On Thursday, the Big Ten Network announced it’s on-air talent and programming lineup for the 2021-22 season. This year lineup will be a mix of new and familiar voices with deep knowledge of the Big Ten Conference, including Indiana Fever forward and Ohio State legend Jantel Lavender, who first joined the network as analyst during the 2019-20 Big Ten basketball season.
A former Big Ten standout, Lavender was named the Big Ten Player of the Year all four seasons at Ohio State. She is the only player in Big Ten history, male or female, to accomplish such a feat.
Additionally, she was just OSU’s second three-time All-American in women’s basketball program history, and is the school’s all-time scoring leader with 2,818 points and the Big Ten’s all-time rebounding leader with 1,422.
Drafted fifth overall by the Los Angeles Sparks in the 2011 WNBA Draft, Lavender has gone onto win a WNBA Championship, as well as the Sixth Woman of the Year award with the Sparks in 2016.
In August of 2020, Lavender was acquired by the Fever via trade from the Chicago Sky and in early February of 2021 she signed a multi year deal with the Fever. In her first year with the Fever, Lavender averaged 6.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 20.0 minutes per contest in 27 games, while starting 14 times.
Big Ten basketball season tips off on Tuesday, November 9th, 2021.