The "Inge Nissen" Challenge

As a part of saturday night skills challenge one player from each team will represent the team in some competitions. One of these competitions is The Inge Nissen Challenge, which is 1 vs 1 tournament with one player from each team in the tournament playing 1 vs 1 on one basket with referee.

For most danish basketballfreaks the name Inge Nissen isnt one of the most known names, but maybe it should be after what she has accomplished in her basketball careèr.

"Nissen finished her career as the school's all-time leader in points (2,647) and rebounds (1,459) -- marks that rank second in the ODU record book today. Her single-game career high of 28 rebounds remains a school record as does her 148 free throws made in a single season and her 518 career free throws. Twice, she scored more than 40 points in a game, and her 20 field goals during the WNIT remains a tournament record. Eight times as a collegian, Nissen scored 32 points or more in a game -- five of those times coming in the postseason.

In 1985, Nissen was inducted into the Old Dominion Hall of Fame and her jersey, No. 42, is one of only five numbers to be retired by ODU. She was selected to ODU's All-Time Lady Monarch squad, as voted by fans on the University's athletic website, in 2006. Nissen was also honored as one of ESPN.com's top-25 players of the pre-NCAA era for her accomplishments with the Lady Monarchs.

In July of 2011, Nissen was named to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2012 along with six others, as announced during the WNBA All-Star Game in San Antonio, Texas.

A native of Denmark, Nissen was one of the top amateur players in Europe in the early 1970s. During that time, she played an important role on five national championship teams with Denmark (1972), Norway (1973) and France (1974, 1975 and 1985) "

 I never got the chance to see her play, but she was the real deal no doubt about that. She most have loved the game since she is coaching right now at FIU Panthers (Florida International University) in the states.

I`m very happy that Inge Nissen allowed us to honor her basketball career in this way. The winner should be proud as a rooster in getting Inge Nissen`s award handed to her at the prize ceremony after the final game.

/Andreas Holmgran