Tulsa Shock Select Cambage and Pedersen in WNBA Draft

Originally Published: Apr 11, 2011 3:25 PM CDT

Layna Dewell
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

TULSA, Oklahoma -- The Tulsa Shock added two new talents to the roster Monday selecting Australia’s Elizabeth Cambage and Stanford’s Kayla Pedersen in the first round of the 2011 WNBA Draft.

The Shock used its first-ever first round pick to select Cambage with the number two overall pick then selected Pedersen with the seventh overall pick.

Cambage, a six-foot-eight-inch center and native of Melbourne Australia comes to Tulsa from the Women's National Basketball League’s Buleen Boomers.

“I was like whooooo, finally I know where I am going and it’s all set in stone,” said Cambage immediately after being selected.

Last season Cambage averaged 22.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 1.6 assists per game. She not only led the league in scoring but also was third in the league in shooting percentage at 58.9 percent. She helped the Boomers to the 2010-11 WNBL Championship and was named the league’s most valuable player.

Pedersen, a six-foot-four-inch forward played her college ball at Stanford University.

She started 35 games last season and averaged 12.6 points eight rebounds and shot 46 percent from the field.

Cambage’s inside scoring and rebounding will help fill a huge void inside. Her height and versatility on both ends of the court give the Shock a lot of potential for improvement.

Pedersen’s versatility and deep shooting capabilities give Coach Nolan Richardson and the Shock manyoptions on offense.

Connecticut's Maya Moore was selected as the first-overall pick by the Minnesota Lynx while Oklahoma’s Danielle Robinson was selected as the sixth-overall pick by San Antonio.

Rounding out the draft for Tulsa was North Carolina guard Italee Lucas with the 21st-overall selection and University of Arkansas-Little Rock forward Chastity Reed - the first player from UA-LR to be chosen in the WNBA Draft.

The Shock finished their inaugural season with a 6-28 record. They begin the 2011 season June 4th at San Antonio.