CLEVELAND — Maryland senior guard Shyanne Sellers was only seconds away from celebrating a record-setting night before an injury scare darkened the moment.
As she lay on the court in tears while holding her right knee already in a brace due to an earlier sprain, her father, former NBA player Brad Sellers, shared in his daughter’s grief as he watched helplessly from the stands.
“I watched a kid work hard from the time she was in the third grade, and now her dreams could be stymied with 25 seconds on the clock,” Sellers said.
Shyanne needed assistance off the court but test results cleared her of any injuries. She did not miss anytime, which is cause for celebration along with becoming the first player in program history to record 1,500 points, 500 assists and 500 rebounds.
Those numbers are a testament to the all-everything 6-foot-2 point guard’s outstanding career at Maryland which is nearing the end. The No. 19-ranked Terrapins (22-6) close out the regular season at home on Sunday against Ohio State and begin play in the Big Ten Tournament next week in Indianapolis, followed by the NCAA tournament.
Sellers has been a major contributor to Maryland’s success this season. The Terrapins, ranked as high as No. 8 earlier this season, began the season on a 14-game winning streak and winners of 16 out of 17, that included victories over three top-25 ranked teams. During that span, Sellers was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Jan. 20 for her 27 points, nine rebounds and seven assists against then-No. 24 ranked Minnesota. She has scored in double figures in 22 of 26 games. The versatile Sellers leads Maryland’s starters in assists, 3-point percentage and is second in points and in minutes played.
Maryland coach Brenda Frese said Sellers’ development into an all-around player didn’t happen overnight. The biggest jump was in her defense prowess.
“She realized quickly that in order to get on the court, she needed to be able to defend,” said Frese, about Sellers as a freshman. “She found her niche and then you just kind of saw the growth throughout her career.”
Sellers’ growth on defense has given her the confidence to challenge some of the better scorers in college basketball.
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Nearly three hours before tipoff against USC last month, Sellers worked herself up into a lather running drills in preparation for her challenge against All-American sophomore guard JuJu Watkins. Maryland lost by five, but Sellers outscored Watkins 26 to 21.
“Taking on that matchup against the best player is a pride thing,” Sellers said. “You want to be a mismatch for them on offense, and then you want to be able to lock up their best player.”
Earlier in her career, Sellers dared to take on Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, and forced the All-American into a charge on the game’s first play.
“Shy has the ability to make it difficult for the best players to score because of her length, her size to disrupt, and her competitive fire,” Frese said.
Before Sellers’ assertive rise on the collegiate level, her determination developed while trying to tag along with her three older basketball-playing sisters Sydney, Syarra and Shayla. Syarra, now 26, played at Thomas Moore and Shayla, 24, played at Purdue Fort Wayne in Indiana, where she’s currently an assistant coach.
courtesy of Brad Sellers
While the three sisters were honing their craft in youth leagues, an often unwelcome small package was along for the ride.
At practices, and before or after games, there was Shyanne in her Limited Too skirt and pair of LeBron sneakers dribbling on the side of the court. And there were times when she actually attempted to join her sisters on the court during practices or even games.
“She was that little tyke that was so annoying,” said a smiling Sydney, now 29. “I wasn’t allowed to do anything if she wasn’t involved. If I didn’t, I would have been grounded.”
Pushing Shyanne away only intensified her passion. It became an internal competition and the little sister wanted to show that she belonged.
“They didn’t want me around so I had to toughen up really quick,” Sellers said. “They beat me up [on the court] which helped me in the long run, because it showed me that I can compete with anybody and no one’s going to feel sorry for you, not even your siblings.”
Her drive along with all of those hours dribbling on the sideline, and being taught the fundamentals by her dad, helped Shyanne make the transition to the basketball court when she was in kindergarten. Before her growth spurt, she was one of the smaller players, and knowing how to dribble was important if she wanted the ball.
“She always wanted to be the person at the top of the ticket,” Brad Sellers said. “‘I’m going to run the play.’ If she’s playing soccer, ‘I’m going to be the person at the point of the attack.’ That’s who she is.”
Brad Sellers
As her confidence grew, so did her ability on the court. So much so, that in one particular game when she was 5, she showed her mother all she needed to know.
Earlier that day, Shyanne gave her mom a preview.
“She said, ‘Mom, I’m going to go right, then left, then take the ball behind my back, shoot and the crowd will go wow,’ ” Kym Sellers, Shyanne’s mother, said. “Believe it or not, she actually did it in the game. I knew she was a little different.”
Brad Sellers, however, had a different experience with some of Shyanne’s “creative moments.”
Prior to another game, Shyanne spent time consistently dribbling behind her back, which prompted her dad to remind her to play the right way and to keep it basic.
“So she comes off the bench during the game, brings the ball across halfcourt, and as the defender comes up on her, she wraps the ball around her back and looks back at me like ‘I told you,’ ” Brad Sellers said. “I’m thinking, I’m going to ring your neck when we get home.”
Not too long after that correction, it was discovered Shyanne needed corrective lenses. She insisted on contacts but because her parents didn’t believe she was responsible enough, they settled on goggles. Shyanne never enters the court without them.
“Sure, I could get contacts now but I just don’t like touching my eye,” Shyanne said. “Also, [wearing goggles] is my thing now.”
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Shyanne certainly benefited from being taught the game by her dad, who played three of his seven NBA seasons with the Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan. It was Sellers, in his hometown of Cleveland, who made the inbound pass that led to “The Shot,” one of the greatest moments in basketball history.
Shyanne only experienced her father’s career via YouTube, but his insight has been beneficial, and she didn’t take his basketball knowledge for granted or use his NBA career as a crutch.
“When teammates find out my dad played, they want to know why I didn’t say anything,” Shyanne said. “I tell them I’m building my own story because I don’t want to be caught in his shadow. I want to write my own story.”
Shyanne’s story also includes the inspiration she gets from her mom Kym Sellers, a former radio personality in Cleveland, who has battled multiple sclerosis for many years. Shyanne and her sisters honor their mother with tattoos that say “living strong, fighting long, ’til MS is gone.”
“I learned from my mom on how to be tough and how anything’s possible,” Shyanne said. “She could’ve let this illness train wreck her life, but she fights every day.”
Through the years, Shyanne remained on track and continued to develop. She became Aurora (Ill.) High School’s all-time scoring leader in just the second game of her junior season. She was ranked as the No. 22 recruit in the nation when she signed with Maryland. She won the Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year award in her first season at Maryland, was named All-Big Ten First Team her sophomore year, and led the team in scoring, rebounding and assists last season. All of that has put her in position to become a top-10 pick in the upcoming WNBA draft.
Coincidentally, Sellers could begin her professional career with the Chicago Sky in the same city where her father started his NBA career.
“Now that would be crazy,” said Brad Sellers, who has been the mayor of Warrensville, Ohio, since 2011. “My family is the beneficiaries of that journey in Chicago, and here the Sellers could be going back to Chicago to play again.”