Miami Great Tamara James Named an ACC Legend
Feb. 2, 2012
GREENSBORO, N.C.—The Atlantic Coast Conference announced its eighth annual class of ACC Women’s Basketball Legends on Thursday and Miami great Tamara James will be among the honorees. The Legends Class of 2012 will be honored at the 2012 ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament, which will be held March 1-4 at the Greensboro Coliseum.
The all-time leading scorer in women’s basketball for the Miami Hurricanes, Tamara James set a scoring record for men and women in her four-year career at Miami with 2,406 points. James was named first-team All-ACC in 2005 and 2006 and first-team All-Big East in 2004. She led the ACC in scoring both of years in the conference, averaging 22.3 in 2005 and 21.5 in 2006.
The guard/forward became the first freshman to lead the Big East in scoring in 2003 and was a first-team All-Big East selection as a sophomore in 2004. She was a second-team All-Big East honoree as a freshman in 2003. James helped lead the Hurricanes to a four-year record of 70-47 and, at the start of this year, ranked third in career scoring average (20.4), second in career field goals (868), ninth in field-goal percentage (.495), third in three-point field goals (150), first in free throws made (520), fourth in free throw percentage (.783), fifth in rebounds (805) and seventh in steals (279).
James led the Hurricanes to a berth in the NCAA (2005) and the WNIT (2006) in her last two seasons. She earned Honorable Mention All-America honors in 2003 from AP and Kodak, and in 2006 was a second team All-America pick by the Women’s Basketball News Service and a third-team section by Full Court Press.
She received her bachelor’s degree from Miami in Liberal Arts (Theatre) in 2006, then spent one season in the WNBA with the Washington Mystics. She has been playing professionally in Europe and Israel since.
A native of Dania, Fla., she currently resides in Dania Beach with her fiancé Dion Dowell and child. Their son, Dion K. Dowell, Jr., was born on Dec. 19, 2011.
The Legends will be honored at the annual ACC Women’s Basketball Legends’ Lunch on Friday, March 2 at 1:30 p.m., and then will be introduced to the Coliseum crowd at halftime of the first semifinal game on Saturday, March 3. The ACC Women’s Basketball Legends program honors both players and coaches from each of the ACC’s 12 schools who have contributed to the league’s rich tradition.
Tickets to the Legends Luncheon are priced at $25 each and can be obtained by calling 1-336-373-7492. Quantities are limited.
