Yvonne Turner

Turner's Honors 

• Big 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year (2010)
• First-Team All-Big 12 (2010)
• Three-Time Big 12 All-Defensive Team (2008, 2009, 2010)
• Big 12 Player of the Week (Jan. 18, 2010)
• Sixth Player at NU with 1,000 Points, 200 Assists, 200 Steals
• No. 27 on Nebraska Career Scoring List (1,101)
• No. 4 on Nebraska Career Three-Point List (183)
• No. 5 on Nebraska Career Steals List (229)
• No. 2 on Nebraska Senior Single-Season Three-Point List (82, 2010)
• Big 12 Leader with 2.6 Steals Per Game in League Games Only (2008)
• No. 2 on Nebraska Sophomore Single-Season Steals List (81, 2008)
• No. 8 on Nebraska Single-Season Steals List (81, 2008)
• Nebraska NCAA Tournament Three-Point Record (5 vs. Maryland, 2008)
• Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (Fall 2009)
• WBCA High School All-American (2006)
• Nebraska Gatorade High School Player of the Year (2006)
• No. 46 Point Guard Prospect in the Nation (All-Star Girls Report, 2005)
• No. 184 Player in the Nation (All-Star Girls Report, 2005)
• MVP Westcoast Showcase (2005)
• Two-Time First-Team All-Nebraska (Omaha World-Herald, 2005, 2006)
• Two-Time First-Team Super-State (Lincoln Journal Star, 2005, 2006)
• First-Team Class A All-State (2005, 2006)
• First-Team All-Metro Conference (2005, 2006)

Senior (2009-10)
Yvonne Turner placed her name among the best guards in Nebraska history with an outstanding senior season for the Huskers. The 2010 Big 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year not only claimed her third straight appearance on the Big 12's five-play All-Defensive Team, she also earned first-team All-Big 12 accolades for the first time in her career.   

Turner became just the sixth player in Nebraska history to produce 1,000 points, 200 assists and 200 steals in a career, while helping the Huskers to the best season in school history. Turner, a 5-8 guard out of Omaha, helped Nebraska to a 32-2 overall record heading into the 2010 NCAA Tournament, including a perfect 16-0 Big 12 mark to claim the school's first-ever Big 12 regular-season crown. Along the way, she helped the Huskers tie the Big 12 record with a 30-game winning streak - 21 games longer than the previous top streak in NU history. She also helped shoot the Huskers to their first No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, as Nebraska took the top seed in the Kansas City Region.

Along with leading the Huskers on the defensive end, Turner tied Iowa State's Kelsey Bolte for the Big 12 lead with 2.8 threes per game in regular-season league play. Turner hit 82-of-225 threes on the year (36.4 percent), and averaged 13.9 points and 2.4 steals in Big 12 action. For the season, she averaged 11.6 points per game, to go along with 3.4 boards per game. She led the Huskers with 63 steals on the year, while adding 53 assists and four blocks.

Turner ranks No. 4 on Nebraska's career three-point list with 183, trailing only former teammate Kiera Hardy, 2014 first-team All-American Jordan Hooper and Hannah Whitish (2017-20). Turner also ascended to fifth on NU's career steals list with 229. Turner ranks No. 27 on Nebraska's career scoring list with 1,101 points, joining fellow first-team All-Big 12 seniors Kelsey Griffin and Cory Montgomery in the Huskers' 1,000-point club.

Turner scored eight or more points in 28 of NU's 34 games this season, including 21 games in double figures. She also hit two or more threes on 23 occasions.

She earned the first Big 12 Player-of-the-Week honor of her career after scoring a season-high 22 points on a career-high six three-points in NU's win at No. 9 Baylor on Jan. 17. She added a season-best four steals against the Lady Bears. That followed a 21-point effort, including five three-pointers, in NU's win over No. 19 Texas. She added a 20-point effort with six more threes against Kansas State on Jan. 23.

Turner contributed 19 points and four steals in a win at Missouri on Feb. 13. She struck for 17 points with three rebounds and two steals in just 21 minutes while winning a head-to-head battle with All-American Andrea Riley in NU's 21-point win over No. 10 Oklahoma State on Feb. 3. She added 17 points and a season-best four assists at UNLV on Nov. 15. She had 16 points and seven rebounds against Washington State.

Turner struck for 15 points, four rebounds and two crucial steals in Nebraska's comeback win at Kansas on Feb. 10. She hit a trio of three-pointers against the Jayhawks. She added 15 more against Missouri on Feb. 27. She pitched in 14 points apiece against both Iowa State (Jan. 9) and Idaho State, and added 14 points in Nebraska's Big 12 Tournament semifinal loss to No. 11 Texas A&M on March 13.

Turner added 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from long range against South Dakota on Dec. 3, before producing 11 points at Vermont on Jan. 4. She added 10 points with a trio of threes in a win at previously unbeaten Miami on Dec. 5. She also pitched in 10 points in a win over Northern Illinois. She contributed nine points and matched a career high with nine rebounds in a win over Albany on Dec. 30.

As a junior, Turner carried more of the scoring load after a season-ending injury to two-time All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin. Turner averaged 11.7 points per game, while ranking among the top 10 players in the Big 12 in both steals (67) and three-pointers (57). Her success came despite playing with a shoulder injury that required surgery immediately following the season.

"Vonnie was one of the top defensive guards in the Big 12 and she continued to improve offensively throughout her career," Nebraska Coach Connie Yori said.

Junior (2008-09)
Turner ranked second on the team in scoring with 11.7 points per game, while adding 3.4 rebounds per contest. She led NU and ranked fourth in the Big 12 with 2.2 steals per game while adding 1.8 assists per contest.

She earned a spot on the Big 12 All-Defensive Team for the second straight season. Turner had at least one steal in each of the last six games, including a season-high six against Kansas in the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament on March 12. She had two or more steals in 20 of NU's 31 games.

Offensively, Turner scored in double figures 20 times, and ranked 20th in the Big 12 in scoring, including 13th in Big 12 games only with 12.7 points per game.

She erupted for a career-high 26 points to go along with five rebounds, two steals and an assist to lead Nebraska to a road win at Oklahoma State on March 7. She knocked down a career-best nine shots from the field on just 14 attempts against the Cowgirls, including 4-of-8 shooting from three-point range.

Turner added 21 points and four steals at No. 16 Texas on Jan. 14, while pouring in 19 points and two steals in just 19 minutes in a win over Long Beach State on Dec. 12. She hit 8-of-10 shots against the 49ers, including 2-of-4 three-pointers. She added 17-point scoring efforts against No. 8 Baylor on Feb. 4, and in a home win over Colorado on March 3.

Turner added 15 points, five assists, four steals and three rebounds in a win at Denver on Nov. 24, and added 15 points and two steals in a loss at LSU on Jan. 1.

She dished out a season-high seven assists at Colorado on Jan. 31, and grabbed a season-high nine rebounds in a win over Butler on Nov. 28.

Turner ranked among Big 12 leaders with 57 made three-pointers on the year, despite suffering an injured shoulder early in the season, which she re-injured during the heart of conference play. She managed to knock down 31.8 percent (57-179) of her long-range attempts, despite missing 19 consecutive threes after re-injuring the shoulder in the second half against Iowa State on Jan. 24. Despite the mid-season injury, Turner still hit 34 percent (34-100) of her attempts in the Big 12.

She opened league play by hitting 10-of-19 three-pointers in the first three games, and added two first-half threes against Iowa State. She missed the rest of her attempts against ISU, then went a combined 0-for-13 from long range at Kansas State and Colorado.

She went 3-for-8 from long range to open February against No. 8 Baylor, before going 0-for-3 at Texas A&M. She knocked down at least one three in each remaining regular-season game, including four at OSU, three each in wins over Missouri, No. 20 Kansas State and Colorado, and two each against Texas Tech and Iowa State. Over the last seven Big 12 games, Turner hit 46.7 percent (21-45) of her three-point tries to help NU go 5-2 down the stretch.

Turner continued to improve her accuracy at the free throw line on the year, hitting 70.4 percent (69-98) on the season, including an 80.4 percent (41-51) in the Big 12, which ranked seventh in league-only games.

Sophomore (2007-08)
Turner started all 33 games and ranked third on the team with 8.4 points per game, while leading NU in steals (81) and three-pointers made (37). She was even better in Big 12 play, averaging 9.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and a Big 12-best 2.6 steals per game, which earned her a spot on the Big 12 All-Defensive Team.

She capped her year with a season-high 23 points, six assists and four rebounds in NU's second-round NCAA Tournament battle at top-seeded Maryland. She hit a season-best and NU NCAA Tournament record five three-pointers (5-of-9) against the Terrapins.

Turner's finale was one of 12 double-digit scoring efforts with eight of those coming in Big 12 play. She had 11 points, five rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes in a win over Mississippi on Nov. 11. Six days later, she had a career-high eight steals in a win over Florida. She had 10 points, four steals and three assists in a win at Long Beach State on Dec. 15, before producing 10 points, five rebounds, five assists and eight steals in a win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Jan. 2.

Turner opened Big 12 play with nine points, five rebounds and six steals in a 56-45 win over No. 15 Texas on Jan. 9, before adding seven points and five more steals in a 20-point win over Kansas on Jan. 12.

After producing an amazing 19 steals in a three-game span, Turner erupted for a then-career-high 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting at No. 11 Oklahoma on Jan. 16. She hit 3-of-5 threes against the Sooners, after opening the season just 7-of-38 from long range.

Turner's hot hand continued the rest of the season, as she finished league play in a tie for fourth in Big 12 games-only at 39.3 percent from long range.

She helped the Huskers to their first win at Iowa State in a decade by connecting on 3-of-4 three-pointers to finish with 10 points and a season-high seven rebounds, to go along with five assists and two steals on Jan. 19.

Turner had 11 points, four boards, three assists and six steals to carry the Huskers to a 73-60 win over No. 21 Texas A&M on Jan. 23. In a comeback win at Missouri on Feb. 3, Turner scored eight of her nine points in the final five minutes to lead the Huskers back from a 14-point deficit with eight minutes left to a 73-67 win.

She followed her effort at Missouri with a 14-point, four-steal performance in a win at Colorado on Feb. 6.

Turner added 18 points and snagged four steals in a head-to-head showdown with OSU's Andrea Riley on Feb. 10. Turner added 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field in just 20 minutes at Kansas on Feb. 17, before adding nine points, six boards, two assists and two steals in NU's win over Missouri on Feb. 21.

At Kansas State on Feb. 27, Turner set a career high with nine assists while matching her season best with seven rebounds against the Wildcats. She added a team-high 11 points and two steals in the Huskers' victory over Iowa State to complete a season sweep of the Cyclones on March 5. Turner pitched in 14 points in NU's loss to Kansas at the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Mo., on March 11.

Freshman (2006-07)
Turner appeared in 28 games, including all 16 Big 12 contests, the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments. She averaged 2.3 points, 1.6 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 0.6 steals in 12 minutes per contest, despite being slowed early by a stress fracture in her foot during the preseason.

She scored a season-high eight points, including two three-pointers, to go along with four rebounds, an assist and a season-best three steals in a season-high 26 minutes against Texas Tech on Feb. 14. Six days later, she added seven points on 3-for-3 shooting to go along with three rebounds at Iowa State on Feb. 20.

She scored six points, grabbed four rebounds and snagged one steal to help NU to a 90-70 Senior Night win over Colorado in Lincoln on Feb. 27.

Early in the year, she scored six points and tied her season highs with five rebounds and three steals in a win over Texas-Pan American on Nov. 28, after setting season highs with six assists and five boards in a win over Florida Atlantic on Nov. 12.

During Turner's first six games she committed 18 of her 38 turnovers on the season. She turned it over just 20 times in her final 22 games.

High School
A WBCA High School All-American, Turner led Bellevue East to the 2006 Class A state title after averaging 15.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.7 steals per game for Coach Scott Jensen and the Chieftains.

She shot 51 percent from the field as a senior, including 34 percent from three-point range. She led Bellevue East to three straight Class A state title games, winning her first state championship as a senior.

Turner was one of 20 high school players to compete in the WBCA High School All-America Game at the NCAA Women's Final Four in Boston in 2006. She was the first player from Nebraska chosen since 2001.

Turner was named the honorary captain of the Lincoln Journal Star's Super-State squad. She was a two-time first-team All-Nebraska and Super-State performer, and a two-time first-team Class A all-state selection.

As a junior, Turner averaged 13.7 points, 5.7 assists and 4.9 steals per game for the Chieftains in 2004-05. She was ranked as the No. 46 point guard prospect in the nation and the No. 184 overall prospect by the All-Star Girls Report. She moved to point guard from shooting guard during her junior year after the team's point guard suffered an injury. Turner helped the Chieftains finish as the Class A runner-up while ending the year 24-3.

Turner played for the Daubert-Pinnacle All-Star team that won the Junior National Tournament in Washington, D.C., during the summer of 2005. She was named the MVP of the Westcoast Showcase. She played for the Daubert-Pinnacle All-Star team in 2003, 2004 and 2005, and added experience with the Omaha Crusaders in 2005.

She began her high school career at Millard South, where she scored 21 points in her varsity debut as a freshman. She averaged 14.3 points as a freshman to earn honorable-mention All-Nebraska accolades.

Personal
The daughter of Euvon Turner and Vanessa Johnson and stepfather Jay Johnson, Yvonne was born Oct. 13, 1987, in Omaha, Neb. She has three brothers, Anthony Canion, Robert Canion and Euvon Turner, and one sister, Alishya Turner.

Yvonne was a child, youth and family studies major, and an education minor. She graduated in May of 2010, and earned a spot on the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll in the fall of 2009. Turner chose Nebraska after receiving offers from more than 20 Division I schools.

A member of the Seattle Storm, Turner competed in her fifth WNBA season in 2023. She started the 2022 season with the Minnesota Lynx before competing for the Atlanta Dream and ending 2022 with the Phoenix Mercury. She returned to Phoenix after a two-year WNBA absence caused by COVID-19 and a knee injury suffered in February of 2020. 

In 2019, Turner averaged career highs of 6.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists while appearing in 29 games with 14 starts for the Mercury. In 2018, she was a playoff starter for the Mercury for the second straight year. In 2017, Turner averaged 9.8 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steal in the playoffs, while averaging 5.1 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.1 assist for the season.

A 13-year professional veteran overseas, Turner competed for Sopron (Hungary) and Polkowice (Poland) in 2022-23. She averaged 10 points and 3.3 assists for Mersin (Turkey) in her return from injury in 2021-22. Turner played with Nadezhda Orenburg (Russia) in 2019-20, leading the team in scoring (14.3 ppg) while adding 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals before her knee injury.

She played with Sopron (Hungary) for three seasons, averaging 13.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.6 steals in 2018-19. She led Sopron to the EuroLeague championship game as the league's top point guard in 2017-18. She played in Australia (Bundaburg, 2010-11), Germany (USC Freiburg, 2010-11, 2011-12), Russia (Dynamo GUVD Novosibirsk, 2012-13), Turkey (Antkya, 2013-14), Spain (Mann Filter Zaragoza, 2014-15) and Poland (TS Wisla Can-Pack Krakow) in 2015-16. She had WNBA Training Camp contracts with San Antonio (2013) and Chicago (2014).

Turner earned her bachelor's degree from Nebraska in May 2010 after majoring in child, youth and family studies.A first-team WBCA High School All-American out of Bellevue East, Turner was the 2006 Gatorade Nebraska High School Player of the Year. 

 Turner'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.
2006-07	28-0	20-59	.339	7-27	.259	18-30	.600	44-1.6	36-0	19	38	2	18	65-2.3
2007-08	33-33	96-216	.444	37-114	.325	48-73	.658	110-3.3	74-0	74	87	9	81	277-8.4
2008-09	31-31	119-317	.375	57-179	.318	69-98	.704	106-3.4	80-1	57	96	8	67	364-11.7
2009-10	34-31	134-337	.398	82-225	.364	45-68	.662	117-3.4	73-3	53	66	4	63	395-11.6
Career	126-95	369-929	.397	183-545	.336	180-269	.669	377-3.0	263-4	206	287	23	229	1,101-8.7