Coach Shirley Walker honored by Mississippi House‎ of Representatives

Shirley Walker was fired from Alcorn State University on May 16, 2008, after 30 years coaching the Lady Braves basketball team. She finished with a 492-336 career record, winning 11 SWAC championships. However, her final years were tarnished by NCAA sanctions in 2006, for multiple NCAA violations.

LORMAN, MS — Former Alcorn State women’s basketball coach Shirley A. Gibbs-Walker was already a coaching legend in the state. But now she has the stamp of approval from the Mississippi House of Representatives. Walker was honored by the House on Tuesday, where a resolution was passed honoring Walker’s accomplishments on and off the basketball court. "I was very surprised,” Walker said of receiving the honor. “It was breathtaking and it brought back some wonderful memories."

In Walker’s 30-year tenure at Alcorn State, the Lady Braves won 11 regular season SWAC championships, seven SWAC tournament championships and participated in the NCAA tournament three times. Walker, an Alcorn alumnus, won 492 career games and was named SWAC Coach of the Year 10 times. In addition to her accomplishments as head coach, Walker also played an important role as a member of several different NCAA committees.

As a member of the NCAA Division I Basketball Committee, Walker worked to help secure an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the champion of the SWAC tournament. "A lot of people don’t know about that,” Walker said. “I’m the one that worked hard and opened the door for SWAC women’s basketball to have an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament."

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