#3 Marie Ferdinand Season 2023-24
2001 Kodak All-American
2001 Naismith Finalist
2001 Second-Team All-American (AP, Women’s Basketball Journal)
2001 First-Team All-SEC (coaches (unanimous), AP)
2001 Shooting Guard of the Year Finalist (ESPN the Magazine)
2001 Pre-Season All-American (Street & Smith Magazine)
Louisiana Player of the Week (Jan. 22, 2001)
National Star of the Week (Dec. 18, 2000 – womenscollegehoops.com)
SEC Player of the Week (Dec. 18, 2000)
2000 USA Women’s Select Team (Jones Cup Gold Medal Winners)
“Marie Ferdinand is about as complete a player as any coach could ask for. She is what most coaches envision a ‘two’ guard to be. She is cat-quick with great leaping ability, her floor speed is extraordinary, and her decision-making capacity has improved every year. Her athleticism allows her to do some things that are hard to believe until one actually sees her perform. Without a doubt, Marie is one of the most gifted players I have ever coached, and she is one of the premier perimeter players in the country.”
– LSU head coach Sue Gunter
Post LSU Career:
Was the first-round pick of the Utah Starzz (now the San Antonio Silver Stars) in the 2001 WNBA draft as the eighth overall selection … Selected as a WNBA All-Star in 2002, 2003 and 2005 … Named to the WNBA Select Team that earned the Silver Medal in the 2003 FIBA World Cup …In five seasons with the Silver Stars she ranks among the Top 10 in numerous Silver Stars all-time-Top 10-categories … Is first on the Silver Stars all-time- Top 10 list in steals (227), ranks third in points (1,912), field goals made (657) and attempted (1,565); second in free throws made (536); fourth in assists (356) and in games played (146) and ranks sixth in rebounds (490) … In her WNBA career she has played in 146 games earning 136 starts, averaging 13.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.56 steals in 31.2 minutes per game.
Senior Season (2000-01):
Established herself as one of the top players in the nation … Became just the fourth player in LSU history to earn Kodak All-America honors … Named first-team All-SEC by the coaches and the AP, second team All-America by Women’s Basketball Journal, a Naismith Finalist and a finalist for the Shooting Guard of the Year award presented by ESPN the Magazine … Leads LSU in scoring, assists, steals and minutes played while being second in rebounds … Ranked third in scoring (20.7), fourth in field goal percentage (51.1), eighth in assists (3.93), first in steals (3.14) and first in minutes (37.5) in the SEC in conference games … One of only three players in LSU history to record at least 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 200 steals in a career … Started 93 consecutive games to end her career, every one since her sophomore season, and scored in double figures in 35 straight, the third longest streak in LSU history … She leaves as the Lady Tigers all-time leading scorer in NCAA Tournament history … Scored 20 points or more on 18 occasions this season, and broke the 30-point plateau three times, including a career-high 34 at SMU and at Purdue … Against the national runner-up Boilermakers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, she set an LSU NCAA Tournament record with 34 points on 10-of-17 shooting and a 14-18 performance from the free throw line … Scored 10 points in the final 2:43 against Arkansas to rally LSU to a victory over the LadyBacks … Recorded 20 of her 25 points in the second half to help the Lady Tigers erase a 15-point second-half deficit against No. 6 Purdue in Indianapolis … Notched double-double’s against Duke (22 points, 11 rebounds) and Georgia (19 points, 11 rebounds) … Shot 50 percent or better from the field in eight straight games at one point during the season … Was named SEC Player of the Week and National Star of the Week by womenscollegehoops.com for her performance against the Boilermakers in December … Scored 31 points in the regular-season finale against South Carolina … Had a season-high seven steals against Auburn to go along with 22 points, nine rebounds and six assists … Played all 40 minutes on seven occasions this season, including three consecutive games in January.
Junior Season (1999-2000):
Started all 32 games for the Lady Tigers, scoring a team-high 17.5 points per contest . . .also tops on the squad in assists (5.3), steals (2.9 – also the SEC leader) and minutes played per game (35.6) . . . her 93 steals was the highest single-season total in school history, while her 170 assists rank second at LSU . . . finished No. 1 in the SEC in steals (2.91), No. 3 in scoring (17.5), No. 3 in assists (5.31), No. 6 in field goal percentage (.501) and No. 10 in assist/turnover ratio (1.57) . . . scored in double figures in all but three games and she scored 20 or more points 14 times . . . had 22 points and eight assists in NCAA Sweet 16 win over Duke, and followed that with 17 points, four rebounds and four steals in Elite Eight loss to Connecticut . . . in four NCAA Tournament games, averaged 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 4.3 steals in 39 minutes per contest . . . scored career-high 25 points vs. Tulane (Dec. 31) and Ole Miss (Jan. 23) . . . posted a double-double with 16 points and 12 assists in win over St. Bonaventure (Nov. 26) . . . the 12 assists is the third-best single-game total in school history . . . had solid effort vs. Arkansas on Feb. 12 with 24 points and a season-best nine rebounds . . . collected 23 points, including 17 in the second half, in win over Vanderbilt (Feb. 17).
Sophomore Season (1998-99):
Started all 30 games and finished the year ranked fourth on the squad with 12.3 points a contest … Averaged 5.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists a contest … LSU led with 16 points in NCAA Sweet 16 game vs. Louisiana Tech … Scored 18 points in first round NCAA win over Evansvillle …. Showed signs of brilliance on defensive end as she held Notre Dame’s top outside threat Sheila McMillen to only 9 points, six below average in NCAA second round win and limited Alabama all-American Dominique Canty to only 13 points on 4-of-19 shooting in LSU’s 75-50 win on Feb. 3 … Played all 45 minutes and scored 10 points and dished out 6 assists in overtime win over Auburn … Tied a career-high with six assists in LSU’s SEC Tournament loss to Kentucky … Scored career-best of 19 points against South Carolina on Dec. 1 … Had 16 points in LSU’s upset of No. 1 ranked Tennessee on Feb. 21 … Scored 17 points on five different occasions … Had first and only double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds in road win over Northeast Louisiana … Had solid effort in road win over Vanderbilt with 17 points, eight rebounds and career-best five steals … SEC Academic Honor Roll and an honorable mention all-Louisiana selection.
Freshman Season (1997-98):
Played in 27 games with no starts … Finished the year averaging 2.4 points and 2.3 rebounds a contest … Had best game of year in season-finale, with then career-highs of nine points, eight rebounds, and 25 minutes against Baylor in the Women’s NIT … Missed three games in December with a badly sprained ankle … Came on strong at end of season, playing double-digit minutes in all three of LSU’s Women’s NIT games … Scored four points and had seven rebounds in first round Women’s NIT win over Boise State … Scored eight points in losses to Georgia and Tennessee … Dished out a career-high five assist in only 11 minutes of action in road loss to Arkansas.
High School:
Player of the Year in Florida as a senior and was one of the most sought after guards in the South in 1997 … Scored over 2,000 points in high school career … Averaged 24.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.0 steals as a senior … As a senior , named first team All-State, first team All-Dade County … Player of the Year in Dade County as a sophomore, junior and senior … As a junior, averaged 20 points, 9.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 4.0 steals a contest and was a first team All-State selection … Named most valuable player of district for three years and was also a first team All-State pick as a sophomore … Had career-highs of 41 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists … Team won 6A (largest class) state title her sophomore season.
Personal:
Born October 13, 1978 in Miami, Fla. … Mother is Jeantilia Ferdinand … Has a brother, Samas Nelson, and a sister, Mircille … Majoring in kinesiology at LSU.