Lusia Harris—Queen of Basketball
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the landmark law, on the 23rd of each month this year, I’ll write about trailblazers who opened doors for the next generation.
Title IX was signed into law on June 23, 1972. It reads:
No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.
I had planned for Lusia “Lucy” Harris to be the second person I highlighted in this special series. But a text from my daughter Tuesday evening prompted me to change that plan.
ESPN reported that Lusia Harris had died at the age of 66.
I was suddenly 17 again. Sitting on the gym floor with dozens of other girls at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, listening intently as the basketball camp director introduced a basketball star. A female basketball star named Lusia Harris.
The first time I attended camp, our guest speaker was NBA player Gail Goodrich. It was exciting to see him, but so much more important for us to hear from a woman. A woman who had played college basketball and was on the first USA Olympic women’s basketball team. The woman who scored the first points in the first-ever women’s basketball Olympic game.
I don’t remember anything specific about what Lusia said. In fact, when I found information in my scrapbook 35 years later about her speaking at camp, I was embarrassed and ashamed I didn’t remember her immediately. The only memory I could pull up was of sitting on the gym floor as a soft-spoken, 6’3” Black woman talked about basketball.
But those were different times. Despite her excellence on the court and the success of her college team at Delta State, I never saw her play on TV. I doubt that news about her or her Mississippi university ever appeared in our northwestern Illinois newspaper. And I certainly couldn’t buy a poster of her for my bedroom wall.
I’ve watched this 22-minute documentary about Lusia—the Queen of Basketball—a few times and what is most impressive is her love for and dedication to playing the game. She admired players like Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, and Oscar Robertson, “her favorite.” She wanted to be able to shoot the ball like they did. And she certainly did.
Upon graduating from high school, she wanted to play basketball so badly she chose to attend college at Delta State rather than her original choice of Alcorn State University, a Historically Black College and University, that had no women’s basketball program at the time.
Lusia sounds like the best kind of role model I might have had. She excelled as a player and still holds records at Delta State for points scored and rebounds. She was a three-time All American and led her team to three national championships. She was the only woman ever drafted by the NBA. She was the first Black woman to be inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame.
More importantly Lusia was a good person. She ignored the teasing about her height and pursued what she loved. She worked hard to learn the game and found the opportunity to play. She was a valued teammate and a proud mother of four who married her high school sweetheart.
But after college for Lusia, there was no WNBA, there were no product endorsements, and it was hard for her to earn a living, while male players of her caliber became rich.
It took 44 years and her death for me to learn more about who this phenomenal woman was.
Yet, I know she influenced her teammates and coaches. I imagine she raised awareness and recruitment for the Delta State University women’s basketball program. I’m sure there were fans who loved her and little girls in the bleachers she inspired. And maybe somewhere out there, other women like me recall seeing her at basketball camp.
Thank you, Lusia. May you rest in peace and love.
Photo of Lady Justice by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash