Brittney Griner’s No. 42 jersey retired at Baylor University
WACO, TX (3TV/CBS 5/AP) — Baylor University honored Brittney Griner on Sunday by retiring her number 42 jersey in an emotional ceremony in Waco, Texas, prior to their game with Texas Tech University. The crowd went wild as a banner bearing her retired number 42 was raised to the rafters of Foster Pavilion.
Griner was teary-eyed as she watched. It’s been 11 years since her senior year and no one has worn her number 42 since.
As a Baylor Lady Bear, Griner led the team to an undefeated 40-0 season and a National Championship in 2012 in her senior year. She finished her Baylor career as a three-time All-American before being drafted by the Phoenix Mercury. Griner’s jersey is the 7th jersey number to be retired by Baylor University. She joins two of her former teammates, Odyssey Sims and Melissa Jones, whose jerseys were also retired.
The Mercury congratulated Griner for Sunday’s honor on social media.
“Just full of emotion,” Griner said during an in-game interview on the ESPN broadcast. “As soon as (the jersey) started to go up, that’s when I started to break.” Griner said it meant everything to be honored and appreciated by the school that she gave so much to during her time there. She completed her Baylor degree in 2019.
When Baylor students were taking part in a halftime contest to dunk like Griner, she came onto the court and delighted the crowd with a one-handed dunk of her own. Baylor won the game 61-32.
In 148 games over four seasons with Baylor, the 6-foot-8 center averaged 22.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.1 blocked shots per game. Griner’s 3,283 total points are a Big 12 record and fifth on the NCAA career list, and her 748 blocks still stand as an NCAA record for women or men.
Nicki Collen had said since becoming Baylor’s coach three years ago that she wanted to retire the No. 42 jersey. That was delayed when Griner was detained and imprisoned in Russia for 11 months in 2022 before she came back to the U.S. in a high-profile prisoner swap.
Before Sunday’s game, Collen said she pushed for that because she believed it was right for the program and Griner. Collen wore a gold blazer with No. 42 prominent on the back. The jacket also had many of Griner’s accomplishments stitched on the sleeves.
Griner’s coach at Baylor was Kim Mulkey, who won three national titles in her 21 seasons with the Bears before returning to her home state as LSU’s coach in April 2021. “I think it’s awesome,” Mulkey said Saturday when asked about Griner’s jersey being retired by Baylor.
When asked during the ESPN interview what she remembered most fondly from her time at Baylor, she said it was the moments she spent with teammates and fans. “When you look back at it, you start to forget about the stats. You just remember the wins, and you remember all the other things,” Griner said.
Phoenix selected Griner with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 WNBA draft, and she has been a six-time All-Star while spending her entire career with the Mercury. She is also a two-time Olympic gold medalist.
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