Nikki Jessee
Assistant CoachAlma Mater: Rollins, 1999
E-mail: njessee@ut.edu
Office Phone: 8132573645
Nikki Jessee is in her first season as an assistant coach at UT after previously serving as a collegiate head coach for the past five seasons. In addition to her full involvement in day-to-day operations, Jessee specializes in recruiting and guard development. No stranger to the Sunshine State Conference, Jessee has spent a total of five years in the SSC as both a player and head coach.
Last season, Jessee led Lynn University to a 16-12 record after successfully guiding the Fighting Knights to a 16-12 record and its first ever NCAA Women’s Basketball Coaches Association national poll recognition in 2007-08. With an overall record of 32-24 at the helm of the Fighting Knights, Jessee was the first Lynn coach in 13 years to post consecutive winning seasons.
In her first year patrolling the sidelines, Jessee became the third coach in school history for any sport to begin her career 8-0 while the team’s 14-2 start tied a program mark. The Fighting Knights scored the most points since the 2000-01 season and recorded back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in a decade.
Jessee joined the Fighting Knights after three successful years at Martin Methodist College in Pulaski, Tenn., where she went 38-57. In her final year, her team opened the season with its best start in school history (13-2) and later established program records for wins in a season, highest national ranking (No. 27) and wins over top 25 teams (3 upset wins) while also picking up their first conference tournament win and advancing to the semi-finals for the first time. Overall she posted improvements of six games between her first and second years and seven games between her second and third seasons. Jessee’s teams also made huge strides academically as she helped boost the RedHawks’ team grade-point average above 3.0, significantly higher than the 2.02 team GPA before her arrival.
No stranger to the Sunshine State Conference, Jessee enjoyed a stellar three-year career at Rollins College where she helped the Tars to a 63-23 record. In her final season, the Tars posted a 27-3 record, won both the SSC Regular Season and Tournament title and earned a no.1 seed in the NCAA South Regional Tournament. While playing in the SSC she was twice honored as an All-SSC selection, named the SSC Tournament MVP, team MVP, Tars Female Athlete of the Year and Central Florida Female Athlete of the Year. She remains in the top-10 in the Rollins record books for scoring, three-pointers made and percentage, free-throws made and percentage and blocks.
Her career began at the University of Florida where she helped the Gators to the second round of the NCAA Tournament as a freshman. Following graduation, Jessee played professionally for the Bracknell, England Thames Valley Tigers, leading her team in points and rebounds per game.
Prior to her arrival at Martin Methodist College, Jessee coached at Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tenn., where she was the recruiting coordinator from 2003-04. She spent two years (2000-02) at Campbell University, where she helped guide the Lady Camels to an Atlantic Sun Regular Season Championship and runner-up finish at the A-Sun Tournament. Jessee was then named head coach at Lyman High in Orlando, Fla., where she remained for a one year stint before becoming the recruiting coordinator at Tusculum.
A Florida native, she began her coaching career in Lakeland, Fla., where she helped guide George Jenkins High School to the State Finals in the 1999-2000 season.
Jessee was a standout player at Lakeland High School, earning All-America honors, First Team All-State, Miss Florida Runner-up her junior year, Area Player of the Year three times and was ranked as one of the 50 best players in the nation. She is the all-time leading scorer for a career and season at Lakeland High School and also holds the record for most points in a game with 50.
She graduated from Rollins in 1999 with a Bachelors Degree in English and received her Masters from Campbell University in 2001 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. She is the youngest of five children, and has a twin sister.
