Honors: First-team all-MVC (2019)...MVC all-Defensive Team (2018, 2019)...MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team (2019)...MVC all-Tournament Team (2019)...MSU Senior Female Athlete of the Year (2019)...Missouri State Outstanding Female Athlete (2019)...MVC Player of the Week (1/21/19)...NCAA Starting Five (1/23/19)...Athletic Director’s Honor Roll (Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019)...Lady Bears Cheryl Burnett Award (2019)...Lady Bears Team MVP (2019)...Lady Bears Academic Excellence Award (2017)...Lady Bears Most-Improved Player (2018)...MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award (2016, 2017, 2019)...MVC Academic Honor Roll (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019).
Senior/Career Summary: Started all 35 games as a senior, earning First-Team All-MVC and MVC All-Defensive Team honors...Her 35 games played tied a school single-season record...Led the Lady Bears with 13.0 points, 3.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game...Scored in double figures 26 times and was MSU’s top scorer in 15 games...Grabbed 4.3 rebounds per game, with double-doubles against Louisiana Tech (Dec. 20) and at Drake (Feb. 1)...Led MSU in assists 22 times and in steals on 16 occasions...Shot 43 percent overall, 38 percent on 3-pointers and 78 percent from the foul line...Averaged 17.3 points on 51 percent shooting, 5.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the MVC Tournament...Became the 28th Lady Bear with 1,000 career points during the NCAA Tournament first round game against DePaul (March 23)...Finished her career 12th in school history with a 1.23 assist-to-turnover ratio...Ended career with 1,033 points, 478 rebounds, 294 assists and 164 steals, one of five players in school history to reach those numbers in all four categories.
2017-18: Started 29 of her 30 games as a junior, averaging 8.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game...Ranked fourth in the league with a .495 field goal percentage, and earned MVC All-Defensive Team honors with 56 steals and 13 drawn charges...Nabbed multiple steals in seven consecutive games from Dec. 16-Jan. 12...Scored in double figures 16 times, including 10 of the season’s final 13 games...Shot 50 percent or higher from the field in 16 games...Grabbed five or more rebounds 12 times, including 11 boards in a double-double against Indiana State (March 3)...Scored 500th career point on Feb. 23, ending the season with 577 for 57th on MSU’s career scoring list...Led the Lady Bears in assists 13 times and steals on 15 occasions...Had 13 games with three-plus assists and 16 with multiple steals...Handed out five assists at Ball State (Nov. 13), Bradley (Jan. 14) and vs. Valparaiso (Jan. 19)...Swiped five steals in the home win against UNI (Jan. 7)...Scored a season-high 18 points and had nine rebounds in the MVC Tournament against UNI (March 10)...Ranked 12th in the MVC in free throw percentage, going 66-for-92 (.717) from the line on the season.
2016-17: Key contributor to the Lady Bears as a sophomore, averaging 23 minutes per game with 11 starts in 28 contests...Came off the bench in each of her 15 MVC appearances, but ranked second in league games with a .529 shooting percentage to go with averages of 9.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 steals per contest...For the full season, averaged 7.2 points, 4.1 boards and 2.3 assists along with a team-high 38 steals...Scored at least 10 points in eight games, including five in a row from Feb. 12-26...Made 18 consecutive free throws from Feb. 24-26, including a 13-for-14 showing with a career-high 20 points against Indiana State (Feb. 24)...Grabbed 10 rebounds against Evansville (March 10) in the MVC Tournament...Had at least five rebounds in 11 games...Ranked fifth in the MVC in free throw accuracy at 76.5 percent...Had 11 points, six steals, six rebounds and five assists on Feb. 19 at Illinois State...Had six assists versus Middle Tennessee, and at least three helpers in 13 games.
2015-16: Appeared in every game for MSU and joined the starting lineup for the final 19 contests...Averaged 3.2 points and 2.3 rebounds with season totals of 48 assists and 16 steals...Sported a positive assist-to-turnover ratio...Earned her first start and pulled down eight rebounds against UNI (Jan. 10)...Hit the go-ahead free throws with 19 seconds remaining of MSU’s comeback victory over Bradley (Feb. 14)...Scored a season-high 14 points, including a 9-for-10 showing at the foul line, in the MVC Tournament semifinal victory over Drake (March 12)...Shot .733 (33-45) from the free throw stripe for the year...Scored nine points on 4-of-6 shooting against Marist (Nov. 29)...Handed out six assists in both games versus Evansville, scoring nine points in the home victory on Jan. 22, and grabbing six rebounds in the road win on Feb. 21...Grabbed at least three rebounds in 16 contests...Had multiple assists in 12 games.
Background: Three-year starter for Chanhassen High, leaving with school records for career rebounds (500) and steals (274), while ranking second in points (1,118) and assists (252)...Averaged 15.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game as a senior...Chanhassen went 21-7 overall and 13-1 in conference play as she was the Metro West Conference Player of the Year, a Miss Minnesota Basketball semifinalist, and an honorable mention all-state selection...Also an academic all-state pick as a senior and a McDonald’s All-America team nominee...Posted 15.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.5 steals as a junior with game highs of 28 points and 14 boards, earning all-conference and team MVP honors while being named one of the top defensive players in Minnesota by Breakdown Sports USA...Started every game as a sophomore and helped the Storm to its third consecutive conference title while averaging 7.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.4 steals...Averaged 3.5 points and 2.7 boards on her conference-championship team as a freshman...Also an all-conference volleyball player and a state track and field champion in several events.
Personal: Danielle Gitzen is the daughter of Michael and Lora Gitzen...Born Nov. 2, 1996 in Edina, Minn...Has two brothers, Luke and Steven...Father played basketball at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., and brother Steven played at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minn...Majoring in Advertising and Promotion.
