In the news: As Native American athlete, Phoenix b-ball’s Buck inspires

The Green Bay Press-Gazette on Friday (Dec. 6) carried a terrific story about Phoenix women’s basketball player Tesha Buck, one of only a handful of Native American athletes playing hoops at the Division I level. Buck has overcome long odds to get to where she is today, reporter Scott Venci says, as just 25 of more than 10,100 DI players were Native American in 2011-12, when the most recent NCAA race and ethnicity report was completed. Buck didn’t have Native American role models, so she looked up to her father, Rich, himself a great athlete with a tremendous work ethic, the story says. She ended her career at Red Wing (Minn.) High School with a school-record 2,402 points and helped lead her team to the state tournament three times. Buck is now averaging 10 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists as a starter for the Phoenix. Great story.