June 5, 2008

LAS VEGAS - Nikki Blue has been named women's basketball assistant coach at UNLV, head coach Kathy Olivier announced on Thursday.

Blue played under Olivier for four seasons at UCLA (2003-06) and was a two-time Associated Press and Kodak/WBCA honorable mention All-American. One of just five players in conference history to be named All-Pac-10 all four years (all first-team selections), Blue finished her career at UCLA fifth on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,797 points and was second in assists (602) and third in steals (325), which is also the second-highest in Pac-10 history.

Blue was a second-round draft choice (19th overall) of the Washington Mystics in the 2006 WNBA draft, and was in the top 10 among rookies during the 2006 season in both assists and free throw percentage. She played in 30 of 34 games last year for the Mystics and during this past offseason played overseas in Turkey, before returning back to the Mystics in April for her third year on the team. She graduated from UCLA in 2006 with a degree in history.

"Nikki was a great player for me, and she really relates well to people," said Olivier. "I can't say enough about her WNBA and overseas experience, and what that will bring to our staff and team. She is very much looking forward to beginning her coaching career. While at UCLA, she truly was a coach on the floor. Nikki has a natural coaching ability and I'm very happy she will get her start here at UNLV."