Cheryl Miller is an icon for women’s basketball. The 2x NCAA champion set the bar so high that she had a flurry of records to her name. One such record for the program was recently broken by the upcoming University of Southern California star JuJu Watkins when she dropped her 11th 30-point game for this season. Miller was so much of a sensation during her time at the USC that her jersey number 31 was retired by the program.
The Hall of Famer however has two more important records to her name. The most popular among them is the humongous 105 points she smashed during her senior year in a game against the Norte Vista High School.
Following her college career, Miller in 1996 became the first woman analyst to host a nationally televised men’s professional basketball game. Miller had completed her college in 1986. She unfortunately suffered knee injuries in the late 80s that hindered her from playing. She was also an assistant coach for the USC from 1986-91.
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For her exceptional talent, Miller was also promoted to being the head coach at her alma mater. She carried on her job for two seasons before pivoting her career, once again, but this time as a commentator for the American Broadcasting Company (ABC). She then went ahead to join the Turner Sports as an analyst. And in 1996 she got the chance to make the record as an analyst.
This for obvious reasons was a radical change given how women were perceived around the sport. The game was played between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Miami Heat as per The Washington Post.
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She got a chance to work with Jim Durham who was the play announcer that day. Fans at that time drew parallels to Suzyn Waldman who in 1995 had gotten a chance to announce a major league baseball game on television. She in her own capacity also participated in the WNBA.
What did Miller do next?
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After that, when the WNBA was started, Miller took back her coaching position for the Phoenix Mercury from the year 1997 onwards. She also took the Phoneix Mercury to the finals where they lost to the Houston Comets. However, Miller resigned in 2000 and left the position due to fatigue.
The Hall of Famer’s name will forever be etched in the memory of fans and also record books. Miller was a pioneer in women’s sports who changed the way we see women’s basketball today. She was one of the first superstars of the women’s game and her name will continue to live on until the end of time.