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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 18 • 20 BY KYLE CHARTERS KCharters@GoldandBlack.com K atie Douglas, a key piece of Purdue's national champion- ship team in 1999 and the leader of the runner-up two years later, is getting due recognition from the university. The former Boilermaker, who will go into her 14th WNBA season this spring, will be inducted to the Purdue Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in April as part of the 2015 class. Douglas, a 6-foot guard, was a two-time All-American and the Big Ten's Player-of-the-Year in 2001. One of the best all-around players in school history, if not the best, she scored 1,965 points, the fifth-most in the program, and is third in assists (526) and 11th in rebounds (727). Despite her success, Douglas says she was surprised by the honor. "It's just a testament to the teams that we had there over the course of my four years and should be shared amongst them," Doug - las said Wednesday. "… It means a lot to be selected and be included among the other great Purdue athletes, across all the sports. Just to be in- cluded is an honor." While she was winning on the court during her Purdue tenure from 1998- 2001, she suffered incred- ible personal losses off it. Her father, Ken, and moth- er, Karen, died of cancer within a three-year span, and teammate Tiffany Young, a starter on the title team, died months later in a car accident after being hit by a drunk driver. But Douglas, an India- napolis native, credits the Boilermakers with helping her through those trails. "I appreciate and am very fortunate that I chose Purdue," she said. "When I was being recruited, I just felt like it was a great fit for me. I had a lot to deal with when I was choosing Purdue: My dad was already terminally diagnosed at that point. So I just knew that it was the right fit. And I thought at that time that I was just going to be mourning the loss of my father, but then unfortu - nately got the news about Tiff and then got the news about my mom. It was the best place for me. "Sometimes God just points you in the right direction. I defi- nitely feel like at that time in my life He made the best decision for me, pointed me in the best direction. Purdue was the best fit as far as that; I had a tremendous amount of support there, administrators, teachers, the booster club. There were so many people who were always there for me, rallying around me to help me the best that they could through difficult circumstances." Douglas has en - joyed a long professional career, currently being the second-longest ten- ured player in the WNBA. She won a title in 2012 with the hometown Fe- ver, although she was injured for the Finals. "I think (the honor) speaks volumes to what she brought to every team that she played on," said former teammate Tom Campbell Katie Douglas (32), carrying current assistant Kelly Komara, is a 2015 member of the Purdue Hall of Fame to be inducted in April. 2014-15 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent Time/Result Nov. 9 FINDLAY (exb.) (BTN Plus) W, 84-25 Nov. 14 at Ball State W, 66-60 Nov. 19 GREEN BAY L, 78-81(2OT) Nov. 23 TOLEDO (BTN Plus) W, 66-48 Junkanoo Jam, Freeport, Bahamas Nov. 28 Texas Tech W, 69-53 Nov. 29 George Washington L, 59-79 Big Ten/ACC Challenge Dec. 3 FLORIDA STATE (BTN Plus) L, 64-67 (OT) Dec. 7 at Dayton L, 61-63 Dec. 11 KANSAS (BTN Plus) W, 61-48 World Vision Classic Dec. 19 UC IRVINE W, 69-44 Dec. 20 DENVER W, 65-51 Dec. 21 WRIGHT STATE W, 70-46 Dec. 28 at Illinois (BTN Plus) W, 62-55 Jan. 1 MINNESOTA (BTN Plus) L, 68-81 Jan. 4 INDIANA (BTN Plus) W, 86-64 Jan. 8 at No. 12 Maryland (BTN) L, 64-88 Jan. 11 at No. 17 Iowa (BTN) L, 59-73 Jan. 15 WISCONSIN (BTN Plus) L, 56-65 Jan. 19 at No. 16 Nebraska (BTN) L, 59-69 Jan. 22 at No. 21 Minnesota (BTN Plus) W, 90-88(OT) Jan. 25 OHIO STATE (BTN Plus) L, 71-79(OT) Jan. 29 No. 22 RUTGERS (BTN) 7 p.m. Feb. 2 at Indiana (BTN) 8:30 p.m. Feb. 8 PENN STATE (BTN Plus) 2 p.m. Feb. 11 NORTHWESTERN (BTN Plus) 7 p.m. Feb. 14 at Rutgers (BTN) Noon Feb. 17 at Ohio State (BTN) 7 p.m. Feb. 21 ILLINOIS (BTN/BTN Plus) TBA Feb. 24 at Michigan (BTN) 7 p.m. Feb. 28 MICHIGAN STATE (BTN) 2 p.m. March 4-8 Big Ten Tournament* TBA * Sears Centre, Hoffman Estates, Ill. All times ET W O M E N ' S BA S K E T BA L L : N E W S A N D N OT E S Double vertime DOUGLAS INTO HALL For Season Stats Click Here