McKinley grad Kierstan Bell drafted in WNBA Draft first round by Las Vegas Aces

Kierstan Bell achieved another significant milestone Monday night.

The McKinley High School graduate became the first Stark County player selected in the first round of the WNBA Draft. The Las Vegas Aces drafted the 6-foot-1 Bell with the 11th pick of the first round. She starred for the last two years at Florida Gulf Coast University,

"I'm going to go in there with an open mind," Bell said. "I'm going to be willing to learn. It's going to be a different pace of the game. Different things have been going on in the WNBA, and that's just an opportunity to learn from the great players that are playing on that team, and I think that's going to help me become a better player."

Bell was AP All-America Honorable Mention for a second straight season this past winter, despite dealing with a knee surgery midway into the regular season. She averaged 23.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game and became the first player to repeat as the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year winner.

Hammon, a former six-time WNBA All-Star, will now be Bell's coach in the WNBA. The Aces hired her on Dec. 31, 2021 after Hammon's long run as one of Gregg Popovich's top assistant coaches with the NBA's San Antonio Spurs. Bell hadn't spoken to anyone from the Aces and it surprised her when they drafted her.

"That is so crazy. I didn't expect it, but it's an honor to be under a coach like that," Bell said." She is a great coach and I am ready to work with her and play for the Las Vegas Aces"

Bell, who scored 24.3 points a game in 2020-21, led FGCU to the NCAA Tournament each of the last two years. The Eagles won the ASUN Conference regular-season and tournament titles this past season before beating Virginia Teach in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Alliance native was one of five finalists for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award as the nation’s top shooting guard.

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At McKinley, she became Ohio's only three-time Ms. Basketball and broke Stark County's career scoring record. She began her college career at Ohio State, earning a spot on the All-Big Ten Freshman Team and was honorable mention All-Big Ten. She transferred to FGCU following her freshman year.

The Alliance native is the first Stark athlete drafted in the first round of a major pro sports league since CJ McCollum of GlenOak was the 10th pick of the 2013 NBA Draft.

The last high pick in a pro league from the county was Jackson grad Dillon Dingler being taken with the first pick of the second round in the 2020 MLB Draft.

Former McKinley star Ameryst Alston — who had many of her school records broken by Bell — was the first Stark player drafted by a WNBA team. She was selected by the New York Liberty in the second round (24th overall) in 2016 after starring at Ohio State.

Bell now becomes the county's first player drafted in the first round.

"I think it's an honor to be the first, but definitely won't be the last," Bell said.

Bell was the Aces' second pick in the first round. Mya Hollingshed of Colorado was selected three spots ahead of her. Bell also will be playing with three-time WNBA All-Star A'ja Wilson. With Bell's versatility, she believes she will bring more to the table to a team that finished second in the WNBA standings (24-8).

"Just my confidence," Bell said of what she'll bring to the Aces. "I'm versatile, played many positions and it just gives me the opportunity to learn from the best of the best. You know A'ja Wilson is on this team, so that's an opportunity to learn from her. They have great players on that team, and it's just an honor to be playing for them."

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Las Vegas Aces draft Kierstan Bell No. 11 overall in WNBA draft