Janel McCarville

Janel McCarville (born November 3, 1982 in Stevens Point, Wisconsin) is an American professional basketball player. She currently plays center for the WNBA's New York Liberty.

High school years

McCarville attended Stevens Point Area Senior High (SPASH) (Wisconsin), where she led her school to a 59-11 record over her final three years.

As a senior McCarville averaged 19.4 ppg and led her team to a runner-up finish in the 2001 Wisconsin Division I State Tournament, with tournament averages of 21.7 ppg and 14.7 rpg. She shared the Wisconsin Player of the Year award with Mistie Bass (nee Williams) and was honored as an AAU All-American and a member of the 2001 all-state first team.

College years

McCarville was a standout collegiate women's basketball player for the University of Minnesota (Twin Cities). From there she was nicknamed "Shaq".

McCarville started all four years during her time with the Golden Gophers, playing alongside her teammate Lindsay Whalen, and turned the program around from being the worst in the Big Ten Conference into a Final Four team in 2004.

McCarville is in the top five of every major statistical category at for the Golden Gophers' women's team, including points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. McCarville holds the NCAA record for most rebounds in the tournament, with 75 rebounds in five games. She also holds the NCAA record for tournament rebound average, with 15 per game.

WNBA career

In the 2005 WNBA Draft, McCarville was picked by Charlotte Sting as the #1 overall selection.At Charlotte, she missed a number of games due to injury and her performance when able to play did not meet the expectations associated with the #1 draft pick.

In the spring of 2007, after the Sting folded, McCarville was claimed by New York in the WNBA dispersal draft. During the first half of the 2007 season she earned a place in the Liberty starting lineup, displacing rookie Jessica Davenport. On August 25, 2007, McCarville was named most improved player of the 2007 season. [ [http://sports.yahoo.com/wnba/news?slug=ap-wnbamostimprovedaward&prov=ap&type=lgns Yahoo! Sports - Sports News, Scores, Rumors, Fantasy Games, and more ] ]

McCarville continued to contribute significantly to the Liberty's success in 2008. She was named WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week on two occasions during the 2008 season.

International career

McCarville was a member of the United States team that won a silver medal at the 2003 Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.During the 2006-7 and 2007-8 (current) EuroLeague seasons, McCarville has played for Kosice, Slovakia with former Charlotte Sting teammate Kelly Mazzante. In the fall of 2007, McCarville was named to the USA Select basketball team and helped that team take second place in the 2007 FIBA World League tournament. After the current WNBA season, Janel intends to play for the CSKA Moscow Women's Basketball team.

Vital statistics

*Position: Center
*Height: 6 ft. 2 in. / 1.88 m
*Parents: Terence & Bonnie McCarville
*College: University of Minnesota
*Current Team: New York Liberty (WNBA)

References

External links

* [http://www.wnba.com/playerfile/janel_mccarville/index.html WNBA Player Profile]
* [http://www.wnba.com/draft2005/draft2005_release.html Press Release of the 2005 WNBA Draft]
* [http://www.wnba.com/draft2005/prospect_janel_mccarville.html 2005 WNBA Draft Profile]
* [http://www.usabasketball.com/bioswomen/janel_mccarville_bio.htm USA Basketball profile]
* [http://www.fibaeurope.com/cid_KNce8jInH7Qj1EsyH5rjn2.teamID_2465.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2008.roundID_6409.playerID_58702.html Fiba Profile]