Hall of Fame
Karen Mills was one of the top guards in the early history of UTC women’s basketball. A two-time All-American, she played in 109 games from 1978-81 and is one of only two in program history with 1,000 points, 500 assists and 300 steals.
She still holds UTC’s single-season and career assists marks. She posted 262 as a junior in 1980 and 234 as a senior in 1981, on her way to finishing with 787 for her career. Her 20 against Tennessee Tech on Jan. 29, 1981 is still tied for the Mocs’ single-game mark.
Mills is second all-time at UTC with 332 steals. Her 96 as a sophomore in 1979-80 is still fifth on UTC’s single-season list.
Mills was named second team All-American by the American Women's Sports Foundation in both 1980 and 1981.
After graduation, Mills went on to a long career as a standup comic and entertainer. She can be heard daily on Sirius / XM Comedy channels and clips from her Comedy special “Pink Pants” have gotten over 15 million views. Karen has also had numerous appearances on The Grand Ole Opry.
