Former Sun Devil Briann January returns to the valley

August 06, 2009

Former Sun Devil <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/january_briann00.html"… January</a> will be returning to the Valley on Saturday when the Indiana Fever face the Phoenix Mercury at US Airways Center in Phoenix. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.<separator></separator>Earlier this year the Fever selected January with the sixth overall pick in the WNBA Draft. Saturday's game could be a preview of this year's WNBA Finals as January and her teammates bring the league's best record (16-4) and a four-game winning streak into town against a Mercury squad which has the WNBA's second-best record (16-6).<separator></separator>January is currently averaging 5.5 points, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals while playing 18.5 minutes per game. Among this year's rookie class she is currently second in steals per game, third in assists per game and fourth in free throw percentage (.861).<separator></separator>During January's four-year career the Sun Devils won 77 percent of their games (104-32), including 82 percent of their Pac-10 games (59-13), and qualified for the NCAA Tournament all four years, including the program's only Elite Eight appearances (2007, `09).<separator></separator>A two-time Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year and named first-team All-Pac-10 in 2009, January concluded the 2008-09 regular season second in the nation in 3-point FG pct. (.469) and 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1). Her 65 3-pointers set a new school single-season record while her 167 assists were fourth on the school's all-time single-season list.<separator></separator>January ended her stint as a Sun Devil at or near the top of several ASU career statistical categories including assists (first, 538), free throw percentage (first, .830), steals (second, 265), free throws (second, 401), 3-point field goal percentage (fourth, .399), 3-point field goals (fifth, 132) and points (seventh, 1,317).