|
Itoro Coleman is in her second season on the Penn State staff. She joined the Lady Lions after four seasons as an assistant coach at her alma mater, Clemson University.
"Itoro is an outstanding assistant, one of the nation's best," Washington says. "She is an outstanding recruiter and her effect on this program will be evident as we continue to bring in strong recruiting classes. She is an excellent teacher and understands how to motivate and energize the players. She also has a very keen basketball mind and contributes mightily to our game preparation. She has a wonderfully positive disposition and is truly an invaluable member of our staff."
At Penn State, Coleman serves as the recruiting coordinator and is the guards coach. Additionally, she is responsible for opponent scouting and is the liaison for athletic communications and marketing.
In her first season at Penn State, Coleman was instrumental in the development of Brianne O'Rourke and Mashea Williams. The duo each registered career-high performances in the upset win over #10 Duke. The pair also combined to outscore the entire Michigan State team in the second half (24-21) in a key road win for the Lady Lions on national television.
Coleman also guided O'Rourke to third team All-Big Ten honors. O'Rourke also led the conference and was 51st nationally in assists last season.
As the guards coach with the Clemson Tigers, Coleman developed two All-ACC guards in Chrissy Floyd and Lakeia Stokes. The pair also earned Kodak Regional All-America accolades. She was also helped Clemson secure its first nationally-ranked recruiting class in 2003-04.
Coleman secured the commitment and signing of South Carolina Player of the Year LeLe Hardy, who went on to garner All-ACC Rookie team honors, as well as young All-America accolades in 2006-07. Hardy led the ACC and was fifth in the NCAA in 2006-07. Coleman was also responsible for recruiting Christy Brown, an ACC All-Rookie team selection, and D'Lesha Lloyd and Tasha Taylor, who were Clemson¹s top two scorers in 2006-07.
Prior to her time at Clemson, Coleman served as an assistant coach at Butler from 2000-02 and had a stint as a student assistant coach at Liberty University for the 1999-00 season.
As a player for Clemson, Coleman garnered Kodak District II All-American accolades, defensive All-American honors and was named an honorable mention Associated Press All-American in her senior season. Coleman, who was a three-time All-ACC performer, led Clemson to ACC Tournament championships in 1996 and 1999, claiming the Tournament MVP trophy in 1999. She ranks in the Top 10 in Tiger history with 1,409 points, 459 assists and 265 steals. Coleman was also selected to the ACC's 50-year Anniversary Team in 2002 and to the Silver Anniversary team that recognized the top players in ACC Tournament history.
Coleman will be inducted into the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2008 along with her former head coach Jim Davis and six other Tiger athletic standouts.
Coleman continued her career after college in the WNBA, playing for the Indiana Fever in 2001 and the Houston Comets in 2003. She also participated in the Pan Am Games for Team USA, as well as several appearances in international competition as a member of the Nigerian National Team, including the 2006 FIBA World Championships where she led the world tournament in assists. Coleman accounted for 15 points with four three-pointers against the Team USA juggernaut at the FIBA World Championships. Coleman also played in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece where she captained the Nigerian National Team to its first-ever Olympic win.
Coleman earned her bachelor's degree in speech and communication from Clemson in 2000. She and her husband, Harold, have a daughter, Jada (4).
|
|
|||||||||||||||||