6-1, she can play at both guard positions and small forward as well. A native of Brussels, she averaged 6.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.3 steals per game this past summer while playing for the Belgium National Team in the U18 European Championships.
"Fanny has a big upside to her game, and I'm excited that she will have the chance to further develop here in our program," said Miller. "She is a big guard with the ability to shoot from behind the arc, and she also sees the floor well from the point position."
