Laura Harper (basketball)

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Laura Harper
Towson Tigers
PositionHead coach
LeagueCAA
Personal information
Born (1986-04-11) April 11, 1986 (age 38)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight186 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High schoolCheltenham
(Wyncote, Pennsylvania)
CollegeMaryland (2004–2008)
WNBA draft2008: 1st round, 10th overall pick
Selected by the Sacramento Monarchs
Playing career2008–2013
PositionPower forward / center
Number15
Coaching career2013–present
Career history
As player:
2008–2009Sacramento Monarchs
2008Beşiktaş
2009–2010Umana Reyer Venezia
2011–2012Antakya
2012–2013Dynamo Moscow
As coach:
2013–2014Loyola (Maryland) (assistant)
2014–2016High Point (assistant)
2016–2017George Washington (assistant)
2017–2019Florida (assistant)
2019–2020Montverde Academy
2020–2022Coppin State
2022–presentTowson
Career highlights and awards
  • NCAA champion (2006)
Medals
Women's Basketball
U18 and U19
Gold medal – first place 2004 U18 Mayaguez Team Competition

Laura Ashley Harper (born April 11, 1986) is an American basketball coach and former player who is currently the head women's basketball coach at Towson University. She played professionally with the Sacramento Monarchs of the Women's National Basketball Association.

High school[edit]

Harper played for Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, Pennsylvania, where she was named a WBCA All-American. She participated in the 2004 WBCA High School All-America Game where she scored nine points.[1]

College[edit]

Laura Harper played college basketball at the University of Maryland and was part of the 2006 National Championship team. She tore her Achilles tendon during her freshman year, but battled back to become the Most Outstanding Player of the 2006 NCAA tournament.[2] As she is a beloved Terrapin, Harper's No. 15 jersey hangs in the rafters at the Xfinity Center.

College statistics[edit]

Source:[3]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2004–05 Maryland 9 119 57.0 - 58.3 9.8 1.3 0.9 1.7 13.2
2005–06 Maryland 36 413 53.5 - 68.3 7.2 0.7 0.9 1.9 11.5
2006–07 Maryland 34 353 55.1 - 69.7 6.3 1.1 0.8 1.9 10.4
2007–08 Maryland 37 522 60.3 50.0 68.9 8.5 1.4 1.5 1.3 14.1
Career Maryland 116 1407 56.5 50.0 68.2 7.5 1.1 1.0 1.7 12.1

Professional playing career[edit]

Harper was selected in the first round of the 2008 WNBA draft, tenth overall, by the Sacramento Monarchs. As a rookie, she played 34 games and made one start. She averaged 5.5 points and 4.0 rebounds.[4]

After the WNBA season ended, she signed with Beşiktaş of the Turkish Women's Basketball League.[4] She averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds in 10 games played with Beşiktaş.[5]

In 2009, Harper returned to the Monarchs and started 11 of 33 games played. She averaged 4.5 points and 3.4 rebounds.[4] After the WNBA season, she signed with Umana Reyer Venezia of the Italian Serie A1.[6] In 16 games with Venezia, she averaged 9.6 points and 7.6 rebounds.[7]

Due to injuries, Harper sat out the 2010 and 2011 WNBA seasons.[4] She returned to action later in 2011, again in Europe, with Antakya of the Turkish league, averaging 13.3 points and 9.9 rebounds.[8]

Harper played her final season of professional basketball in 2012–13 with Dynamo Moscow of the Russian Women's Basketball Premier League. In 12 games, she averaged 7.3 points and 8.3 rebounds.[9]

International career[edit]

Harper was a member of the USA Women's U18 team which won the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Championship in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. The event was held in August 2004, when the USA team defeated Puerto Rico to win the championship. Harper started all five games and helped the team win the gold medal, scoring 12.8 points per game.[10]

Coaching career[edit]

In May 2013, Harper became an assistant coach at American University.[11] She left American to become an assistant at Loyola University Maryland in September 2013.[12]

Harper moved to North Carolina to become an assistant coach at High Point University in June 2014.[13]

Following High Point, Harper served as an assistant coach for a season at George Washington University before coaching for two seasons at University of Florida. She left Florida after the 2018–19 season to become the head coach at Montverde Academy on June 29, 2019.

Coppin State[edit]

On July 20, 2020, Harper was announced as the new head women's basketball coach at Coppin State University.[14]

Towson University[edit]

On April 20, 2022, Towson University announced Harper as the new head coach of their women's basketball team.[15] Harper was placed on administrative leave on May 19, 2023 for undisclosed reasons.[16] She returned from her suspension on November 29, missing the first four games of the season.[17]

Head coaching record[edit]

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Coppin State Eagles (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) (2020–2022)
2020–21 Coppin State 2–13 2–10 T–3rd (North)
2021–22 Coppin State 15–13 9–5 4th
Coppin State: 17–26 (.395) 11–15 (.423)
Towson Tigers (Colonial Athletic Association) (2022–2023)
2022–23 Towson 21–12 13–5 T-1st WNIT First Round
Towson: 21–12 (.636) 13–5 (.722)
Total: 38–38 (.500)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Personal life[edit]

Harper's father Haviland Harper, Jr. played basketball at George Washington and is currently a high school basketball coach and math teacher. Haviland Harper's great-uncle, David "Big Dave" DeJernett, was a pioneering Afro-American basketball star at both pro and amateur levels in the Midwest.

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ "WBCA High School All-America Game Box Scores". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  2. ^ "Player Bio: Laura Harper". Archived from the original on March 17, 2012. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  3. ^ "Women's Basketball Player stats". NCAA. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d "Laura Harper: Background". WNBA. Archived from the original on November 21, 2011.
  5. ^ "Laura Ashley Harper: Season 2008/2009". FIBA. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  6. ^ "Umana, il nuovo centro è Laura Harper". La Nuova di Venezia. July 11, 2009. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  7. ^ "Reyer Venezia Mistre Stats 2009-10". eurobasket.com. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  8. ^ "Laura Harper". High Point University Athletics. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  9. ^ "Dynamo Moscow Stats 2012-13". eurobasket.com. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  10. ^ "Fifth Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Team -- 2004". USA Basketball. February 20, 2014. Archived from the original on September 12, 2015. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  11. ^ "Laura Harper". American University. Archived from the original on June 17, 2016. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  12. ^ "Former WNBA and Maryland Standout Harper Joins WBB Staff". Loyola University Maryland. September 3, 2013. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  13. ^ "Laura Harper joins women's basketball staff". High Point University. June 19, 2014. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  14. ^ "Laura Harper selected as Coppin State Women's Basketball Head Coach". Coppin State University. July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  15. ^ Laura Harper named women's basketball head coach
  16. ^ "Towson places women's basketball coach Laura Harper on leave". Baltimore Sun. May 20, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  17. ^ Ott, Courtney (November 30, 2023). "Towson women's basketball claims win in Charm City Hoops Classic against Morgan State". Retrieved January 13, 2024.

External links[edit]

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