Alcorn basketball court to be named after Shirley Walker

The basketball court in the Davey L. Whitney HPER Complex at Alcorn State University will be named in honor of former women's head basketball coach Shirley A. Gibbs-Walker during a halftime ceremony of the Lady Braves basketball contest against Jackson State Saturday, Feb. 7 at 3 p.m.

A bill passed the Mississippi Legislature and was signed into law by Governor Phil Bryant in 2014 that names the court as the Shirley A. Gibbs-Walker Court.

Family, friends, alumni and former players are encouraged to come out and join the Alcorn family for this historic occasion. The naming ceremony will reveal the bronze plaque that will be placed on the arena and Walker's signature that will be permanently affixed to the basketball floor.

Walker, who has more wins than any other women's basketball coach in university history, led the Lady Braves to 493 victories during her 30-year tenure as head coach. Her teams won 12 regular season and six Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) tournament titles and qualified for the NCAA Tournament three times, most recently in the 2004-05 season. In 2014, Walker was honored with the SWAC Alumni Association Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to the conference’s athletic heritage.