The University of Detroit Mercy will induct seven new members into its Hall of Fame in December. The Class of 2014 includes: Perry Watson (coach), Lisa Blackburn (basketball), Lee Knorek (basketball), Mary Latham (Parker) (soccer), Jorge Ferreira (soccer), Kim Hemstreet (cross country) and the 1972 NCAA National Championship men's fencing team. As we count down to Hall of Fame weekend from Dec. 12-13, DetroitTitans.com will feature each of the seven inductees.
 
When you say the name Lisa Blackburn, two words come right to the top – Detroit and basketball. Blackburn was Detroit basketball all the way from her prep days to her time as a Titan and after her graduation as a high school coach in the community.
 
She will always be remembered by her teammates and players as the person who can do it all. A person who saw no challenge too tough or no battle that she couldn't win. A person that cared more about others then herself.
 
Blackburn first came on the scene as a Parade Magazine All-American as a senior at Pershing High School. She was All-State and All-City and in one of her finest performances on the court, she set a Detroit Public School League record with 58 points in a game over Osborn High School.
 
She would later go on to coach high school, returning to Pershing and leading one of the best teams in the city. In 2008, she was named the Detroit Public Schools (PSL) Girls Basketball Coach of the Year by the Detroit Free Press as she guided the Doughgirls to a 19-2 record and a PSL championship.
 
During her tenure, it was noted that some of her girls could not afford transportation or money for uniforms and she promptly donated her own money, provided transportation to school and held fundraisers for her team.

"For children, for whom many had low expectations, some of my girls are going to college on full scholarships," said Blackburn in a news article. "Marshall University, University of Detroit Mercy, Benedict College, Schoolcraft and Wayne County Community College and I couldn't be more proud."
 
"She was a legend in Detroit as a player in high school and at the University," said former UDM standout guard and 2014 graduate Senee Shearer, who played for Blackburn at Pershing. "She was a great influence on not just me, but all of her players and she always had our best interests at heart."
 
In between her prep and coaching career, there was a stop at the University of Detroit and she helped put the young Titan basketball program on the map. She came to the Titans in 1978 – just the second year of women's hoops at Detroit – and was one of the main starters on the squad in all four of her years. She helped U-D record four 20-win seasons, including a school record 27-4 mark during her freshman campaign of 1978-79. The Titans compiled a 95-26 record with wins over nationally ranked programs in No. 3 Kansas (52-46 on Feb. 14, 1981) and No. 9 North Carolina State (60-59 on Dec. 5, 1981). Detroit also owned some of the "big schools" is the Midwest with winning records against Michigan (6-1), Michigan State (4-1), DePaul (4-1), Ohio State (3-1), Indiana (4-0) and Wisconsin (2-0).
 
"She was an incredibly spunky and tough, yet a soft sensitive human being. She was just a terrific person who really gave back by becoming a social worker and basketball coach. She was a team player and a big reason why we beat Kansas and not only because of her offensive game, but her defense against some of their best players including three-time All-American Lynette Woodard," said former Titan head coach Mary Roickle.
 
Her Titan teams won three-straight state titles from 1979-81, and finished runner-up in the regionals in 1979 and 1980. The 1980 Titan squad also became the first to be invited to a national tournament as it earned a bid to the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women's (AIAW) National Tournament.  The Titans were also nationally ranked during the 1978-79 and 1979-80 seasons.
 
She saw action in 104 career games with 99 starts and averaged 13.8 points per game, with her 1,440 career points still ranking still fifth all-time in school history. She is also third in school history with 846 rebounds, seventh with 215 steals and 10th with 294 assists.  
 
"Lisa was very competitive and just had an awesome spirit," said former teammate and Titan All-American Cheryl Williams-Miller. "She had a great sense of humor and was always fun to be around. We had a lot of fun in school and she was a great player and then did a lot for the city as a coach. She is going to be missed."
 
As a freshman, she tallied 18.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in 15 games before a knee injury forced her to miss the rest of the year. She then came back to lead the team in scoring at 16.0 ppg., as a sophomore and leading the team with 9.8 rpg., with 15.1 ppg., as a junior.  
 
She was selected All-State as a junior after earning honorable mention All-State status in her first two years. She was also selected to the Region V All-Tournament squad as a junior and was nominated for the United Foundation's "Sportswomen of the Year" in the fall of 1980.
 
Her career highs were 31 points against Bowling Green in 1981, 18 boards versus Providence in 1980 and 12 assists against No. 3 Kansas in 1981. In that performance against the Jayhawks, she helped the Titans to their first-ever win over a ranked opponent as she tallied a triple double with 12 points, a team-high 16 rebounds and game-best 12 helpers.
 
Blackburn passed away on May 12, 2012, but her memory will never leave historic Calihan Hall and the greatness she brought to the court. On Dec. 13, 2014, she will be just the fifth Titan women's basketball player inducted into the Titan Hall Of Fame, joining former teammates Coretta Daniels, Mary Cicerone (Lillie) and Cheryl Miller (Williams). The other Titan women's basketball player in the Hall of Fame is Detroit's all-time leading scorer Cassandra Pack (1983-87).