University of Tennessee Athletics
ASHLEY ROBINSON AND TASHA BUTTS SELECTED IN WNBA DRAFT
April 19, 2004 | Women's Basketball
April 19, 2004
SECAUCUS, N.J.
University of Tennessee Lady Vol basketball players Ashley Robinson and Tasha Butts were selected with the 14th and 20th overall picks, respectively, in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) draft on Saturday afternoon. The Phoenix Mercury chose Robinson with the first pick in the second round, while the Minnesota Lynx took Butts six slots later. With their selection, the seniors become the 19th and 20th Lady Vol players all-time to be tabbed for inclusion into the WNBA.
Robinson, a native of Grand Prairie, Texas, completed her Lady Vol career with an outstanding senior campaign, as she started all 35 games en route to helping the team to a 31-4 record, an NCAA Championship national runner-up finish and a perfect 14-0 in mark in Southeastern Conference play. The 6'5" center averaged 8.1 ppg on 48.6 percent shooting and ranked second on the team in rebounds with 6.4 rpg. Additionally, she was a dominant force at the defensive end of the floor, ranking third in the SEC in blocks per game. In 2003-04, she registered at least three blocks in 11 contests, with a record-setting eight rejections in the victory over 25th-ranked Rutgers on Dec. 11, 2003. During her illustrious career, she totaled 200 blocks, ranking second on UT's all-time list.
Butts also capped off her career with a superb senior season and started all but one game for the Lady Vols, as she was selected to the All-SEC Second Team by the league's coaches and to the All-SEC Third Team by the Associated Press. The Milledgeville, Ga., native assumed the role of point guard in midseason following the injury of Loree Moore and went on to post averages of 10.4 ppg and 5.4 rpg while leading the team in assists with 99. Undoubtedly, she will be remembered for her stellar play in the triumph at Vanderbilt when she totaled a career-high 37 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, but her clutch playmaking skills made her invaluable in Tennessee's postseason run. In the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional, Butts sank game-winning buckets in the closing seconds of regulation in wins against Baylor and Stanford en route to earning All-Midwest Regional status. Butts finished her career ranked fourth all-time in games played (141) and seventh in thee-pointers (103).
During their Lady Vol careers, Robinson and Butts helped lead Tennessee to three NCAA Final Fours (2002, 2003 and 2004), two NCAA title games (2003 and 2004) and an overall record of 124-17, while picking up four straight regular-season conference championships.
