MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University women’s basketball coach Dawn Plitzuweit has announced the signing of Danni Nichols to a grant-in-aid for the 2022-23 academic year.
A 5-foot-10 guard from Columbia, Missouri, Nichols comes to West Virginia as a graduate transfer from Western Illinois. In four seasons with the Leathernecks, Nichols played in 113 games, with 101 starts, and scored 1,344 points. She carries a scoring average of 11.9 points per game and shows a career shooting percentage of 50.2%, including 33.1% from 3-point range. Of note, Nichols shot 45.4% or better during each of her four years at WIU.
Additionally, Nichols hauled in 477 rebounds, dished out 186 assists and tallied 154 steals during her career at Western Illinois. She tallied 40 or more steals in three of her four seasons with the Leathernecks.
Nichols comes to Morgantown with multiple All-Summit League Honors, including being a Second Team All-Summit League selection in 2021-22 and the 2019 Summit League Freshman of the Year. She will have one year of eligibility remaining.
“Danni is a very driven individual and that encompasses every aspect of her life,” Plitzuweit said. “We have coached against Danni for the past four seasons, so we are fully aware of her versatility on the court and her relentlessness. Her experience, her competitive drive and her ability to score in many different ways will be a great fit for us moving forward. We look forward to having Danni on our campus soon, and we can’t wait to welcome Danni’s entire family to our Mountaineer program!”
In 2021-22, Nichols played in and started 29 games for WIU, while leading the Leathernecks in scoring with 15.8 points per game. She also tallied seven 20-point games during her senior campaign and ranked fourth in the Summit League in scoring. Nichols matched her career high in points twice a year ago with a 27-point performance against Southern Illinois on Dec. 2, 2021, and once more against Omaha on Dec. 22, 2021.
She also tallied a career-best 10 rebounds on Dec. 20, 2021, against Denver to go along with 19 points.
Nichols finished the 2021-22 season with 15.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game, which earned her a spot on the All-Summit League Second Team.
As a junior in 2020-21, Nichols played in and started 24 games, tying for the team lead in minutes (727) and minutes per game (30.3). She also finished second on the team in points (273), scoring average (11.4), free throws made (67) and rebounds (112). Nichols also tallied 10-plus points in 15 games in 2020-21, including 10 times in Summit League play.
Her 2020-21 season high in points came on Feb. 13, 2021, when she netted 24 against Denver.
In 2019-20, Nichols played in and started all 30 games for WIU in which she averaged 12 points per game, good for third on the team and 11th in the Summit League. She recorded her first career double-double on Jan. 24, 2020, with 24 points and 10 rebounds against Omaha. Her season-best in points came on Jan. 26, 2020, against North Dakota when she tallied 26.
Nichols finished the 2019-20 campaign ranked second on the team in free throws made (78) and assists (57). Additionally, she was third on the team in minutes per game (29) and rebounds (93).
After redshirting in 2017-18, Nichols began her career at Western Illinois as a freshman in 2018-19, when she appeared in all 30 contests for the Leathernecks and averaged 8.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
At the end of her redshirt freshman campaign, Nichols was named to the Summit League All-Newcomer Team and also was tabbed the Summit League Freshman of the Year.
Prior to her time at WIU, Nichols attended David H. Hickman High School in Columbia, where she averaged 16.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.4 steals per game during her career. A Missouri Class 5 All-District and All-State selection in 2017, she also lettered in golf and track during her high school career.
The daughter of Barry and Karen Nichols, Danni finished her time at David H. Hickman High as a member of the 1,000-point club and the Hickman Athletic Hall of Fame.