Anita_Ortega
Anita Ortega
American basketball player and law enforcement officer
Anita Ortega is an American-Puerto Rican former basketball player and law enforcement officer. She played college basketball at UCLA[1] where she won the 1978 AIAW championship. She later played professionally in the Women's Professional Basketball League before starting a career as a law enforcement officer with the Los Angeles Police Department.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American / Puerto Rican |
| Listed height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Los Angeles High School (Los Angeles, California) |
| College | UCLA (1975–1979) |
| Position | Guard |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1979–1981 | San Francisco Pioneers |
| 1981 | Minnesota Fillies |
| As coach: | |
| 1981–1983 | UCLA (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
College career
Ortega was a four year starter at UCLA from 1975 to 1979. During her junior year, she won the 1978 AIAW championship.[2]
Professional career
Ortega played in the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL), the first women's professional basketball league in the United States, from 1979 to 1981. During her first season with the San Francisco Pioneers, she averaged 24.1 points 5.2 assists per game and was selected both to the All-Pro team and to the 1980 WBL All-Star Game. In 1981, she was traded to the Minnesota Fillies.[2][3]
National team career
In 1979, she played in the Pan American Games, representing Puerto Rico.[citation needed]
After the WBL folded in 1981, Ortega returned to the UCLA as an assistant coach. She left coaching to attend the police academy and later served in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) from 1984 until her retirement in 2016.[2][4]
Her father was born in Bayamón.[citation needed]
College statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-79 | UCLA | 34 | 548 | 43.3% | 69.4% | 5.0 | 3.8 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 16.1 |
| 1977-78 | UCLA | 29 | 535 | 49.9% | 61.3% | 4.4 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 18.4 |
| 1976-77 | UCLA | 23 | 340 | 45.4% | 61.7% | 5.8 | 1.7 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 14.8 |
| 1975-76 | UCLA | 23 | 328 | 44.7% | 61.8% | 5.6 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 14.3 |
| Career | UCLA | 109 | 1751 | 45.9% | 64.1% | 5.1 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 16.1 |
Source[5]
- Natalie Heavren (25 September 2022). "Anita Ortega: A Pioneer in more ways than one". thenexthoops.com. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- Scott Ostler (28 November 2022). "How S.F. Pioneers fought for pay, broke stereotypes and played to epic end". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- Eric Sondheimer (13 November 2014). "Former L.A. High and UCLA standout Anita Ortega to retire from LAPD". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- "UCLA Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-09-05.