Former WNBA Player Chelsey Perry Joins TU Coaching Staff

UPLAND, Ind. – The Taylor women's basketball program has finalized its coaching staff for the 2024-2025 season with the addition of Chelsey Perry as an assistant coach, recently announced by head coach Cassie Wiseman.

Perry is a former WNBA player for the Indiana Fever, by whom the forward was drafted and played six games for during the 2021 season. She averaged 2.2 points, 1.0 rebounds and 0.5 steals during her stint with the Fever.

Prior to joining the WNBA, Perry was a standout player for four years (2017 through 2021) at the University of Tennessee at Martin of the Ohio Valley Conference.

While at UT Martin, Perry made the OVC All-Newcomer Team her freshman season and was named the OVC Player of the Year both her junior and senior years. Perry racked up numerous other accolades, including twice being named UT Martin's Female Athlete of the Year, being recognized as a semifinalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year, earning 13 OVC Player of the Week honors and garnering a spot on the 2021 WNIT All-Tournament Team.

Perry left the Skyhawks as the program's all-time leader in blocks with 228, and she ranked third all-time with 1,963 points. The forward from Middleton, Tennessee, became the first player drafted in UT Martin history and stood as the highest WNBA draft selection in OVC history when she was picked 26th overall by the Fever.

Additionally, Perry spent the 2022-2023 season playing overseas for Magnolia La Molisana Campobasso, based out of Campobasso, Italy, in the Italian Serie A1.

She has previous coaching experience working with third, fourth and seventh graders at Marlin Academy, which focuses on Christ-centered training and development of young athletes.

"We are thrilled to add Chelsey to the Taylor University coaching staff.  Her incredible playing experience and knowledge of the game of basketball is outstanding and pushes us forward in our pursuit of excellence.  Chelsey also has a huge heart for serving and mentoring our team.  She will assist in multiple ways this year including recruiting, post player development and defensive coordinator," said Wiseman.

Perry joins another professional basketball player, second-year assistant Rachel McLimore, in rounding out the coaching staff ahead of the 2024-2025 season, which is set to tip off in Upland, Indiana, on Oct. 25.