Provides experience and leadership at the three-guard ... led the team in steals ... good court sense and consistency ... strong three-point shooter and blocker... one of seven international student-athletes on the roster.
AS A JUNIOR (2001-02):
Started 27 of her 29 games ...averaged 7.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game ... stood 10th in the Conference with 0.8 blocks per game ... ranked 15th in the A-10 with 3.0 assists per game ... was 14th in steals ... recorded her 400th career point vs. Richmond Feb. 14 ... poured in a season-best 15 points at Ohio State ... had her second-best performance of 13 points at #25 South Carolina ... snagged a personal- and game-best six steals at Ohio State ... netted 12 points and a team-best nine rebounds at Cleveland State ... tied the team-lead with six assists vs. the Vikings and grabbed a game-best four steals ... went 3-3 from behind the arc at Cleveland State ... recorded her 300th career point at Kent State ... recorded her 300th rebound vs. Howard ... posted eight rebounds and five assists vs. Xavier ... led the Dukes with a career-best 10 rebounds vs. Rhode Island ... game-best six assists vs. St. Bonaventure ... team-best 49 steals ... had 22 three-point goals.
AS A SOPHOMORE (2000-01):
Started each game ... averaged 4.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists ... recorded her 100th career rebound vs. Cleveland State and 100th assist at UMass ... registered her 200th career point at Dayton ... dished off a career-best seven assists against Detroit and vs. South Carolina ... recorded six assists at Robert Morris ... had 10 points shooting 4-5 from the field at St. Francis ... second on the team with 79 assists ... added 26 steals ... tied for third on the team with nine 3-point goals ... had 10 games shooting perfect from the free throw line where she went .758 (25-33) for the season ... added six blocks.
AS A FRESHMAN (1999-2000):
A starter in nine of her 26 games ... missed the St. Bonaventure game with a sprained ankle ... dished off 31 assists ... posted a team and game-best 20 points at Cleveland State ... named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week Nov. 21 ... recorded a personal-best nine rebounds and two steals vs. St. Francis (Pa.) to lead the Dukes ... grabbed eight boards vs. Robert Morris and seven rebounds vs. Illinois and at Virginia Tech ... team high 14 points at Detroit ... netted her 100th point at La Salle.
HIGH SCHOOL:
Competed on the Montmontaza Club team in Croatia ... led her club squad to a third place finish in the Junior Club Championship ... averaged 18.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game ... played for Sopron National team which placed first in the 1998-99 European championship.
PERSONAL:
Full name is Nikolina Pender ... major is technology marketing ... speaks four different languages - Croatian, English, German and Italian ... her younger sister Matea is on the UMBC women's basketball team ... Dean's List ... Director of Athletics' Honor Roll ... A-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll ... born July 23, 1981.
CAREER HIGHS
Pts: 20 at Cleveland St. 11/20/99
FGM: 8 at Cleveland St. 11/20/99
3ptFGM: 4 (last) at Ohio State 12/2/01
FTM: 6 vs Illinois 11/24/99
Reb: 10 vs Rhode Island 1/19/02
Asts: 7 (last) vs S. Carolina 12/10/00
Blks: 2 (last) vs UMass 1/17/02
Stls: 6 at Ohio State 12/2/01
Min.: 37 at South Carolina 11/30/01
Pender's Career Statistics
3-Point
YEAR GP/GS FG FGA PCT FG FGA PCT FT FTA PCT REB AST BLK ST MIN PTS AVG
2000 26/0 41 128 .320 6 31 .194 17 23 .739 68 31 3 11 364 105 4.0
2001 29/29 44 126 .349 9 32 .281 25 33 .758 92 79 6 26 672 122 4.2
2002 29/27 77 205 .376 22 64 .344 37 53 .698 132 88 22 49 831 213 7.3
Total 84/56 162 459 .353 37 127 .291 79 109 .725 292 198 31 86 1867 440 5.2
