Former Crimson Tide guard and Thompson High graduate Monique Bivins will now take a shot at professional basketball.

Bivins, a four-time MVP of the Shelby County Tournament as a Lady Warrior, was selected as the 37th overall pick in the WNBA draft last weekend.

Bivins was selected by the Minnesota Lynx as the 11th pick of the third round.

After averaging 25.6 points per game her senior year at THS, Bivins joined the University of Alabama where she went on to play in all 116 games during her college career.

She was twice named second-team All-SEC and became the 20th player in UA history to surpass 1,000 career points.

Bivins will join a Lynx squad that finished with an 18-16 record and a berth in the WNBA playoffs.

UM’s Towns, Kennedy picked in WBA draft

University of Montevallo seniors D.J. Towns and Caleb Kennedy were drafted to play professional basketball in Birmingham for the newly created franchise of the World Basketball Association.

Towns, a Division II Bulletin Preseason All-American selection, was the fourth-round pick of the Magic City Court Kings, while Kennedy was selected via a trade with the South Carolina franchise for a future selection.

The World Basketball Association is in its second year of existence, beginning with seven teams in its inaugural season. The Magic City Court Kings will be one of 12 teams to compete this season in cities primarily located throughout the Southeast. It is the goal of the league to teach, develop and expose players to the NBA, NBDL, CBA and International scouts. The talent pool of each team consists of professional basketball players with five years or less experience, and each team is limited to two such players on their final 10-man roster.

Other statewide selections by the Birmingham team and allocations to the team are Kenyon Gamble (Tuskegee), Jamie Gardner (UAH), Earnest Shelton (Alabama), Joseph King (Miles) and Donnell Taylor (UAB).

The 24-game season will run from April through June. The team is scheduled to play its games at Fair Park Arena in Birmingham.

– Special to the Reporte