BYU's Purcell one of two invited to Dallas Wings training camp

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Wings announced today the team signed Brigham Young University forward Kalani Purcell and University of Texas center Kelsey Lang to training camp contracts.

Dallas Wings Release

“We look forward to Kalani and Kelsey joining a highly competitive training camp,” Wings President and Chief Executive Officer Greg Bibb stated. “We are excited to open camp on April 23 with a deep and talented roster.”

Purcell, a 6-2 native of Hamilton, New Zealand, joins the Wings after a stellar career in Provo. In her two seasons at BYU, she was named to the All-WCC Women’s Basketball First Team (2016 & 2017), where she ranked as the top rebounder for the West Coast Conference. A transfer from Hutchinson Community College, Purcell became BYU’s single-season record holder in total rebounds with 416 boards (12.6 average), and was named 2015-16 WCC Newcomer of the Year.

This past season she once again led the Cougars and WCC in rebounds and finished her senior campaign averaging 12.7 points per game and 10.5 rebounds per contest, earning the 2016-17 WCC Women’s Basketball Defensive Player of the Year award.

Purcell topped the leaderboard in rebounds, assists, blocks and double-doubles both seasons with BYU. Her 18 double-doubles in 2016 were the most by any BYU player in a season. She was third on the team in scoring in her two years as a Cougar while her career total of 753 rebounds ranks seventh all-time at BYU. Her 11.6 career rebounds per game average places her second all-time in BYU's record books.

This season Purcell finished the year ranked third nationally in defensive rebounds per game, 16th in rebounds per game, and 17th in total rebounds and double-doubles.

Lang, a 6-5 native of The Woodlands, TX, joins the Wings after a four-year campaign with the Longhorns. She played a pivotal role since her freshman year, helping to pace a team that made four consecutive NCAA tournaments.

This season she was named to the All-Big 12 honorable mention team, finishing second in the conference in blocks (2.3 per game). On February 4, 2017, she became the 41st member of the school’s 1,000-point club, finishing her career at Texas with 1,086 points. Overall, Lang averaged 9.3 points per game, 7.6 rebounds per contest and shot 53.1 percent from the field, while ranking sixth on UT’s all-time block list with 190.