By David Steinle
When the LSU Lady Tigers took the floor at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center for their home opener against Florida Atlantic in late November, the crowd assembled may not have recognized the player wearing number 20, which for the previous four years has been worn by guard Kisha James.
Lady Tiger fans need not have worried. It was none other than Kisha James in the familiar number 20 jersey, as she scored nine points in her first home game in nearly a year as LSU cruised to an easy 88-55 victory over Florida Atlantic. James averaged 4.4 points and 4.6 assists per game in helping coach Sue Gunter‘s team start 5-0 and reach the number two spot in the December 2 Associated Press poll, the highest ranking in 29 seasons of Lady Tiger basketball.
The difference was in James’ hairstyle. Rather than sporting the long, flowing locks that had been her trademark for the previous four seasons, the Pineville native had a close-cropped, curly head of hair.
The hair that wasn’t on James head anymore was likely making someone else much happier, as James donated her excess hair to Locks of Love, an organization that takes hair and makes it into wigs for cancer patients who have lost their own hair because of chemotherapy. Locks of Love first came into the public consciousness following the shooting rampage at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999, when it was discovered one of the victims of the shooting rampage, Cassie Bernall, had planned to donate her hair to cancer patients.
James isn’t the first LSU athlete to make this selfless donation, as All-American softball pitcher Britni Sneed cut her long blond locks last March.
“It was an opportunity to give back to the community, and I like to do things for the community,” James said. “I cut 16 inches off, and I could have kept it, but I really wanted to do something for people who really needed it.”
Giving back to the community is nothing new for the fifth-year senior from Pineville who was named Miss Basketball as Louisiana Prep Player of the Year in 1998. James was named to the Southeastern Conference’s Good Works Team in 2002, a team that recognizes one player form each of the 12 SEC institutions for their outstanding contributions to community service and the quality of life in their community.
James realizes that wearing an LSU uniform not only means living up to a high standard on the basketball court, but also living up to a higher standard off the court as well.
“I try to do the special things to be a good model for society, and I’m grateful to be recognized by the SEC,” James said. “Coach Gunter stresses to have pride in being a Lady Tiger, because we will be recognized wherever we go.”
There may not be another athlete on the LSU campus that understands misfortunate and heartbreak better than James. Since her arrival in Baton Rouge, James had endured three major injuries, including two major reconstructive surgeries on her left knee, that would have forced most athletes to give up the game they love and concentrate on their studies.
Despite these setbacks, James realizes that her hardships have been minor compared to the grave fear and struggles that cancer patients endure every day in their uphill battle to beat the United States’ leading killer.
“I know that cancer patients go through a lot of hard times, and that’s one reason I decided to donate my hair,” James said. “I hope that I was able to contribute (my hair) to someone who really is deserving.”
When James came to LSU in the fall of 1998, the Lady Tigers had made just one NCAA Tournament appearance in the previous seven seasons, but along with fellow recruit De’Trina White, seniors Katrina Hibbert and Latsaha Dorsey and budding stars in sophomores Marie Ferdiand, Angelia Crockett and April Borwn, Gunter and LSU were on their way back to the elite of women’s college basketball.
James was part of this ascent in 1998-99, backing up Dorsey on an LSU team that went 22-8 and reached the school’s second Sweet 16 in the last three years. But it was during the Lady Tigers’ greatest victory in program history that James’ unfortunate string of luck would begin.
In LSU’s 72-69 upset of three-time defending national champion and top-ranked Tennessee, James broke her left foot when she was run over by the Lady Vols’ all-world superstar, Chamique Holdsclaw. James would return valiantly to record five assists and a steal against Notre Dame in the second round of the NCAA tournament, but the victory over the Fighting Irish exacted a heavy price, and she played sparingly as the Lady Tigers bowed to Louisiana Tech in the regional semifinals in Los Angeles.
“It seemed like everything started to turn around for LSU women’s basketball my freshman year, and I was glad to be a part of it,” James said.
The loss to the Lady Techsters proved to be James’ last official game action for 21 months. Her sophomore year ended before it began, as she tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee in an exhibition game and underwent surgery in December of 1999.
James watched from the bench as the Lady Tigers reached the Elite Eight for the first time since 1986, falling to eventual national champion Connecticut in the East regional final after giving the Huskies their toughest game of the NCAA tournament.
“It was very hard to sit on the bench, knowing I couldn’t contribute on the floor,” James said. “But I was proud of my teammates, because we fought as hard as we could.”
James returned as a redshirt sophomore to start 10 games and help LSU win 20 games for the sixth time in the last seven years, reaching the second round of the NCAA tournament before a tough loss at Purdue. However, the injury bug was waiting to bite again for her junior season.
It came in the midst of her best season as a Lady Tiger, as James had taken over the starting point guard role and recorded a double-double against Tennessee-Martin early in the season.
But in a recurring theme for the Lady Tigers of 2001-02, James tore the ACL in her left knee for the second time, leaving her as one of five LSU players who would succumb to season-ending injuries.
As it has turned out, James’ injuries may have been a blessing in disguise. Had James remained healthy, her eligibility would have expired following last season. Instead, James is one of two fifth-year seniors on a club that features two pre-season All-America candidates in Aiysha Smith and Temeka Johnson, as well as 2002 national high school player of the year Seimone Augustus.
“I knew if I came back for my fifth year, I could be part of a championship team,” James said. “I feel great and I feel this is our year to win the national championship.”
Making this year more special for James is the fact that White is also back for a fifth year. The 1999 national Freshman of the Year was sidelined last year with a stress fracture in her right foot and recurring back injuries.
“DeTrina and I have been through some ups and downs together,” James said. “I know that DeTrina is working hard, and I am too, because it’s what we have to do to lead this team.”
Nothing would be better for James than to end her LSU career by fulfilling a dream, and that is to play in the Final Four, which will be in Atlanta in April.
“The opportunity to play in the Final Four has always been a dream,” James said. “My first dream was to play college basketball, and now that I’m here, my dream is to win a national championship.”
One goal of James’ has already been fulfilled, as she earned her kinesiology degree in May, and is currently enrolled in LSU graduate school.
“Coach Gunter stresses that if you play here, you’re going to earn your degree, and I was fortunate to earn mine in four years,” James said. “We not only have an athletic team, but we also have a smart team, and we show it on the court.”