St. John's University Athletics
Pair Of Transfers Join St. John's Women's Basketball
8/9/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Aug. 9, 2010
QUEENS, N.Y. - St. John's women's basketball team welcomes transfer players Tesia Harris and Mary Nwachukwu to the Red Storm. Both players will sit out the 2010-11 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
"Tesia and Mary are great additions to the St. John's women's basketball program," said St. John's women's basketball head coach Kim Barnes Arico. "Both will help us as we work toward sustaining ourselves as a top-20 program for years to come. They are exceptional students as well as basketball players. Tesia and Mary will play a key role this year in helping prepare our active players for another run deep into the postseason. We are excited for them to take the court for the Red Storm in the 2011-12 season."
Harris is a 6-0, veteran guard who was a three-year standout at Delaware. The Dix Hills, N.Y., native averaged 10.5 points per game over 90 games for the Blue Hens. She gives STJ with another outside scoring threat as she shot .336 (116-of-345) from beyond the arc over the past three years. As a junior in 2009-10, Harris played 31 games with 29 starts and averaged 12.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. She paced Delaware in scoring as a sophomore in 2008-09 when she averaged 13.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per contest over 30 games (29 starts). Harris was a key contributor during her 2007-08 freshman season with the Blue Hens, playing in 29 games (12 starts) and averaging 5.4 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
"Tesia can shoot the ball exceptionally well," Barnes Arico said. "She fills a need of ours as a strong perimeter 3-point shooter who will extend the defense and open things up for the great inside slashing game of our guards and Da'Shena Stevens. Tesia will not only help our team on the offensive side of the ball, but her length on defense will pose a challenge for opposing teams as well."
Before her collegiate basketball career, Harris starred at Half Hollow Hills West High School and averaged 19.0 points, 15.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 4.0 blocks as a senior. All-Star Girls Report rated her as the 14th-best swing guard and the 104th-best player in the country. She was a Street & Smith All-American and an all-county and all-state honoree in 2006-07. Harris was named to Newsday's All-Long Island Team in 2006 and 2007. As a sophomore she led St. John The Baptist to a league championship.
Nwachukwu comes to St. John's after one season at Boston College. The 6-2 forward looks to be a force in the paint for the Red Storm with her long frame and strength under the basket. As a freshman in 2009-10, the Dighton, Mass., native played in 19 games and averaged 1.5 points and 1.1 rebounds. She was a very efficient from the field, leading BC with .706 field-goal percentage (12-of-17).
"Mary brings great size and athleticism as a face-up post player who can knock down the open jump shot as well as battle physically inside," Barnes Arico said. "Her versatility and presence on both ends of the court will be invaluable to our team throughout BIG EAST and tournament play. We cannot wait to get her on the court."
Nwachukwu was a standout for Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School in North Dighton, Mass. She was tabbed as an adidas Top 50 player and selected for the Boston Herald Dream Team and the Boston Globe Super Team as a senior and a junior. The Taunton Gazette, Sun Chronicle and Fall River Herald also named Nwachukwu to their respective all-star teams. As a senior, she averaged 23.5 points, 18.2 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game. She finished her high school career with 1,590 points.
Harris and Nwachukwu join junior college transfer Raven Fields and incoming freshmen Briana Brown, Keylantra Langley and Zakiyyah Shahid-Martin as St. John's 2010-11 newcomers.
