Lincoln native Melissa Sanford earned a letter as a freshman on Nebraska's 1987-88 Big Eight championship team. The 5-10 guard/forward appeared in 15 games, averaging 1.1 points and 0.9 rebounds per game. She shot 31.3 percent from the field, including 50 percent (2-4) from three-point range. She was also a perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line, while adding 10 assists, six steals and two blocked shots on the season.
Sanford saw playing time in five Big Eight Conference games, connecting on 2-of-6 field goal attempts, while pulling down six rebounds. She also dished out six assists and snagged three steals during league action.
One of the top high school players in Nebraska as a senior at Lincoln East High School, Sanford was named the captain of the Lincoln Journal Star's Super-State team in 1986-87. She led the Spartans to the state title by averaging 16.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game on her way to All-America honors. In 1984, Sanford was the national AAU free throw champion. She was also a three-year honor roll student at Lincoln East.
The daughter of Gary and Cheri Sanford, Melissa was born May 19, 1969, in Lincoln. Sanford chose Nebraska over Arizona State, Iowa State, Creighton and Indiana.
Sanford's Career Statistics
Year
G-GS
FG-FGA
Pct.
3P-3PA
Pct.
FT-FTA
Pct.
TRB-Avg.
PF-D
A
TO
Blk
ST
Pts-Avg.
1987-88 15-0 5-16 .313 2-4 .500 4-4 1.00 13-0.9 12-0 10 13 2 6 16-1.1Career
15-0
5-16
.313
2-4
.500
4-4
1.00
13-0.9
12-0
10
13
2
6
16-1.1