Feb. 12, 2009
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara University and the Athletic Department will raise and officially retire Melissa (King) Fisher's jersey, the Broncos' all-time leading scorer and steals queen, during a ceremony with King and her family at halftime of this Saturday's game against Loyola Marymount. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Leavey Center.
"We are so honored to bring Melissa (King) Fisher and her family back to campus to retire her jersey," said Santa Clara athletic director Dan Coonan. "Melissa's numbers speak for themselves as she continues to hold five all-time SCU titles 16 years later. We are honored to have the opportunity to recognize her accomplishments."
"I have had the great pleasure to have played against or to have watched most of the great guards who have come through our conference over the last twenty years," said SCU head coach Jennifer Mountain. "Melissa King is by far one of the toughest guards to have ever played the game. Her competitiveness and her will to succeed surpassed her opponents. She has that drive within that a coach dreams for in a player. She has set a mark for herself in the Santa Clara record books for all those current and future Broncos who set foot on the court. She is a true role model for young players on how to do it the right way and a true definition of how hard work does pay off."
"Melissa King's impact on the Santa Clara Women's Basketball Program was unprecedented and a her impact in just three years led our program to a WNIT Championship, first-ever WCC Championship, NCAA berth and team and personal SCU records in just 3 years," said former Bronco head coach Caren Horstmeyer. "She was an exceptional mentally tough athlete, fantastic student and wonderful person you could count on in the clutch. She elevated the play and confidence of her teammates with her court savvy and determination. She had the uncanny ability to take over a game and would not let us loose. Melissa King is the most driven, disciplined, hard working, best player I have had the opportunity to coach and her love for the game was contagious. I am grateful to have had the pleasure to coach Melissa King. She was a coach's dream."
"Melissa was one of the most talented, athletic and skilled guards in the country," said former Santa Clara assistant coach and current Arizona State head coach Charli Turner Thorne. "What separated her from the rest was her toughness. There was never a day when she gave less that 100% of herself. That is why she is one of the best guards to ever play."
During her career at Santa Clara, King scored a school-record 1,798 points from 1990-93. She was named Santa Clara's first women's basketball Kodak All-American honorable mention in her senior season. King was also a two-time West Coast Conference Player of the Year in 1991 and 1993, as well as the Newcomer of the year in 1991. She remains ranked in the top-10 of the following individual career records at SCU: No. 1 in scoring (1,798 points), scoring average (20.0), field goals (635), 3FG% (.443), free throws (438) and steals (266); No. 2 in field goals attempted (1,247) and free throws attempted (548); No. 3 in assists (426) and minutes played (3,265); No. 7 in free throw percentage (.799) and No. 9 in field goal percentage (.509). King is tied for the single-game record in free throws made (15) and steals (9).
King helped the Broncos to the Women's National Invitational Tournament title in 1991, their first trip to the NCAA tournament in 1992 and three straight WCC regular-season titles. She still holds the Santa Clara record for most points scored in a postseason game with 27 against Cal in the first round of the 1992 NCAA Tournament. The Broncos advanced to their only second round appearance with a 73-71 victory over the Golden Bears.
Since graduating from the Mission Campus in 1993 with a bachelor's degree in communications with an emphasis in journalism and a minor in business, King has served assistant-coaching stints at both Cal and Santa Clara before trading in her whistle to work in web design for Franklin Templeton Investments and begin a family. King worked at Franklin Templeton for nearly four-and-a-half year before leaving to raise her family full-time in 2001. In 2004, she was inducted into the SCU Athletic Hall of Fame and, in 2008 she was welcomed into the Marin Athletic Foundation Hall of Fame.