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Janel McCarville

Chronicling the Career of Janel McCarville

12/14/2019 9:45:00 AM | Women's Basketball

MINNEAPOLIS -- In a ceremony prior to Sunday's 1 p.m. game against UC Davis, Gophers legend Janel McCarville will become the seventh player in program history to have a banner raised in her honor at Williams Arena.

Before we get there, though, let's take a look back through the career of one of the best to ever wear the Maroon and Gold.

FRESHMAN SEASON (2001-02)
McCarville arrived at Minnesota out of Stevens Point, Wis., as the 2001 co-Wisconsin High School Player of the Year. The scouting report from that season's media guide was a sign of things to come as the outlook said "Janel should see immediate action this season and has the potential to be one of the most dominating post players in Gopher history."

She played in all 30 games with 28 starts and averaged 13.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.5 steals per game en route to being named the first ever Big Ten Freshman of the Year in Minnesota history. She also earned a spot on the All-Big Ten Freshman Team and was a Second Team All-Big Ten honoree as she helped get the Gophers back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 1993-94 season. 

McCarville's .580 field goal percentage still stands as a Gophers freshman record, while her 94 offensive rebounds and 147 defensive rebounds were records at the time.

SOPHOMORE SEASON (2002-03) McCarville followed up her B1G Freshman of the Year campaign by earning All-Big Ten First Team honors as a sophomore, helping lead the Gophers to their first ever Sweet 16 appearance.  

For the season, McCarville averaged 12.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.2 assists per game. She made 155 of her 236 attempts from the field, good for a school-record .657 field goal percentage, while also tallying 192 defensive rebounds, which currently ranks as the eighth highest total in program history.

JUNIOR SEASON (2003-04) McCarville's junior season was a magical one that culminated in a trip to the school's first ever Final Four. In the postseason, she averaged a double-double with 19.4 points and 15.0 rebounds per game.

In addition to being a Wade Trophy finalist, McCarville was also a first-team All-American for the first time as she posted 16.1 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.9 steals, 2.9 assists and 1.9 blocks per game. Her .616 field goal percentage is second best in team history, only behind her sophomore season performance, while she also ranks third for a season in steals (98), fourth in defensive rebounds (248) and games with 10 or more rebounds, fifth in blocks (65), sixth in total rebounds (368), offensive rebounds (120), double-doubles (17) and steals per game, and eighth in blocks per game.

One of her highlights of the season came in the Big Ten Tournament when she recorded the third triple-double in program history with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 steals (which are still second most in a game at Minnesota) against Ohio State.

SENIOR SEASON (2004-05) As a senior, McCarville was a finalist for nearly every major award, including the Wade Trophy, Wooden Award and Naismith Award as she helped get the Gophers back to the Sweet 16. She became the first player in team history to appear in an NCAA Tournament game in each of her four seasons on campus.

A first-team All-American for the second straight season after averaging 16.0 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.2 steals and 2.1 blocks per game. Her 258 defensive rebounds rank third in team annals, as do her 2.1 blocks per game, while her 67 blocks rank fourth, 18 games with 10 or more rebounds and 16 double-doubles rank eighth and her 327 rebounds rank 10th.

MINNESOTA CAREER AND BEYOND
Entering the 2019-20 season, McCarville held the school record for career field goal percentage (.582) and ranks second in team history in rebounds (1206) and blocks (196), third in steals (273) and double-doubles (49), fifth in free throws made (414) and attempted (560) and rebound average (9.6), sixth in field goals made (701), seventh in scoring (1,835) and 10th in scoring average (14.2) and free throw percentage (.740).

Following her time with the Gophers, McCarville went on to a long professional career. She was drafted No. 1 overall by the Charlotte Sting in the 2005 WNBA Draft, was named the WNBA's Most Improved Player with the New York Liberty in 2007 and won a WNBA title with the Minnesota Lynx in 2013. She has also played internationally in China, Italy, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden and Turkey.

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